After a long summer break, chef José Andrés has announced plans to reopen his award-winning restaurant Minibar in Washington DC next month with a revamped menu and significant price hike.
According to The Washington Post, the new Minibar has begun to take reservations for the restaurant which reopens November 2 in a new location.
When it was a six-stool diner, the restaurant was included in Bon Appétit magazine’s list of ‘The 11 Toughest Restaurant Reservations in the USA’ famous for its avant-garde cookery.
Meanwhile, perhaps one of the biggest differences Andrés fans will notice is the menu price hike, which has gone from US$150 to US$225 (RM460 to RM680), a 50 per cent increase. Wine pairings are also available at between US$75 to US$200.
The new space will also double in capacity from its original cramped quarters to fit a dozen diners at a time, with four seatings throughout the night.
American audiences know Andrés for his many TV appearances and for his imaginative menus at restaurants like Jaleo in Las Vegas and The Bazaar by José Andrés in Beverly Hills. He was named the Outstanding Chef in the 2011 James Beard Foundation Awards and is often cited as the unofficial ambassador of Spanish cuisine in the US.
Meanwhile, other hotly anticipated restaurant openings took place last week when the enfant terrible of the New York dining scene David Chang opened four shiny new outposts of his Momofuku empire in Toronto, Canada – an event that made headline news and drew snaking queues of local diners.
Reservations for Minibar are being taken by email at reserve@minibarbyjoseandres.com on a first come, first serve basis
