The weekend forecast is sunny and mild, making it prime outdoor-beer-drinking weather. On the agenda: a trip to La Piazza, the new Bethesda birreria at Cesco Osteria. Owner Francesco Ricchi redesigned the patio, fashioning it into a space for sipping local craft brews and snacking on bar bites.
This isn’t the first renovation for the Cesco team. Ricchi moved the 15-year-old Tuscan eatery to a larger, more central space on Bethesda Row last year, and debuted the adjoining Co2 Lounge to appeal to a younger crowd. La Piazza was imagined with a similar goal in mind, with Ricchi’s daughter and son-in-law partnering on the project. You’ll find beers such as DC Brau El Hefe Speaks and Flying Dog Dogtoberfest, all $6 and under, as well as similarly affordable bites. The menu includes dishes like thin-crust pizzettes, a sausage platter with warm focaccia, and two types of fried dough: salt-dusted savory sticks and bomboloni, miniature doughnuts filled with vanilla custard cream.
To complement the locally focused menu, the space was built with sustainability in mind. You’ll settle in at picnic-style tables and high-tops made from recycled wood, which are lit by dangling string lights at night.
La Piazza. 7401 Woodmont Ave., Bethesda; 202-841-9114. Open Tuesday and Wednesday 3 to 10, Thursday through Saturday 3 to 1, and Sunday noon to 10. Closed Monday.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
