Culinary legends Stephen Starr and Nancy Silverton collaborate on M Street’s Osteria Mozza. 
The dreamy solarium at Osteria Mozza.
Five years is a long time to pine for a space to reopen. However, since the middle of 2019, Washingtonians have waited for someone to reimagine the former Dean & Deluca space on M Street in Georgetown. James Beard Award-winning chef Stephen Starr (@stephen.starr) and Michelin-starred chef Nancy Silverton (@nancysilverton) answered the call.
Our patience has been rewarded.
The new Osteria Mozza (@osteriamozzadc)) occupies the 20,000-square-foot building with old bones (circa 1865). Guests will discover a restaurant with a traditional Italian menu, a marble-topped Mozzarella Bar, a stunning bar, two private dining areas and a Silverton-curated market featuring spices, fresh fruits and vegetables, jarred and tinned Italian delicacies and specialty olive oil, among other sundries.
The dining room features comfortable booths and exquisitely designed lighting.
This restaurant’s debut on the East Coast delivers the regional Italian flavors that have established Mozza as a landmark in Los Angeles and earned Silverton her place as one of the world’s most esteemed chefs. She offers some of Mozza’s Melrose Avenue favorites to DC: crisp, stracchino-stuffed Focaccia di Recco (a Starr favorite) will grace the menu, along with Nancy’s Favorite Trio, featuring delicate mounds of mozzarella di bufala topped with Cantabrian anchovies, sun-dried tomatoes and peppers served alongside Silverton’s golden-brown fett’unta.
Of course, Starr is no stranger to DC, as he has launched popular venues like El Presidente (@elpresidentedc), Pastis (@pastis_dc) and the eternally buzzy Le Diplomate (@lediplomate).
Before the restaurant opened in mid-November, I sat down with Starr and Silverton in the restaurant’s light-filled, brick-lined solarium, with warm orange booths and green leather chairs. These will quickly become the hottest seats in the house. “Can you imagine what this part of the restaurant will look like at night or when it’s snowing?” asked Starr dreamily.
The bar at Osteria Mozza in the heart of Georgetown.
Why DC?
Stephen Starr: We’ve been here. We landed with Le Diplomat, of course, which was a smashing success, and I love this city. It feels like home. There are also so many smart people here who enjoy restaurants more than other cities—they’re grateful and welcoming.
I also fell in love with this space and had to do it. After that, Nancy and I collaborated, which was the perfect fit.
Nancy Silverton:
I wouldn’t have attempted to open a restaurant here on my own. But I’ve always wanted to have a presence on the East Coast, and I never knew how to do it until this perfect partnership.
How did the partnership come about?
NS: He’s the dad with all the money [laughter].
SS: I love Nancy’s restaurants in California, and her dishes are extraordinary. I had such a strong sense that her concept would work in this space, which we had committed to very early, even before COVID and everything stopped. She is a superstar, and it’s exciting to partner with Nancy. Her pasta dishes are so good and a real foundation for the restaurant. Many Italian restaurants don’t have great salads, but that’s not the case here—they’ll surprise guests.
Please tell me about the design.
SS: Our designers, Roman and Williams (@roman_and_williams_), are among the best in the world. I’ve used them for several other restaurants, and they’re spectacular. The high ceilings were challenging, and I told the design team I wanted the place to feel warm—with beautiful light fixtures— and sexy. They succeeded in every way.
The market will surprise a lot of people. It’s not for show.
NS: We are in Georgetown and wanted it to feel like a robust neighborhood market.
Everything has to be curated impeccably. I know every one of the producers whose goods we sell, and some of these products from France, Spain and Italy take time to track down. I shop everywhere and know right away if the market did its homework.
Restaurants are about food, of course, but also the X factor. Does this place have it?
SS: When people walk in, it will be a shock-and-awe moment for them. Le Dip had it right away, and Buddakan (buddakannyc.com), my restaurant in New York City, had it too. It’s massive and beautiful. My goal is to make magic every time I open a restaurant. This is one of those Sergeant Pepper moments, and it will be a hit—though I don’t want to jinx myself [laughter].
Photography by: MICHAEL MCCARTHY; REY LOPEZ
