This fall, three bars came onto the scene that quickly became hotspots. La’ Shukran, Providencia, and Cana are very different, but what unites them is a reverence for places far from DC. Here’s what to know about them:
La’ Shukran
location_on 417 Morse St., NE
language Website
Location : An alley amid the warehouses of the Union Market District.
Who’s behind it : Michael Rafidi, the acclaimed chef/owner behind Albi and Yellow.
Influences : Middle Eastern meets French bistro.
Decor : The bar, up a flight of stairs, is chic and moody, with acid-green banquettes and fringed hanging lamps, and there’s a rooftop patio.
What to eat : Share plates including escargot hummus, foie gras beignets with halva butter, and a kebab steak au poivre.
What to drink : Cocktails made with the anise-scented spirit arak, natural wines, and inventive nonalcoholic concoctions such as a cold-brew coffee with carob molasses and cardamom cream.
Cocktail prices : $17 to $22.
Closing time : Midnight Monday, Thursday, and Sunday; 1 am Friday and Saturday. Each night, the kitchen closes an hour earlier than the bar.
Providencia
location_on 1321 Linden Ct., NE
language Website
Location : An alley off the H Street corridor.
Who’s behind it : Erik Bruner-Yang, owner of the nearby Taiwanese/Cambodian spot Maketto, and Maketto bartenders Pedro Tobar and Daniel Gonzalez.
Influences : Taiwan, where Bruner-Yang was born, and El Salvador, where Tobar and Gonzalez are from.
Decor : The former flower shop is snug and minimalist, but thoughtful design elements such as a brick-lattice-covered front window make a big impact.
What to eat : The ever-changing menu features easy-to-like Latin/Asian snacks, including a crab sandwich on milk bread and chorizo-stuffed chicken wings.
What to drink : Cocktails—each inspired by a memory from one of the proprietors—are often made with esoteric spirits. The Run Bing With Nai Nai, sparked by nostalgia for Taipei ice cream, features charanda (a Mexican sugarcane liquor), a rhubarb amaro, oolong tea, and milk.
Cocktail prices : $8 to $18.
Closing time : Midnight Tuesday through Saturday. The kitchen closes at 10.
Cana
location_on 2412 18th St., NW
language Website
Location : Adams Morgan’s main drag.
Who’s behind it : Radovan Jankovic and Marko Bogdanovic—who also run the West End hangout Mercy Me—plus Chilean-born chef Maximiliano Rivera Papic.
Influences : The low-key Brazilian bars known as botecos.
Decor : The 43-seat space is warmed up with exposed-brick walls, green corduroy booths, and a homey nook that shows off Jankovic’s vinyl collection.
What to eat : Small plates including salt-cod croquettes, shrimp empanadas, and hearts-of-palm salad, plus larger plates such as charred octopus with crispy yuca.
What to drink : Caipirinhas are this bar’s obsession—riffs include passionfruit and coconut versions—and the sugarcane spirit cachaça shows up in several other drinks.
Cocktail prices : $16 to $19.
Closing time : Midnight Tuesday through Thursday; 2 am Friday and Saturday.
This article appears in the November 2024 issue of Washingtonian.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
