I’m really excited to hear about the new Kosher restaurant that just opened in Washington, DC. Not long ago the JCC in DC had a restaurant called the JCC Cafe, which was more of a sit down restaurant than a cafe. In their absence, only Eli’s remained as the only way to have a Kosher meal out in DC.
Thankfully, Distrikt Bistro, located in the lobby of the DC JCC, has a very eclectic meat menu with numerous Spanish inspired dishes, with a wine & beer menu to boast as well. You now have an option to have your business lunches to. I can’t wait to try it. Check out the recent article/review below.
~Dani
Distrikt Bistro
1529 16th Street, NW
(Q Street Entrance)
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: 202 777 3209
by Aaron Leibel of WashingtonJewishWeek.com
It’s not your typical JCC cafe. The Distrikt Bistro – slated to open next week in the Washington DC Jewish Community Center’s lobby – will be a kosher, upscale Mediterranean and Sephardi restaurant with a heavy dose of Spanish cuisine.
“I don’t want to appeal only to Jews and also not only to kosher-eating Jews,” said Michael Medina, 30, the bistro’s owner. “It is for anyone interested in trying something new, a dish that they haven’t had in a while or had on a trip to the Mediterranean.”
The “K” in the eatery’s name came about, he said, because “I wanted it to be different, to have some style. And, of course, it is kosher.”
The food, he said, also is “unique, not something found in a typical kosher restaurant.”
To illustrate, Medina, who owns The Kosher Kitchen Catering Co. based in Northern Virginia, points to the tapas (Spanish appetizers) section of his menu. “They are very popular in Spain and becoming very popular in the U.S.,” he noted.
The cafe will serve fish, beef, lamb and chicken as well as vegetarian dishes. Prices range from $18 to $32 for entrees, sandwiches from $11 to $16, soups, salads and tapas from $6 to $18, and desserts from $5-$9.
Among the stars on the menu are “Moroccan Cigars” for $11; “Bistro Crab Salad” (made with mock crab, of course) for $15; “Pescado A La Plancha” (fresh fish on the grill) for $22; and Spanish Flan for $8.
Medina is not at all deterred by what seems to be a star-crossed eatery, which has closed twice in the past two years – once due to problems with kashrut; the other after WDCJCC officials and cafe owner Sina Soumekhian decided the business wasn’t viable – and last fall had another approved owner decide not to open.
“We have new ownership, new management and a new menu,” Medina said, noting the restaurant fits the demographic of the neighborhood and of the people who come to the center’s theater.
And, he added, there is the “wow factor” of the menu. The WDCJCC’s chief executive officer shares his confidence. “He is a very good planner, he is very exacting and a good marketer,” said Arna Meyer Mickelson, noting that the cafe has never been marketed in the past.
“And it’s got an unusually good menu.” – Aaron Leibel
h/t to @BethanyShondark on Twitter.
