RSS FeedTwo New Restaurants Coming Soon: District of Pi and Graffiato!
In the last two days, we were tipped off to two new Penn Quarter restaurant openings. The first restaurant is District of Pi (as reported by stlmag), which will occupy one of the last remaining retail spaces on F St at approximately 914 F St NW, next to the Ventana condominium. The second restaurant announcement is for Graffiato (as reported by Going Out Gurus), which will occupy the vacant building that sits between the Cosmopolitan Condominium and the Myrene Condominium buildings at 707 6th St NW.
District of Pi is a pizzeria based out of St. Louis, MO and will host about 150 seats plus another 800 sq ft of space in the mezzanine of the building. The pizzeria also features custom-brewed beer, Pi Common, crafted by Schlafly, a Saint Louis Brewery.
Graffiato will serve simple Italian dishes like stuffed ravioli, wood-fired pizza and gnocchi with gravy. Of course, the owner and top-chef celebrity, Mike Isabella, will strive to make these simple dishes more extraordinary than your mom used to make. He has tapped talent from Zaytinya and his 145-seat restaurant will feature two levels, bar and pizza counter on the bottom floor and charcuterie and cheese bar on the upper level.
Thanks to PQL commenter pqtova for the tip on Pi restaurant!
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Comments
Thanks Kevin! It certainly seems like Wagamama might not be opening in that space, though, there is no official word. The restaurant was supposed to have opened in May 2010 and it doesn’t look like any work has started other than covering up the windows with the restaurant logo.
Co Co Sala opened a retail shop next to the restaurant — a small counter which sells their chocolates and a few other items.
Construction is in full swing in the old Platinum space — I peeked in and they are doing a great job restoring the old woodwork and moldings.
Amorini opened. Went yesterday for a breakfast sandwich and was not impressed (expensive for an egg and 1 measly slice of prosciutto.) Will try again for lunch hoping it will be a better value.
Cuba Libre opens this weekend. For the first week, all bills are 50% off. 25% on week 2. The inside looks like 1950s Havana — a little theme park for me, but the menu is intriguing.
So the Hills barbeque place going in a little down the hill from Wagamamas PR strategy is not real neighborly.
1) they had a jack hammer going off until almost midnight last night. I told the guy at 10 PM that the construction noise is probably affecting over 1,000 people. Asked could they get the jack hammer work done soon. He said probably by 11PM but that deadline was not met. (he said he would have started earlier but DC gov was not responsive.)
2) That construction has been going on for over 6 mos. I think. Just a few weeks after 7th had been newly paved they are breaking back into the pavement. Seems like they could have scheduled that before the new pavement. Utility work is usually something you do early in the job. Nice going Forester or whoever the general contractor is.
OK, so we’ve gone from tapas to Asian Fushion and now Italian…cuisines sure come in waves in PQ. Good thing each successive wave doesn’t just replace the former or we wouldn’t have the splendid variety we now do. The best part is that the neighborhood continues to evolve and solidify itself as the most dynamic area of DC.
My bedroom faces 7th St, and the jackhammering kept me up last night. That was at least the second time they’ve been at it overnight. Does anyone know if they have the proper permits?
You know, there are TWO neighborhood associations for downtown: the Downtown Neighborhood Association and the Penn Quarter Neighborhood Association. This is one if the reasons they exist. Complaining on blogs get you nothing. Getting involved in community associations and voicing your concerns there is what gets things done. Do something about it. Go to their meetings. How else do you expect anything to change?
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As long as we’re on restaurants, I’m pretty sure I saw a “Retail Space for Lease” sign in one of the Wagamama windows. There’s been speculation for months, even though most people have taken it as a foregone conclusion that they’re not actually going to be opening in the old Ollson’s space. The last remaining spectulation seems to be because they kept the lease going. If I’m right and these are new signs, that would put those last rumors to bed, right?