New, Notable, No Longer: May 2016

On Tap keeps locals in the know about restaurants and bars opening around town this month, plus our top foodie picks.

NEW
Bar à Vin
This stylish sibling to Chez Billy Sud features an extensive list of French wines, which you can pair with a few bar nibbles. A beautiful flight served with duck prosciutto makes for a wonderful break from a Georgetown shopping spree. Bar à Vin: 1039 31 St. NW, DC; www.chezbillysud.com

Commodore Public House & Kitchen
You might remember Veranda – open well before this area was cool – in exactly this location. After a decade, the owners decided it was time for a refresh, a larger selection of craft beer and a more competitive price point. We’re happy to see restaurant owners survive and adapt with a changing neighborhood – and count us in for any rebrand that involves poutine made with a funnel cake and duck confit.Commodore Public House & Kitchen: 1100 P St. NW, DC; www.commodoredc.com

Conosci
Michael Shlow goes all Inception with his little restaurant-within-a-restaurant at Alta Strada. Pull the dark curtain aside, and you enter Conosci, where an “international” menu is served and a bar trolley means cocktails are mixed tableside. Both prix-fixe and a la carte dinner menus are available. Conosci: 465 K St. NW, DC;www.conoscidc.com

EatBar
If you are a Clarendon corridor habitué, you will remember the cool-kids retreat that was EatBar (RIP October 2014) – a little off-the-beaten-track, a little indie, and a lot of good beer and meat. Well, EatBar is back, but on a different planet. Its new Barracks Row home wants you to know how indie cool it is (thousands of cassette tapes line the wall) – but the eats are just as good. Fried olives stuffed with sausage? #winningEatBar: 415 8th St. SE, DC; www.eat-bar.com

Finnegan’s Wake Irish Pub
A local couple with years of restaurant experience between them open their own establishment. How can you go wrong with love, and Irish whiskey and Guinness?Finnegan’s Wake Irish Pub: 100-F Gibbs St. Rockville, MD;www.facebook.com/finneganswakerockville

Lake Anne Brew House
Forget the microbrew trend. We’ve moved on to nanobreweries (under 500 barrels a year) – but there’s nothing nano about the popularity of the Lake Anne Brew House. A Kickstarter campaign gave the married team of home brewing owners (husband Jason is a former cybersecurity contractor) almost double their ask, and opening day saw 13 solid hours of lines to get at their first batches. Lake Anne Brew House: 11424 Washington Plaza W (Lake Anne Plaza), Reston, VA; www.lakeannebrewhouse.com

Mustang Sally Brewing Company
This is a production brewery with a massive tasting room launched by a successful corporate attorney who for years dreamed of college days brewing beer and sailing on a little boat named Mustang Sally. A few decades later, and his dream is back in operation, complete with a brew master in love with old world beers to steer the ship. We heart the story, and we double heart the graham cracker-y malt and the dry finish of the Mustang Sally Kolsch. Mustang Sally Brewing Company: 14140 Parke Long Ct. Chantilly, VA; www.msbrewing.com

The Tasty Dug-Out
Nope, not baseball. Ray’s Hell Burger is trying something new again, this time splitting off a joint serving “modern Zemblan, Estoty and Tartary cuisine.” Some might recognize the Nabokovian references; others will simply appreciate the excellent offering of Georgian (the country, not the state) cuisine. The “dug-out” is khachapuri – the buttery, cheesy Georgian delicacy that swept DC a couple years ago. The Tasty Dug-Out (inside Ray’s Hell Burger): 1650 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA;www.thetastydugout.com

Zannchi
A young Georgetown student from a family of restauranteurs joins the campus entrepreneur club and opens her own trendy Georgetown restaurant. Why not? Stop rolling your eyes and enjoy the food. Zannchi (“feast”) brings good Korean food into the District for those days when you don’t want to drive to Annandale. Zannchi: 1529 Wisconsin Ave. NW, DC; www.zannchi.com

NOTABLE
Linganore Winecellars
Why: A winner
Linganore walked away with eight medals at the 2016 Finger Lakes International Wine Competition, including double gold for its semi-dry white Terrapin. We heart their dry, Chambourcin-based rosé, as well as the monthly music festivals the vineyard hosts throughout the summer. Linganore Winecellars: 13601 Glissans Mill Rd. Mt. Airy, MD;www.linganorewines.com

Side Street and Sushi Bar by i-Thai
Why: A new home
i-Thai (yes, related to the one in Georgetown) moved a few doors down, updated its menu and added a cocktail bar. Time for a housewarming. Side Street and Sushi Bar by i-Thai: 8603 Westwood Center Dr. Vienna, VA; www.i-thairestaurant.com

NOTABLE
Bangkok Joe’s Thai Restaurant & Dumpling Bar
Everything that is old is new again: Bangkok Joe’s used to be a Georgetown waterfront mainstay – I remember it as a “safe” Thai restaurant catering to tender, preppy palettes. It was replaced by Mamma Rouge a few years ago, but that concept (modern French Asian fusion) never really sunk roots. Now Bangkok Joe is back with a vengeance. Chef Aulie Bunyarataphan says that this is the restaurant she wanted to open 20 years ago, when she first started cooking for Washington – but the city wasn’t ready for the pungent, spicy, funky, joyful madness that is great Thai cuisine. There is a dedicated dumpling bar, some pan-Asian influences scattered around the menu and a revamped drinks list that plays off current cocktail trends. Our favorite is the “Nut Your Average Joe’s,” featuring Phraya rum, peanut simple syrup, Thai coffee and milk air. Welcome back, Joe. Bangkok Joe’s Thai Restaurant & Dumpling Bar: 3000 K St. NW, DC; www.bangkokjoesdc.com

NO LONGER
Midtown Partyplex
Millie & Al’s
Sona Creamery