Courtesy of Tricia Barba

It seems like there’s never a shortage of restaurants opening up in DC.

To finish out 2011, Xavier Cervera plans to open his fifth Capitol Hill restaurant, Boxcar Tavern, located in the old Petite Gourmetspace on 7th St. SE right next to Tunnicliffs. The staff is currently in training mode, and it sounds like the plan is still to open by the end of the month. The Eastern Market Metro Community Association has a pic of the inside.

Places that are open 24 hours a day always excite me. Case in point: The Hamilton located in downtown DC (same block as another Clyde’s Restaurant group favorite, Old Ebbitt Grill) opened up to the public just this week. The restaurant and live music venue comes to us from Clyde’s Restaurant Group. The 37,000 square foot space has two floors, four bars and four dining rooms. Where else can you get sushi, charcuterie, and seasonal and regional American fare? For more information and a slide show check out Washingtonian’s Best Bites.

Veggie Burrito at Tortilla Coast
courtesy of Kevin H.

The booming 14th Street corridor welcomed a new arrival Monday: Tortilla Coast. Capitol Hill residents, staffers and definitely interns are already familiar with the first location right across from the Capitol South Metro. I’ve never been a huge fan of Tortilla Coast, though maybe I’ll like the Logan Circle locale more since the press release reads: “While the new restaurant will offer the same fun atmosphere and focus on freshly made food that guests have come to expect at the original Capitol Hill location, the Logan Circle restaurant will feature authentic regional Mexican cuisine.”  The restaurant boasts 152 seats (including 45 in the bar area) and, come spring, will feature a 48 seat patio on 15^thStreet NW.

Word on the street is The Pinch is coming to the old El Salvadorena space in Columbia Heights. Prince of Petworth reports that a recent liquor license application reads, “New restaurant serving contemporary American cuisine. Occasional live music or spoken word performance to be offered in basement area. Occupancy load is 99. Sidewalk Café 28.” The Pinch is shooting for a spring opening, according to PoP.

Also shooting for a Spring 2012 opening is Townhouse Restaurant & Wine Bar. Citybizlist reports that Townhouse entered into a 10-year lease for the 6,710 square foot ground floor retail space at 700 Sixth Street, NW, aka Chinatown. Townhouse already has one existing location in Sherman Oaks, CA and two in the Chicago area. According to its website, “Townhouse’s uniquely designed menu offers a large selection of small plates, sandwiches, salads and entrees to suit any taste.”

Photo Courtesy Lime Fresh Mexican Grill

Finally, if you want to venture outside of the DC lines, come January you can try Lime Fresh Mexican Grill in Arlington. The Florida-based fast-casual Mexican concept is “food conscious” and features a signature homemade salsa bar and 50 variations of hot sauces. Dine here and you have the option of whole wheat, multi-grain or low-carb items, plus everything on the menu has 0 trans fat.

Happy Eating!

Tricia Barba

Tricia is a native Washingtonian, born and raised in Columbia Heights. She loves DC so much that she was only able to leave the city for one year after college and immediately came running back. Tricia works in PR during the day, and spends her nights trying out new restaurants in DC with friends or watching The Good Wife, Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice. Tricia recently decided to eat her way though all of Zagat’s 2011 restaurants until she realized she would be old and broke by the time she finished. Follow her on Twitter and email her at Tricia (at) welovedc.com.