DC New Venues

A renovation to Capitol Hill's Art and Soul in February added 15 seats to the restaurant's capacity and refreshed the decor with new herringbone wood floors, textured walls, and artwork. Owned by chef Art Smith and located in the Liaison Capitol Hill hotel, Art and Soul offers a private dining room that seats 50 diners or holds 100 guests for receptions. The restaurant also boasts an outdoor patio with a fire pit that seats 55 or holds150 standing. Along with the renovation, the restaurant debuted several menu items and bar snacks. Full buyouts are available.

The Gryphon is a new upscale gastropub and sports bar in Dupont Circle from David Karim, Rich Vasey, and Tony Hudgins, the nightlife impresarios behind venues such as Josephine, Lost Society, Policy, Capitale, and Public Bar. Opened in mid-March, the 5,000-square-foot restaurant serves sophisticated bar bites from executive chef Joseph Evans. The space's masculine decor features dark wood paneling, leather sofas, and antler chandeliers. It accommodates 350 standing guests or 196 seated.

Following a multimillion-dollar renovation, Georgetown's Hotel Monticello is slated to reopen in early April as the Graham Georgetown, inspired by Georgetown resident Alexander Graham Bell. The hotel will have two brand-new dining venues available for private events: The Observatory is a 3,000-square-foot rooftop lounge where as many as 149 standing guests or 80 seated guests can enjoy sweeping views of the Potomac River, Rosslyn skyline, and the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts; A.G.B. restaurant and lounge is 1,000 square feet and accommodates 60 standing or 48 seated. With new interiors designed by BBG-BBGM, the lobby decor includes a silver metallic ceiling, tufted sofas and wing chairs, and a dramatic lacquered reception desk, while the 57 luxury guest rooms include white marble and mosaic-tiled bathrooms.

Bluejacket, an ambitious craft brewery and tavern from Neighborhood Restaurant Group, is under construction in the Capitol Riverfront's renovated historic Boilermaker Building and slated for a May or June opening. The restaurant and bar inside the brewery will seat approximately 200 and will have a semiprivate area on the second floor that will accommodate as many as 20 guests. The brewery will host tours and feature a tasting room that will seat as many as 12 guests.

Painting studio and lounge ArtJamz relocated in March to a larger space in Dupont Circle and now can accommodate "paint and sip" parties of as many as 50 guests. The 1,900-square-foot split-level loft is more than double the size of the previous location and features a broader selection of artist materials, such as acrylic paints, brushes, stencils, graffiti markers, and glitter. Private space can be booked at the venue for groups of 50 painters with ArtJamz's "creative enablers" on hand for guidance and artistic inspiration. Options for private events include professional event photography, a private R.S.V.P. site, DJ, catering, and an all-inclusive open bar. The venue also has expanded its bar menu.

With views of the U.S. Capitol, Washington Monument, and the Library of Congress, new rooftop venue the Flying Bridge is located atop a tower of the Hall of the States building near Union Station. Owned by Marine Engineers' Beneficial Association Realty Trust, the nautically named private venue with panoramic views can accommodate 470 on the rooftop's platform. The Flying Bridge also has a climate-controlled enclosed space which accommodates 200 seated guests. The venue includes 200 gold Chiavari chairs with ivory cushions, 15 high-top bistro tables, 12 six-foot banquet tables, 20 60-inch round tables, and two 60-inch wooden rolling bars. The catering galley has two double-door refrigerators, a sink, prep tables, and an ice maker.

Located alongside the C&O Canal, the new 49-room luxury hotel Capella Washington D.C., Georgetown opened this week. The hotel's elegant 70-seat restaurant, the Grill Room, serves organic, seasonal entrées. Its private dining room, the Board Room, seats 16 guests. An outdoor patio holds as many as 30 guests. The hotel's Rye Bar specializes in rare rye whiskey and cocktails. Hotel amenities include an executive boardroom for 14 people and a rooftop pool and bar exclusively for hotel guests with vistas of Georgetown, the Washington Monument, the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, and the Potomac River.

In Dupont Circle, DGS Delicatessen offers a modern take on classic Jewish cookery. The 80-seat restaurant can prepare customized brunch, lunch, or dinner menus for private events in the "mispucha," or family room, a space for as many as18 guests overlooking the restaurant's open kitchen. The walls are decorated with family photos from DGS's four partners and jars of house-made slivovitz.

New from restauranteur Ashok Bajaj of Rasika, Bibiana Osteria-Enoteca, and the Oval Room is NoPa Kitchen & Bar, a brasserie slated to open in late April or early May in Penn Quarter. Helmed by executive chef Greg McCarty, the restaurant will serve French-influenced dishes. The restaurant will seat as many as 140 guests in the main dining room and will offer three private dining rooms. The largest dining room will seat 40 guests and include a fireplace and audiovisual capacity. Designed by Martin Vahtra of Projects Design Associates of New York, the venue will include a 20-seat bar and lounge for casual dining.

Set for a spring opening is Malmaison, a new lounge and eatery on the Georgetown waterfront from the owners behind Cafe Bonaparte and Napoleon. The open-concept warehouse space will have an industrial aesthetic with three large garage doors on the façade and a covered outdoor area. The 4,200-square-foot space will include a 1,406-square-foot upper-level bar and lounge area and a 980-square-foot lower-level dining and bar area. The venue will hold around 600 guests for receptions.