amanda mcclements

I've been so busy the past month stuffing my face full of pho, curries and noodles in Southeast Asia, there's no way I could keep up with all the deliciousness unfolding in DC. So here's a little round-up, and do let me know what I'm out of the loop on. • Jamaican patty shop-meets-reggae lounge Patty Boom Boom has opened at 1359 U St. NW. ReadySetDC has some photos . • Big Chair Coffee opens in Anacostia today at 2122 Martin Luther King Ave. SE. • Enology has relaunched as Alliance Tavern (3238 Wisconsin Ave.) with more beer options. Metrocurean hears the owners may look for a new location to resurrect Enology downtown. • Bistro Cacao has replaced Two Quail at 320 Massachusetts Ave. NE. UrbanDaddy has pics . • Bistro La Bonne replaced Axis Bar and Grill at 1340 U St. NW. (via Prince of Petworth ) • Pitango Gelato has announced plans to open its fourth shop at 413 Seventh St. NW. this spring.

Chef Laurent Tourondel will add Casa Nonna (1250 Connecticut Ave.) and BLT Burger (1317 Connecticut Ave.) to BLT Restaurants' DC portfolio, which already includes BLT Steak, reports Tom Sietsema. A local food pub and my favorite vegetarian restaurant close down, but there are more openings to report. Here's all the juicy stuff you may have missed recently from the Twitterverse ... follow Metrocurean on Twitter here . Ansonia Wines just opened a new wine shop at 1828 18th St., specializing in French wine. @ ansoniawines http://bit.ly/RyjSL 5:46 PM Nov 30th from web RT @ SweetflowMobile Breaking news: Await blog post for details, but starting tmrw we will be selling salads from our truck! YES! Spread... http://bit.ly/5FhGiQ 2:14 PM Nov 30th from Facebook That was fast. Mark Furstenberg is out at G St Food , reports WaPo: ht...

Italian seafood restaurant D'Acqua has closed on Pennsylvania Ave. One restaurant bites the dust, several open and more are (bien sur) on the way. Here's all the juicy stuff you may have missed recently from the Twitterverse ... follow Metrocurean on Twitter here . Ping Pong Dim Sum getting closer: RT @ TopShelfWBJ Looks like @ pingpongdimsum will open in December. http://tinyurl.com/yfob3m8 #wbj less than 5 seconds ago from web RT @ TopShelfWBJ Update: Chef says D'Acqua closed over rent increases. http://tinyurl.com/yewoy84 #wbj about 3 hours ago from web Ris on twitter->RT @ yoantoine Congrats to Ris Lacoste for winning WCR's golden whisk award! Follow @ risDC for updates on her new all-day cafe! 1:27 PM Nov 2nd from web RT @ BGRBurgerJoint BGR The Burger Joint , opens up on DuPont circle, 1514 Connecticut Ave, NW at 11am Nov. 2! 12:05 PM Nov 1st from web Againn opened Tuesday, 1099 NY Ave: pork belly w heirloom apples, cabbage, crackling; black pudd...

Blue Ridge opens today at 2340 Wisconsin Ave. NW. The restaurant, owned by Eli Hengst ( Sonoma ) and Jared Rager ( Redwood , Sonoma), gets chef Barton Seaver back in the kitchen after his departure from Hook last year. Menu highlights include fried catfish with sorrel aioli and chow-chow frisée herb salad; a pork chop with red-eye gravy and parmesan-potato salad; roasted butternut squash with poached egg and chorizo vinaigrette; and Piedmont pork meatloaf with buttermilk mashed potatoes and smoked tomato. Prices range from $5 to $10 for appetizers, and $12 to $20 for entrées. Despite what looked like a last-minute reprieve for Alexandria's Farrah Olivia , chef Morou Ouattara posted last night on Facebook: "Farrah Olivia will be closed tonight after service. See you at a new location fall 2010." Meanwhile, Ouattara will open Kora in the former Bebo space in Crystal City. Two of Matchbox 's owners will open Ted's Bulletin next year at 505 Eighth St. SE, ac...

This just in from Kimpton's Hotel Palomar in Arlington: The hotel's restaurant Domaso is scaling back and will no longer be open for lunch and dinner on weekends. Meanwhile, Domasoteca , the wine shop on the hotel's ground floor, will close May 30. That means the shop is clearing out its inventory at deep discounts: 20 percent off all bottles, 30 percent off mixed half cases, and 40 percent off mixed full cases. Domaso's new operating schedule includes breakfast, lunch and dinner in the dining room Monday through Friday, with only breakfast service and bar dining on weekends. A statement from the hotel details a few other changes: "Based on the increasing success of its lounge and in response to clientele for a more casual dining experience, the lunch and dinner menus will be updated significantly, and the bar will serve an expanded selection of signature cocktails and lounge menu items. While the restaurant will remain modern Italian in concept, the menus wi...

