Here's a look at the most anticipated Washington restaurants, hotels, party rooms, corporate event venues, conference centers, and private rooms to open this year. These new and renovated Washington venues can accommodate groups large or small for private and corporate events, meetings, business dinners, cocktail parties, conferences, weddings, and more.
1. On May 1, the much-anticipated 1,175-room Marriott Marquis Washington, D.C. will open adjacent to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The hotel will offer more than 105,000 square feet of meetings space, including the 30,000-square-foot Marquis Ballroom, two 10,800-square-foot ballrooms, more than 53,000 square feet of meeting rooms, an indoor event terrace, and a rooftop terrace. Slated to earn LEED Silver certification and designed by Cooper Carry Architects and TVS Architects, the hotel spans almost the entire block.
2. This spring, chef José Andrés will open America Eats Tavern at the Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner. The restaurant originally ran as a pop-up in downtown Washington in conjunction with a National Archives exhibit and was meant to serve as a history lesson about the roots of American cuisine. The Northern Virginia revival will serve unique takes on classic American dishes with native, seasonal ingredients influenced by the Virginia Piedmont.
3. José Andrés is also adding a new restaurant in Washington, bringing the modern Chinese-Peruvian concept China Chilcano to Penn Quarter. Slated to open in the summer, the eatery will highlight Chifa cuisine, the Peruvian take on Chinese cooking. It will be located near Andrés’s restaurants Jaleo and Oyamel.
4. The Textile Museum is moving from its historic location in Dupont Circle to form a partnership at the George Washington University. The museum's new 46,000-square-foot facility on the university’s main campus in Foggy Bottom incorporates both a new signature building and the historic Woodhull House. Scheduled to open in late 2014, the new building will include gallery space for the museum, the Arthur D. Jenkins Library for the Textile Arts, and a gift shop.
5. Chef Richard Sandoval is adding a fifth restaurant to his portfolio in D.C. in late March, when steakhouse Toro Toro is slated to open downtown. Sandoval currently operates two locations of Toro Toro, one in Miami and one in Dubai. The 9,230-square-foot pan-Latin restaurant will seat 240 guests.
6. In July, the historic Morrison-Clark Inn is expected to complete a 43,000-square-foot addition. The six-story expansion to the 19th-century Victorian mansion rises above the Chinese community church façade next door, adding 56 rooms and expanding underground parking.
7. With an anticipated spring opening, Fiola Mare is the third Washington restaurant for chef Fabio Trabocchi of Fiola and Casa Luca. The 7,500-square-foot Mediterranean-influenced seafood restaurant will be located at Washington Harbour in Georgetown with waterfront views of the Potomac.
8. Arizona-based Fox Restaurant Concepts is expanding to the East Coast with its True Food Kitchen, slated to open this spring in the Fairfax development Mosaic District. The concept focuses on a seasonal, healthful menu with global influences. It will seat 240.
9. After much hype and delay, Toki Underground chef Erik Bruner-Yang’s new venture, Maketto, is scheduled to open on H Street Northeast this year. The venue will combine an Asian-night-market-inspired restaurant, an outpost for Vigilante Coffee Company, and a retail space for clothing line Durkl. Seating options will include patio and rooftop spaces.
10. Chef Daniel Boulud is slated to bring his DBGB Kitchen & Bar concept to D.C.’s new development CityCenterDC. With a projected summer opening, the restaurant will combine an American tavern and a French brasserie.
