About Restaurant Openings Around DC
A guide to the newest places to eat and drink.
Cana. 2412 18th St., NW.
Brazilian caipirinha and record bar Cana will open in Adams Morgan on Friday, September 13—but it will do so without one of its original partners and its chef, Robert Curtis. Curtis—the former executive chef of Bourbon Steak whose versatile cooking and humble leadership was widely respected across DC’s food scene—died in July, shortly before Cana was originally slated to open.
“We found ourselves in a bit of a position, of course, digesting it emotionally, but then on a professional side, to continue with the project,” says co-owner Radovan Jankovic. “Robert was an extremely talented guy.”
Beyond the tragedy, Jankovic says Bar Cana also faced some permitting delays and likely wouldn’t have opened until now anyway. He and business partner Marko Bogdanovic—who also run Mercy Me in the West End—have since brought in a new chef: Maximiliano Rivera Papic, who recently moved to DC from Barcelona and has Croatian and Chilean heritage. While Papic’s professional career has focused on Chilean, Peruvian, and Middle Eastern cuisines, he had traveled to Brazil and was up to the challenge of creating a Brazilian menu in a month a half.
The new menu includes classic dishes like salt-cod croquettes (bolinho de bacalhau), but Papic puts a Spanish twist on them with a creamy béchamel. Other croquettes use duck leg with piri piri aioli. A vegan take on ceviche comes with heart of palm and burnt avocado with a mango leche de tigre. Larger dishes include a smoked and fried cornish hen with smoky biquinho peppers as well as a charcoal-grilled steak served with a side of farofa (yucca flour sautéed with with butter, onions, and garlic).
“The food is fairly simple, bistro-ish, and a bit rustic versus refined and innovative. We still kept that classic way of plating,” Jankovic says.
The cocktail menu will remain largely as planned, with a focus on caipirinhas, the national drink of Brazil that combines cachaça, lime, and sugar. The caipirinhas use real sugar cane and come in variations like passionfruit and coconut. Other drinks showcase Brazilian ingredients or what’s popular in Brazil, like a Moscow Mule with a kalamansi foam.
The retro-looking 43-seat bar is outfitted with wood paneling, green corduroy banquettes, vintage mirrors, and other design elements imported from Brazil. The space has an open kitchen, and Jankovic says they drew inspiration from bottecos, small bars all over Rio and São Paulo where you get your food and drinks from the same counter.
A “hi-fi corner” will show off Jankovic’s extensive collection of Brazilian vinyl and an analog turntable. While in Rio, he says he bought more than a thousand vintage records, which he shipped back to the US. Cana will have near-daily DJs playing Brazilian funk, soul, samba, and other music focused on the 1960s through early ’80s. Well-known Brazilian music DJ Marcello Bentine will kick things off for opening weekend.
The bar and a small patio will be available for walk-ins only. Each day’s reservations will go live that morning at 10 AM for both tables and counter seats.
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