Whether a sign of tough economic times, diners' increasing preference for informality or a combination of both, the luxurious Le Paradou will close at the end of April after five years in business. Co-owner Mike Klein cites the economy and the restaurant's reputation as a special occasion spot for the closing. If you'd like to dine under the enchanting starry ceiling and taste chef Yannick Cam's sophisticated French cuisine one last time, better get your reservations now. Cam's velvety boudin blanc remains one of the best dishes I've ever tasted.

The Mandarin Oriental 's Asian-inflected Café MoZU will get a major overhaul this summer and relaunch as South by Southwest , reports Tom Sietsema for the GOG Blog. Give the post a read for details on the new restaurant's American concept, created by Eric Ziebold, chef of the Mandarin's flagship restaurant CityZen . At right: The view from Café MoZU

After 15 years, Brasserie Les Halles has closed its doors, effective today. The restaurant reached the end of its lease at 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, and is biding DC au revoir. “While this is a sad occasion, it is a natural progression, as our lease is over,” said owner Philippe Lajaunie in a release. “I don’t have the words to express my gratitude to the many friends we have in Washington, from our loyal customers, to the mayor, the City Council and staffers who have been tremendous neighbors. I hope we will still have the chance to see many of these people in New York City.” Lajaunie gathered a group of friends and media last night for what few knew would be the restaurant's last supper. I'm sorry to have missed that chance to say goodbye. Les Halles was the host of the popular Bastille Day waiter's race and one of the city's top Beaujolais Nouveau parties — this year's was scheduled for Wednesday night but is now canceled.

I'm not sure what happened to M'Dawg Haute Dogs , but as I passed by the papered windows yesterday, I thought it might be nice to remember those restaurants that left us this summer. Cue the music: • Butterfield 9 • Colorado Kitchen • Curry Club • Gerard Pangaud Bistro • L'Oustalet • Meridian * • Merkado * • Montsouris • Restaurant K • San Marco * * Meridian is now Brightwood Bistro (5832 Georgia Ave. NW). Merkado will close Aug. 24 and is expected to reopen as Commissary , from the same owners, Sept. 9. More details here . The San Marco space at 2305 18th St. NW is slated to become Himalayan Heritage , serving Nepalese and Indian food. Did I miss one that you were sad to see go?

Farewell to the Curry Club , San Marco , Merkado (Aug. 24) and Gerard Pangaud Bistro (perhaps temporarily). Merkado is being repurposed by the same owner into Commissary , a coffeehouse and lounge.

Butterfield 9 is closing. DonRockwell.com broke the news of the eight-year-old restaurant's demise, and Todd Kliman of Washingtonian fills in more details . That brings the past week's toll to three announced closings: Restaurant K , Colorado Kitchen and now Butterfield 9. And I don't think that's the last we'll hear in the next few weeks ...

When someone posted a link to an auction for Colorado Kitchen 's goods on Chowhound Tuesday, it didn't bode well for the restaurant. Washingtonian 's Todd Kliman continued the breaking news flurry Wednesday with confirmation from Colorado Kitchen chef/owner Gillian Clark that the restaurant's days are numbered. (DonRockwell.com says June 29 is the final service.) The restaurant's current building is reportedly slated for demolition. That makes two restaurants down and one chef out so far this week. Here's hoping for better news next week. Update: For more detail's on Clark's future restaurant plans, check out this Washington Post piece .

Updated Tuesday, 12:03 p.m. ... Restaurant K by Alison Swope closed its doors today after less than a year. A message from parent company McCormick & Schmick's reads: " We have been extremely pleased with - and proud of - the work and commitment that Alison Swope and her team have demonstrated during the opening and operation of Restaurant K. However, current economic conditions have led to the business decision to close this restaurant and reallocate its resources to our core McCormick & Schmick's branded establishments." According to an updated statement from M&S released Tuesday, Swope will become part of the company's culinary development team.

Fritz Hahn, washingtonpost.com's bar guru, has the scoop on some new spots slated for Glover Park — and some old favorites that may soon bid adieu. According to Hahn, neighborhood mainstays Busara and the Grog and Tankard are both expected to be replaced. Several sources are reporting that local lounge impresario Mauricio Fraga-Rosenfeld ( Chi-Cha , Mate, Gazuza , Ceviche , Gua-rapo ) is expected to take over the Grog's space. Hahn says it will become a tavern called Gin and Tonic . A few doors down, Hahn reports that Busara will give way to a new spot from the owners of Sonoma , Mendocino Grille and Bethesda's forthcoming Redwood . No details have gone public yet. This summer, the old Apollo Market space will be filled by Surfside , a casual seafood spot, from chef David Scribner and Bo Blair of Smith Point and Jetties . The planned Wisconsin Avenue restaurants will join the newly opened Breadsoda , with its impressive sandwich menu and Nintendo Wii, and new-ish bubb...

