Citronelle

Run by Chef Michel Richard, Citronelle is widely regarded as one of the finest restaurants in the Washington area. Richard opened Los Angeles’ Citrus in 1987, pioneering California-French cuisine; that same year, Traveler’s Magazine voted Citrus ‘The Best Restaurant in the United States’. In 1994, Michel opened Citronelle in the Latham Hotel in Georgetown. In early 1998, Citronelle underwent a $2 million renovation and Richard moved from Los Angeles to Washington, DC to cook full time. Richard now considers the DC Citronelle (3000 M Street NW) his flagship restaurant.

Firefly

Under the Kimpton Group umbrella and one of DC’s hottest new restaurants, some of Firefly’s buzz originates from its chef, John Wabek. Wabek honed his culinary skills and appreciation or California wines in California’s wine country, where he was executive chef at Brix in Yountville, and spent three months working at Darioush Winery, where he cleaned barrels, harvested grapes, and enjoyed spending time in the tasting room. His current endeavor is at 1310 New Hampshire Avenue, NW.

Nick & Stef’s Steakhouse

Chef Joachim Splichal and his wife, Christine, established their flagship restaurant, Patina, in the heart of Hollywood’s studio district in 1989. In the fall of 1999, the Splichals opened Nick & Stef's Steakhouses, offering a new interpretation of the American steakhouse, in Los Angeles and New York, and in Washington, D.C. at 801 F Street NW, near the MCI center.

Poste Brasserie

The Kimpton Group is well known for their chic hotels and breaking-the-mold approach to design and cuisine. Bill Kimpton bought his first hotel in San Francisco, and that city is now filled with Kimpton restaurants, including Harry Denton’s Starlight room and Postrio. In DC they’ve struck gold again, with Bar Rouge (1315 16th Street NW), Helix Lounge (1430 Rhode Island Avenue, NW), Topaz Bar (1733 N Street NW) and restaurants Firefly (1310 New Hampshire Avenue, NW) & Poste Brasserie (555 8th Street NW, near the MCI center).

Red Sage

Red Sage is unmistakably a Santa Fe-style restaurant, with a southwestern menu, but its seeds are in Northern California. Mark Miller, the restaurant's creator, owner, and chef, originally from Maryland, was studying cultural anthropology at UC Berkeley when Alice Waters asked him to come work at Chez Panisse in 1976. Doing so, he found his life's calling, and stayed there until 1979, when he opened his own highly acclaimed Fourth Street Grill in Berkeley, which catapulted him to culinary fame.

He went on to open Coyote Café in Santa Fe before coming to Washington and starting the acclaimed Red Sage – named "Restaurant of the Year" by Esquire in 1992. The menu is eclectic – signature dishes include Lobster Tamales with Three Chilies, Wood Pigeon and Foie Gras Tamal, and Seared Spicy Tuna with Mole Amarillo – and the décor creative and inspired.
(605 14th Street, NW Washington, DC)

Restaurant Nora and Asia Nora

Owner and chef Nora Pouillon is originally from Austria, and her restaurants’ connection to California is, in their words, ‘purely inspirational’, as they were heavily inspired by Alice Waters and Chez Panise. Both restaurants emphasize healthy cooking and organic and locally grown foods; in 1999 Restaurant Nora became the nation’s first certified organic restaurant. Restaurant Nora is at 2132 Florida Avenue, NW, near DuPont Circle, and Asia Nora is at 2213 M Street, NW.

 

California Pizza Kitchen

First opened in 1985 in Beverly Hills – and home of the first ‘BBQ Chicken Pizza’! - there are now 140 stores nationwide. In Washington they are located at 1260 Connecticut Avenue (just south of DuPont Circle) and at Montgomery Mall in Maryland.

The Cheesecake Factory

Evelyn and Oscar Overton first starting selling their cheesecakes from their home in Detroit. Then, in 1971 they decided to pursue their dream of opening a restaurant and moved to–where else?–Los Angeles. In Washington you can find them at 5345 Wisconsin Avenue NW, in Chevy Chase Pavilion.

The Daily Grill

An off shoot of Beverly Hills’ well-known The Grill on the Alley, which was itself modeled after the great grills of New York and San Francisco, the first Daily Grill opened in Brentwood in 1987. The restaurants took off with the public, and, after adding seven more in Southern California, the Daily Grill moved east to Washington, DC. and its vicinity, where there are four locales: 18th and M Streets NW (south of DuPont Circle); 1310 Wisconsin Avenue, NW in Georgetown, Tysons Galleria in McLean, VA, and Bethesda.

Johnny Rockets

The first of these ‘blast from the past’ restaurants opened in 1986 on Melrose Avenue in
Los Angeles. In Washington you can find them at 3131 M Street NW in Georgetown and
at Union Station.