We chatted with the mystery man behind the @Eat_DC Twitter account, which shares food news and mini-reviews, with occasional D.C. ramblings.
1) In our recent pod episode, you went over some restaurant closings, but what openings are you excited about?
I’m interested to see what Johnny Spero has come up with at Bar Spero. I also want to try the French restaurant Petite Cerise by the owners of The Dabney.
The combined powers of Sloppy Mama's BBQ and Republic Cantina opening a smoked burger restaurant - Hill East Burger - is exciting. It's a dish that's been spreading rapidly in Texas, but not other places.
And I'm looking forward to Peter Chang finally opening a restaurant, Chang Chang, in D.C. proper.
2) What type of cuisine do you think D.C. does best or better than other cities?
Definitely Ethiopian. The region has the largest population of Ethiopians outside of Ethiopia and a wealth of restaurants to show for it. Similar story for Salvadoran and Peruvian food. Most other cities don't have pupusas and charcoal rotisserie chicken everywhere.
Given its status as an international city, you can find many global cuisines here. This leads to areas like Adams Morgan which has Azerbaijani, Armenian, and Ukrainian bakeries all on one block, plus other cuisines along the same street.
D.C. is also an exporter of fast-casual restaurants (Sweetgreen, Cava, &Pizza, District Taco, Beefsteak, Captain Cookie, Call Your Mother, PLNT Burger) so we must be doing something right.
We've also managed to put mumbo sauce on everything. You don't see that in other cities.
3) Have you noticed any restaurant trends coming out of the pandemic?
We've seen a lot of trends to control costs and increase revenue. A lot of casual places are installing ordering tablets instead of cashiers and similar labor-cutting technology. I think we'll continue to see new fast-casual concepts and takeout-focused operations as a way to lower capital expenses.
