42nd Annual RAMMYS Fetes Local Restaurants, Bars

By Sophia Hall

Yesterday evening, restaurant industry professionals and their allies gathered for the 42nd Annual RAMMY Awards Gala at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center to celebrate the daily, tireless toil of delighting the District’s taste buds. The awards, presented by the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington (RAMW), recognize excellence in long-standing categories that range from individual professional honors to accolades celebrating culinary concepts and service. 

The gala consisted of three discrete events: the opening reception, awards show, and dinner and dancing. During the opening reception, presented by the D.C. Commission on Arts and Humanities, guests were invited to kick off the night with cocktails, light bites, and joyous music performed by the Sirius Company band. 

During the Awards Show, the achievements of Washington, D.C. area restaurants were highlighted, and the inaugural Rammy Honors event received a recap. The restaurants in D.C. have distinguished the region like no other businesses. Just this past year, D.C. boasted 24 semi-finalists and eight finalists for the James Beard awards, the culinary world’s equivalent of the Oscars. Chef Michael Rafidi of the Albi restaurant in Navy Yard received the “Outstanding Chef” award as well. Per capita, the region has not only the highest Michelin-starred restaurants but also the most new restaurants opening at a time. Last night, the Chef of the Year Award was presented to Angel Barreto of Anju.

Mayor Muriel Bowser even stated in her remarks at the awards show that the restaurants “bring people downtown, change the narrative, and tell the story of the real D.C.”  

Though the pandemic forced lots of restaurants to shift their mindsets and pivot their business strategies, the restaurant scene has bounced back. Bowser also commented on the increasing trend of people wanting to work from home post-pandemic, stating, “people might not want to come to work in the day, but they will want to come to your restaurants at night,” to much laughter. 

For the 2024 awards, any RAMW member in good standing, who met all category eligibility requirements, was able to be nominated in the restaurant, individual award, and publicly voted categories. All finalists and winners were determined by an anonymous panel of judges except for the winners of the five publicly-voted categories, which were decided by public vote earlier this year, and the Joan Hisaoka Allied Member of the Year category, whose finalists were nominated by peers and winner was selected by RAMW’s Executive Committee.

Many of the award winners acknowledged that the award could not have been achieved alone. As owner Elli Benchimol of Georgetown’s own French restaurant Apéro (now winner of Wine Program of the Year) said, “You’re only as good as your team.” Rising Culinary Star of the Year, Masako Moroshita of Perry’s restaurant, expressed her pride in her kitchen team, which is composed of 100 percent immigrants and ninety percent immigrant women. 

“We rise by lifting other people,” said Manager of the Year recipient Victoria Gradia of KNEAD Hospitality and Design. “Hospitality flows in all directions,” she added. 

The evening concluded with dinner and dancing, where guests reveled in the festive atmosphere and danced the night away to EDM by DJ Ri5e. Even Nationals mascot icons like Screech, Teddy Roosevelt and George Washington got groovy on the dance floor. Lounges hosted by Amazon, National Landing and Stella Artois immersed people in exclusive experiences, too.

A complete list of RAMMY winners can be found below. A photo gallery of the event is also below. All photos are by Bill Starrels.

The 2024 RAMMYS Awards Winners are (*denotes publicly voted category*):

New Restaurant of the Year presented by The Fork CPAs: Ellie Bird

Cocktail Program of the Year: Silver Lyan

Rising Culinary Star of the Year presented by LINK Strategic Partners: Masako Morishita, Perry’s

Beer Program of the Year: Zinnia 

Wine Program of the Year presented by Père Wine Bar: Apero

*Favorite Gathering Place presented by BN Commercial Hood Cleaning and Fire Protection*: Mi Vida

*Best Brunch*: Duke’s Counter

*Best Bar*: Bar Chinois

*Favorite Fast Bites*: Fava Pot

*Hottest Sandwich Shop*: Colada Shop

Employee of the Year: Michael Wyatt, Annabelle Restaurant

Manager of the Year: Victoria Gradia, KNEAD Hospitality + Design

Service Program of the Year presented by Ecolab: Reveler’s Hour

Casual Restaurant of the Year: La Famosa

Upscale Casual Restaurant of the Year: Lutèce

Pastry Chef or Baker of the Year: Rochelle Cooper, The Duck & The Peach

Formal Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year: Causa/Amazonia

Chef of the Year presented by Pepco, an Exelon Company: Angel Barreto, Anju

Restaurateur of the Year presented by Pepco, an Exelon Company: Kyle Bailey, Jon Ball, Jeremy Carman, Gavin Coleman, and Paul Holder, Long Shot Hospitality

Joan Hisaoka Allied Member of the Year: Carlos Rosario International Public Charter School

tags42nd Annual RAMMY AwardsFood and WineRammy AwardsRAMMYS