New Western Market Set to Be Foggy Bottom’s Dining Destination

DC’s famed Eastern Market is about to have some Western competition. Western Market is almost complete and will open later this summer in Foggy Bottom (2000 Pennsylvania Avenue NW) at what was once known as both The Shops at 2000 Penn and Red Lion Row.

Originally built in 1802, this area has a long marketplace history. Not only does it stand on the location of a market originally in L’Enfant’s plan for the city, but along its façade are a row of townhouses on the National Register of Historic Places that were once owned by merchants who kept shops inside. And even in recent years, it has housed a mix of stores and casual restaurants, including Cone E. Island — an ice cream shop legendary among former G.W. University students.

But now this thoroughly modern marketplace is set to be a dining destination, home to over a dozen food and beverage vendors in one place, and just steps from Georgetown and the West End, easily accessible from George Washington University, the GWU Hospital and its medical campus, the World Bank and IMF, the State Department, and other nearby businesses and agencies.

Capo Deli, Captain Cookie & the Milkman, Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls, Onkei, RAWish, and Roaming Rooster were already confirmed in an earlier phase of the project. But as Western Marketplace prepares to open in the coming weeks, these new marketplace tenants are joining those already announced:

Tigerella
The talents behind Mount Pleasant neighborhood favorite Ellē will open the new Tigerella concept at Western Market. The planned menu includes a variety of breakfast, lunch, and dinner options ranging from morning pastries, baked goods, and coffee to sandwiches, dessert, and a full bar. New menu items will be added specifically for the Western Market location.

Bandoola Bowl
The Southeast Asian salad shop is the latest concept from The Myint Family, which also operates Mandalay restaurant in Silver Spring, MD, and the original Bandoola Bowl in Georgetown. The new location at Western Market brings flavors from Burma, Vietnam, Thailand, and beyond highlighted across a menu of fresh ingredients. Guests will enjoy customized salad or warm bowls, topped with spicy rice noodles or brown rice and a variety of proteins, spices, fruits, vegetables, and garnishes.

Arepa Zone
What began as a bright yellow food truck in 2014, Arepa Zone now serves guests at locations in downtown D.C. and inside Audi Field. Best known for arepas, cachapas, and tequeños, the popular eatery will offer authentic Venezuelan food to diners in Foggy Bottom with its latest expansion at Western Market. The large menu will easily satisfy meat lovers and vegetarians alike.

Nim Ali
The Guatemalan street food concept started as a pop-up inside Jake’s Tavern in Shaw earlier this year, and lands at Western Market with a variety of snacks and full plates including shukos (street hot dogs), antojitos, mixtas, tacos and more. Owners Rosario Guzman and Karla Alonzo chose the name Nim Ali in reverence to the Guatemalan nickname given to female family leaders, referential to a strong Mayan queen.

Alitiko
Newcomer Alitiko, from the Greek word for punk is rooted in owner Dimitri Piskapas’childhood in Greece. The Greco-Middle Eastern menu is inspired by classic Greek street foods – gyros, sandwiches, and fresh Mediterranean sides. The new concept’s inaugural menu includes cucumber & zucchini fritters, slow-roasted shawarma, glazed pork neck, and house-cut fries.

The 12,300 square-foot space not only incorporates new design updates to allow for comfortable, socially distant seating options for small groups, a reconstructed interior concourse offering spacious indoor access to all dining options, and ample, sunlit outdoor patio seating, but it also brings diverse cultures and cuisines to the heart of Foggy Bottom in a refreshed historic setting.