Tag Archives: Justin Bittner

Food and Drink, The Features, We Love Food
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DC Chefs Head to the James Beard House

Photo courtesy of bonappetitfoodie
Chef Logan Cox at the James Beard House
courtesy of bonappetitfoodie

One of the greatest honors a chef can have is cooking at the James Beard House. Each year an extremely talented group from DC heads up to New York City with the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington to prepare a meal for 60 or so people who get to dine in the late James Beard’s bedroom.

Is it a little weird to be eating in what used to be someone’s bedroom? Not unless you’re seated under the mirrored ceiling. That used be over his bed. The Beard House is full of lore, to say the least. After the jump, you’ll find a slideshow of all the photos from this year’s “The Best of DC” dinner that took place this past Monday evening, along with a little history lesson on the man behind the foundation.

Kudos to this year’s lineup at the “Best of DC” dinner, featuring Justin Bittner of Bar Pilar, Logan Cox and pastry chef Alison Reed of Ripple, Claudio Pirollo of Et Voila and Vikram Sunderam of Rasika. Also on hand were Todd Thrasher of Virtue Feed & Grain and Dan Searing from Room 11 for cocktails, along with Greg Engert, the beer connoisseur of Neighborhood Restaurant Group.
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Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Bar Pilar Unveils New Upstairs Dining Room, Menu, Drinks

Photo courtesy of bonappetitfoodie
Bar Pilar Mural
courtesy of bonappetitfoodie

It’s a moment you’ve been waiting for on 14th street–Bar Pilar is back, in action and with an entire new upstairs, expanded menu and cocktails. The renovated space reopened several weeks ago and We Love DC finally snapped some pictures at a media preview last week.

Don’t get nervous about the menu changes–the downstairs section will still serve the small plates the restaurant built its reputation on, but now you’ll get to choose from either small plates or an expanded menu with appetizers, entrees and desserts upstairs. With 98 seats total, you’re also more likely to snag a table during the dinner rush.

“We’re excited to offer some larger plates upstairs for people who want a full dining experience,” said Executive Chef Justin Bittner in a press release. “We’ll offer a selection of entrees using a lot more whole animals, we’re getting back into offal, but of course we’ll keep the favorites that our regulars love.”

In addition to more dining space, the upstairs has an intimate six-seat bar with a craft cocktail menu of 25 or so options from the General Manager and Beverage Director, Jonathan Fain. We Love DC’s Arts and Culture Editor, Jenn Larsen,  says the expanded wine, beer and cocktail program is “sure to break new ground. Jonathan has a whimsical way with cocktails.” Look for highlights such as housemade syrups and sugar cane juice in their cocktails.

Check out photos of the new space after the jump.

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