Neighbors and food lovers alike are buzzing with the sad news that 14th Street's Viridian has closed. A sign outside the door announces the closure and thanks patrons for their support. What's too bad is that just last week, I added the restaurant to my list of places I'm currently eating. I wrote: "After one too many changes early on (chef shuffling, shifting menu focus) and inconsistent service, I had sort of written Viridian off. I'm glad to say I've had some delicious meals there recently, as well as some nicely crafted cocktails. Chef Michael Hartzer, formerly of Citronelle and Ray's the Classics , took over in early 2007, and I'm glad he stuck around. An attractive new partition in the back makes the dining room less vacuous and creates a nice private dining nook." Oh well. I'll be listening out for where Hartzer heads next and hoping the space (one of the closest restaurants to Metrocurean headquarters) doesn't stay empty for lon...

The future looks uncertain for one of the mid-Atlantic's most treasured getaways. Chef and owner Andrew Evans is putting the Inn at Easton up for sale and closing its renowned dining room for the winter Jan. 1, according to The Baltimore Sun 's dining blog (via donrockwell.com ). The post points to the chef's divorce as the reason for the sale. The talented chef has other plans, however, for the Eastern Shore town: He'll open a Thai restaurant called Thai Ki at 216 East Dover St., according to the blog's author, Elizabeth Large . The report leaves open the possibility that Evans could reopen the dining room if the inn doesn't sell. If a sale does go through, the post mentions that he could continue to oversee the restaurant for the new owners, while running Thai Ki.

Get your grass-fed turkey, apple pies, honey, old fashioned sweet potatoes, bread pudding, chestnuts, walnuts, an array of greens and more at the final day of the 14 & U Farmers Market, right now, til 1 p.m.! It's basically a one-stop Thanksgiving dinner shop, and your last chance to visit the market for the season. Also bowing out for the winter season is the Bloomingdale farmers market, which has its last day Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at First and R Streets NW, next to the Big Bear Cafe .

Updated 9 p.m. Asia Nora is planning to close Dec. 21, according to a report from The Washington Post 's Tom Sietsema. But what's taking over the building is what will really have people buzzing. And which big name chef could be involved. The building at 2213 M St. NW where Asia Nora is located is set to become a luxury, eco-conscious hotel, Sietsema reports. Rumors have been swirling for some time about W Hotels coming to the District (Hotel Washington is slated to start its transformation to a W at year's end), and Sietsema's story mentions that the hotel will be called One (1), backed by an investment group that includes Barry Sternlicht, Starwood Capital's chairman and CEO and the creator of W. A little digging turns up the following information on the new hotel brand from Starwood Capital's web site: "The 1 Hotel brand is the latest innovation from Starwood Capital Chairman and CEO Barry Sternlicht. Mr. Sternlicht’s previous trend-setting hospitalit...

One of the area's best outdoor perches is shutting down for the fall and winter seasons. Indigo Landing will close Oct. 1 through March 2008. Meanwhile, Star Restaurant Group, which operates Indigo Landing as well as Zola and Spy City Cafe , has set its sights on a new downtown restaurant. Plans are under way for a yet-to-be-named rustic Italian restaurant and bakery slated to open next fall in the Woodward building at 15th and H streets. Chef Bryan Moscatello will oversee the new restaurant's menu, and he'll travel to Italy for inspiration. Moscatello took over executive chef duties of the entire Star group in April, following former Zola chef Frank Morales' departure for Rustico . Back on Indigo Landing's Daingerfield Island, Guest Services Inc., which runs Indigo Landing in a partnership with Star, will operate a spot called the Afterdeck Cafe through the winter. But does the extended closure of Indigo Landing spell trouble? As the lead-in to Tom Sietsema'...

I can't get the Queen song "Another One Bites The Dust" out of my head this week. First came news that chef Bob Kinkead's Colvin Run Tavern was closing. It ended its six-year run on Saturday. According to a recent Washington Post dining chat , the restaurant might relocate. Snackmaniac reports that The Fractured Prune in Dupont Circle is now closed. According to the company's web site , the ongoing sidewalk construction on P Street forced the donut shop to relocate to 39-A Maryland Ave. in Rockville. And now, Washingtonian 's Best Bites blog says Yin Yankee in Bethesda has closed after just four months. Here's hoping next week is better in the brutal world of restaurants.