At Dogon, chef Kwame Onwuachi looked to DC's immigrant communities for menu inspiration. Photograph by Scott Suchman .This year, DC was busy with celebrity chef arrivals (Nancy Silverton! Kwame Onwuachi!), New York exports (Pastis! Minetta Tavern!), and local expansions—basically, places from restaurant groups who can afford the rent. That said, this was still a pretty thrilling year for the dining scene. Here are the ten openings we’ve been most excited about.    a.kitchen+bar 1010 New Hampshire Ave., NW The menu at a.kitchen+bar draws in global flavors and local ingredients. Photograph courtesy High Street Hospitality Group. Philadelphia restaurateur Ellen Yin, who won the 2023 James Beard award for Outstanding Restaurateur, opened this jewel box of a restaurant inside a West End hotel this fall. The menu features the same global-pantry sensibility as its beloved Philly sibling (sorghum here, salsa verde there). It’s a dreamy date spot, thanks to grazing-friendly share plates and an ambitious wine and cocktail list.    Aventino 4747 Bethesda Ave., Bethesda  The bar at Aventino. Photograph by Scott Suchman . Bethesda, long known for teeming with just-okay restaurants, finally has an actual dining destination. This swank Italian spot from Red Hen/All Purpose chef Mike Friedman turns out ace spritzes, negronis, and dirty martinis with parm-stuffed olives. Then, we love grazing on plates like a chicory salad with Robiola vinaigrette; ricotta with honey and rosemary; or cockles with white wine and marsala. Ex-Kinship pastry chef Ann Specker’s desserts are worthwhile, too. In short, there’s plenty here that makes us happy, even as we wait patiently for the lamb ribs to come back on the menu.    Bar del Monte 3054 Mount Pleasant St., NW Tyson Barrett works the pizza oven at Bar del Monte. Photograph by Evy Mages . This airy Mount Pleasant dining room from Oliver Pastan and his father, 2 Amys owner Peter Pastan, is 2024’s most idiosyncratic opening. This is not a menu that aims to please a crowd, but if you’re into a dinner that involves picking at lots of little things— anchovies with water-buffalo butter, bottarga with lemony salmoriglio, rabbit-liver parfait with pickled cherries—you’ll feel right at home. There are a couple pizzas, too, and they’re excellent, as are desserts like creme caramel or a pairing of lemon and Sicilian almond sorbets.   Dōgon 1330 Maryland Ave., SW Steamed Branzino at Dogon. Photograph by Scott Suchman . In 2020, rising star chef Kwame Onwuachi closed his hit Wharf restaurant Kith and Kin and moved back to his native New York. This September, he returned to our city a legit star, having launched Tatiana, the Lincoln Center restaurant that the New York Times has crowned #1 in the city for the past two years. Here, Onwuachi’s Afro-Caribbean dining room is darkly lit, sexy, and the kind of place you dress up for. It’s pretty impossible to get into, but make it past the curtain of gold chains at the entrance, and there are rich rewards. Buttery blue crab is served in its shell alongside tiny plantain hoecakes and a terrific green sauce inspired by DC’s Peruvian chicken joints. Charbroiled oysters arrive with a red stew jam you’ll want to keep around for the whole meal. This is some of the most thrilling, delicious food we’ve eaten all year.   La’ Shukran 417 Morse St., NE The new Middle Eastern bar La’ Shukran is already one of the hottest spots in town. Photograph by Vina Sananikone. Was there a hotter dining neighborhood that Union Market this year? Or a local chef with more momentum than Michael Rafidi? He not only took home the Outstanding Chef award at this year’s James Beards, but he opened two new places near the Northeast DC food hall. Yellow is an expanded version of his hit cafe in Georgetown, but we’re most excited about La’ Shukran, the alluring restaurant/lounge that sits upstairs. Rafidi is best known as the chef/owner of Albi, the Levantine dining room in Navy Yard. But earlier in his career he spent years overseeing the French Michael Mina restaurant RN74 in San Francisco (and later, the short-lived Mike Isabella restaurant Requin at the Wharf). Here, he taps into that experience, turning out escargot-topped hummus, fabulous steak kebabs au poivre, and fried quail with tahini ranch.    Moon Rabbit 927 F St., NW Moon Rabbit’s squash in fermented red curry. Photograph by Rachel Paraoan. This year’s first big opening was actually a reopening: Back in January, Kevin Tien resurrected his modern Vietnamese restaurant, which had previously been at the Wharf, in a smaller, chicer Penn Quarter space. Tien’s cooking is rooted in Vietnam, but borrows plenty from the American south. The crab rangoon, topped with pepper jelly and served with scallion crackers, is one of the best things we ate this year. Also of note: delicious cocktails like a dirty martini reimagined with pho.    Neutral Ground 6641 Old Dominion Dr., McLean Lemony crawfish pasta at Neutral Ground. Photograph by Simone Rathle. David Guas, who has worked for decades as a pastry chef—including at his own Bayou Bakery in Courthouse—raises his (and McLean’s) game at this packed suburban dining room. There’s Instagrammy decor in Palm Beach colors, and dishes like crispy tuna croquetas with lime taste like something you’d find on a Key West vacation. But much of the menu is more rooted in the American south and in Guas’s native Louisiana. A skillet of buttery roasted oysters comes with plenty of bread for sopping up the good stuff, and there’s a slightly fancified take on New Orleans barbecue shrimp.    Pascual 732 Maryland Ave., NE Guacamole at Pascual. Photograph by Deb Lindsey. One of the biggest cuisine trends of the past couple years here has been cheffy Mexican (Amparo Fondita, El Presidente, and Ometeo all arrived in 2023). Salsa macha everywhere! We’re not complaining. But this Capitol Hill dining room from restaurant world it-couple Isabel Coss and Matt Conroy, who met while working at New York’s Empellon, stands above them all. You’ve probably had a million guacs, but there are none in DC as good as Pascual’s, with its palette of colorful accompaniments. The place is a boon for vegetarian diners—we’d come just for the chayote salad—while meat eaters can tear into a large-format lamb neck barbacoa.    San Pancho 7056 Carroll Ave., Takoma Park  San Francisco-style burrito at San Pancho. Photograph courtesy San Pancho. In the past year, Takoma Park’s Carroll Avenue has turned into quite the food destination. I love the cheffy square pies at the new Red Hound pizzeria, but this breakfast-through-dinner spot earns the place on this list for filling a void: great burritos. San Pancho comes from the couple behind nearby Cielo Rojo, the vegan-friendly Mexican cafe that recently moved into a larger space (also on Carroll Avenue). We head here for burritos filled with proteins like spicy shrimp, carne asada, and chicken in mole sauce (order the “super” version, which adds guac’, cheese, and sour cream). Other great perks: the zingy avocado salsa that comes alongside, plus margaritas and non-alcoholic drink options like horchata and lemon/mint slushies.   Your Only Friend 1114 Ninth St., NW The Chicky Pep 2 at Your Only Friend. Photograph by Clarissa Villondo. DC’s reputation as a staid dining destination is in the rear view mirror at this Shaw sandwich-and-cocktail bar. We love it for its sense of whimsy—check out the stained glass homage to Duke’s mayo—and also its affection for lowbrow nostalgia. The Chicky Pep No. 2 sandwich, a riff on chicken parm, is finished with “OG breadstick” dust, while onion rings are flavored with Cool Ranch “pow-pow.” Cocktails nod to the ‘90s, with much improved versions of Midori coolers, Amaretto sours, and appletinis.The post The 10 Most Exciting DC-Area Restaurant Openings of 2024 first appeared on Washingtonian.