Georgetown debuts high-end American grill with late-night jazz bar

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Georgetown’s restaurant scene grows denser this week with two new Ten Five Hospitality venues opening at the corner of M Street and Wisconsin Avenue: a 60-seat grill on the ground floor and a velvet-clad supper club upstairs. The arrivals, which begin service Friday, June 26, bring a high-profile chef and a heavy dose of theatrical dining to a historic stretch of the neighborhood — changes that will reshape late-night and steakhouse options in the area.

A historic room dressed for the Gilded Age

The ground-floor dining room occupies a 150-year-old brick building that once housed the St. Elmo’s Fire–era Third Edition. Ten Five’s team stripped and rebuilt the space, commissioning London and Los Angeles designers to create a low-lit, clubby atmosphere with oak paneling, leather banquettes, and brass fixtures. The room is intentionally intimate — about half the size of the company’s usual restaurants — aiming for old-world formality rather than fast-paced dining.

At the helm of the kitchen is Tim Hollingsworth, a James Beard–recognized chef who trained under Thomas Keller and held senior posts at Per Se and The French Laundry. His approach here leans on familiar, hearty preparations — roasted birds, steaks and classic sauces — but executed with refined technique and a Mid-Atlantic ingredient set.

What’s on the menu

The menu blends upscale raw-bar offerings with time-tested grill dishes. Seafood towers, East- and West-coast oysters and caviar sit alongside comfort-driven plates and theater-ready preparations meant to pair with an extensive wine list.

  • Raw bar: oysters, Maine diver scallops, jumbo Mexican shrimp, chilled seafood towers.
  • Small plates: beef tartare with piquillo and Basque chiles; roasted bone marrow with endive marmalade.
  • Grill and mains: Berkshire pork chop with rosemary-honey-garlic glaze; koji- and pepper-rubbed prime rib; côte de boeuf and A5 wagyu options.
  • Comfort with a twist: roasted chicken with vin jaune sourced from LaBelle Patrimoine; a playful fish-sticks-and-caviar dish in the upstairs lounge.
  • Suppliers: produce from Lancaster Farms Cooperative and beef from family-owned Brandt Beef in California.

Upstairs: a supper club with theatrical intent

Above the dining room is an independently operated lounge with a separate entrance. Named Bernadette’s, the space channels postwar European supper clubs — think velvet drapery, a grand piano and close-set tables — and is intended as an evening destination for dinner, drinks, and live music.

Management describes Bernadette’s as “dinner with a little theater.” The menu there intentionally mixes elevated fare with approachable items: chicken liver mousse, a wagyu cheeseburger, prime rib French dip and steak frites share the slate with more playful offerings that bridge fine dining and late-night comfort.

Julian Cox, a James Beard–nominated bartender, oversees drinks across the venue’s multiple bars. Expect creative riffs on classics — a martini with Castelvetrano olive oil, tea-forward Old Fashioneds, and citrusy mezcal cocktails with a spicy kick. The wine list spans roughly 400 labels from France, Italy, Spain and the U.S.

Hours and live entertainment
Venue Days Hours Live Music
Oak Room Tuesday–Sunday 5:00–10:30 p.m. (brunch coming soon) No regular schedule
Bernadette’s Wed, Thu, Sun; extended Fri–Sat 5:00–11:00 p.m. (Wed/Thu/Sun); to 2:00 a.m. Fri–Sat Live music Thu–Sat (initial schedule)

The operation also includes an ivy-covered garden patio tucked behind Bernadette’s, intended as a quieter, seasonal bar area that the team likens to small central-London courtyards.

Ten Five’s managing partner Dan Daley, a Georgetown alumnus who returned to the D.C. area recently, says the company often finds a building first and then designs a concept around the site. The Oaks Room/Bernadette’s project follows that formula — paying particular attention to the neighborhood’s historic fabric while delivering a contemporary dining program.

For the local dining landscape, these openings arrive amid a wave of new steakhouses and multi-concept venues in Georgetown, including recent arrivals that have expanded options for late-night drinking and high-end meat-focused menus. Ten Five’s next confirmed move is a lease on the long-vacant RiRa space on M Street, signaling more change to come in the corridor.

Why this matters now: the two openings add both daytime and late-night capacity to a compact, historic neighborhood and bring a nationally known culinary name to Washington’s dining scene — a combination likely to shift where Georgetown residents and visitors choose to eat, drink and linger this summer.

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