CommonWealth is the newest addition to Columbia Heights, set in the midst of the neighborhood's growing shopping center. The restaurant, owned by Jamie Leeds and Sandy Lewis (also of Hank’s Oyster Bar) and modeled after the gastropubs of London, opened August 6.
The menu’s British-inspired dishes blend organic ingredients from local farms with standard English fare such as Smithwick’s beer-battered fish and chips, bangers and mash, and a butcher breakfast complete with black pudding. The interior, which includes a 150-seat dining room and a 50-seat bar area, offers walnut tables (each holding pub-standard spicy mustard and vinegar), faux-leather booths, and wooded wall panels salvaged from barns. A large chalkboard above the bar dishes out the day’s specials and cheese plates.
The restaurant is available for full buyouts, and also includes a 25-seat, glass-enclosed private dining room with a projection screen and a patio with picnic-style seating for 35.
