Komi (restaurant)

Komi is a Washington, D.C., restaurant operated by Chef Johnny Monis, serving Italian- and Greek-influenced dishes.

Komi in Washington, D.C.

The Restaurant

Komi is located at 1509 17th St. NW, near Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C.[1] It was a notable addition to the neighborhood when it opened in 2003, serving wood-fired pizzas and an à la carte menu of soups, salads, and entrees for lunch and dinner.[2]

In the winter of 2006, Chef Monis shut down the restaurant for two weeks, removing a majority of the tables and re-opening with a prix-fixe multi-course menu priced at $84, only available for dinner.[3] This new incarnation of Komi earned rave reviews, landing the No.1 spot on Washingtonian Magazine's Best Restaurants in DC in 2009.[4] It would hold this top spot through 2012, as it became one of the most acclaimed restaurants in the city.[5]

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama dined at Komi in May 2010.[6]

Komi earned a Michelin star in the 2018 Michelin Guide for Washington, DC.[7] In his 2018 Fall Dining Guide, Washington Post food critic Tom Sietsema named Komi to his ten-restaurant Hall of Fame.[8]

Chef Johnny Monis

Johnny Monis was born and raised in Arlington, Virginia, where his family owned La Casa Pizzeria.[9] His parents were born on the Greek island of Chios, and Komi is named for a taverna-lined beach on Chios where the family vacationed.[5]

Monis enrolled as a premed at James Madison University but dropped out to attend the College of the Culinary Arts at Johnson & Wales University in Charleston, South Carolina.[9] He did not finish culinary school, however, because he believed he was learning more by working at McCrady's Restaurant.[5]

In 2001, Monis was hired to work at the Washington, D.C. restaurant Chef Geoff's, where he was quickly promoted and was named the executive chef of a new Chef Geoff's location downtown.[9] In 2003, Monis quit to open his own restaurant, Komi.[5]

In April 2007, Food & Wine magazine named Monis one of the F&W 2007 Best New Chefs.[10] In 2013, Monis won a James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic.[11]

In 2011, Monis opened a separate restaurant on the floor below Komi, the Thai-inspired Little Serow, which was named one of the best new restaurants in America by Bon Appétit magazine.[12]

Awards
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See also

References
  1. Sietsema, Tom (October 10, 2018). "Komi's wonders never cease". Washington Post Magazine.
  2. Sietsema, Tom (January 11, 2004). "A Young Man's Game". The Washington Post.
  3. Kliman, Todd (September 24, 2008). "Komi". Washingtonian Magazine.
  4. Kliman, Todd (February 19, 2009). "100 Best Restaurants 2009: Komi". Washingtonian Magazine.
  5. Harris, Shane (September 5, 2012). "Chef Johnny Monis: Komi's Backstage Artist". Washingtonian Magazine.
  6. Hennessey, Kathleen (July 6, 2010). "A table and stage for the Obamas". Los Angeles Times.
  7. Judkis, Maura (October 17, 2017). "Komi, Métier join the Michelin star ranks, but no D.C. restaurants earn a coveted third star". The Washington Post.
  8. Sietsema, Tom (October 11, 2018). "2018 Fall Dining Guide". Washington Post Magazine.
  9. Hammer, Ben (May 24, 2004). "Here's Johnny!". Washington Business Journal.
  10. "Food & Wine Magazine Names 19th Annual Best New Chefs". Food & Wine Magazine. April 4, 2007.
  11. Alex Baldinger; Tim Carman (May 6, 2013). "Johnny Monis wins James Beard Award". The Washington Post.
  12. Knowlton, Andrew (August 14, 2012). "Little Serow Is the 7th-Best New Restaurant in America 2012". Bon Appétit.
  13. "Complete List of 2013 JBF Award Winners". James Beard Foundation. May 6, 2013.
  14. "Komi - a MICHELIN Guide Restaurant in Washington DC". MICHELIN Guide. Retrieved 4 December 2018.

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