Foodies take note: more diverse dining options are coming to the DowntownDC BID area. The iconic Market Square mixed-use complex at 701-801 Pennsylvania Avenue is getting three new restaurants: Native Foods, Plan B Burger Bar and Chop’t Creative Salad Company, already making its presence felt at 618 12th Street and 730 7th Street.
All three restaurants will fill the last remaining vacancies in the plaza retail space now home to Paul Bakery, Protein Bar and 701 Restaurant, a longtime tenant.
Both Native Foods and Plan B will make their D.C. debuts—once again highlighting Downtown’s appeal to national, as well as global, retailers eager to set up shop in a vibrant market. California-based Native Foods offers vegetarian fare, including tofu curry and seitan meatball subs, while Connecticut-based Plan B serves about two dozen specialty burgers hand-ground on the premises daily.
Chop’t, as we mentioned back in July, will occupy 2,468 square feet (SF) vacated by D’Acqua, the Italian restaurant that closed in 2009.
Just a block or two away, expect to see Menu (405 8th Street), opening in January. It’s another concept by Frederik de Pue, the chef/owner who closed his Azur modern seafood restaurant in that very space last Friday. Unfortunately, Azur only lasted six months after assuming the space once occupied by Jose Andres’s former Atlantico and minibar restaurants.
The Menu model will be built on a multi-concept plan featuring a market, bar and restaurant:
- The ground floor will have a local market selling boutique grocery items, fresh produce from area growers and artisanal items from local producers. Among the offerings: sauces, gelato, charcuterie, cured and smoked fish, a fresh herb rotisserie, sandwiches and pre-made meals from Menu’s kitchen. A barista will oversee an extensive coffee service.
- The middle floor will have a lounge area for enjoying coffee or a quick meal, but it will become a wine bar with a small menu of bar snacks in the evening.
- The top floor will be a 42-seat restaurant serving lunch and dinner seven days a week and offering European-inspired country meals and American classics.
Meanwhile, Coffee Alley had a soft opening last week at Gallery Place (616 H Street). Brought to you by Point Chaud Café & Crepes (with two Downtown locations at 1100 New York Avenue and 1012 14th Street), Coffee Alley serves Illy, the popular Italian coffee, as well as breakfast pastries and macaroons. The shop is located in the outdoor alleyway near Clyde’s, Smoothie King, Haagen Dazs and Crepes on the Walk. You can take advantage of outdoor seating as long as the warm weather lasts.