Komi was a restaurant in Washington, D.C. operated by Chef Johnny Monis, serving Italian cuisine and Greek cuisine.
Komi was located at 1509 17th St. NW in Washington, D.C.[1] 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 held 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]
By September, 2022, Komi had lost their Michelin star and "morphed into Happy Gyro, a… Greek deli-style takeout."[9]
Chef Johnny Monis
Johnny Monis was born and raised in Arlington, Virginia, where his family owned La Casa Pizzeria.[10] 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.[10] 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.[10] 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.[11] In 2013, Monis won a James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic.[12]
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.[13]
Awards
- 2007 Best New Chefs Food & Wine Magazine.[11]
- 2009 Very Best Restaurants in DC, No.1, Washingtonian Magazine.[4]
- 2013 Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic, James Beard Foundation Award.[14]
- 2018 Michelin Star
, Michelin Guide.[15]
See also
References
- ^ Sietsema, Tom (October 10, 2018). "Komi's wonders never cease". Washington Post Magazine.
- ^ Sietsema, Tom (January 11, 2004). "A Young Man's Game". The Washington Post.
- ^ Kliman, Todd (September 24, 2008). "Komi". Washingtonian Magazine.
- ^ a b Kliman, Todd (February 19, 2009). "100 Best Restaurants 2009: Komi". Washingtonian Magazine.
- ^ a b c d Harris, Shane (September 5, 2012). "Chef Johnny Monis: Komi's Backstage Artist". Washingtonian Magazine.
- ^ Hennessey, Kathleen (July 6, 2010). "A table and stage for the Obamas". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Sietsema, Tom (October 11, 2018). "2018 Fall Dining Guide". Washington Post Magazine.
- ^ Spiegel, Anna. "Little Serow Has Temporarily Closed in Dupont Circle". Washingtonian. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b c Hammer, Ben (May 24, 2004). "Here's Johnny!". American City Business Journals.
- ^ a b "Food & Wine Magazine Names 19th Annual Best New Chefs". Food & Wine Magazine. April 4, 2007.
- ^ Alex Baldinger; Tim Carman (May 6, 2013). "Johnny Monis wins James Beard Award". The Washington Post.
- ^ Knowlton, Andrew (August 14, 2012). "Little Serow Is the 7th-Best New Restaurant in America 2012". Bon Appétit.
- ^ "Complete List of 2013 JBF Award Winners". James Beard Foundation. May 6, 2013.
- ^ "Komi - a MICHELIN Guide Restaurant in Washington DC". MICHELIN Guide. Archived from the original on 5 December 2018. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
38°54′36.3″N 77°2′17.9″W / 38.910083°N 77.038306°W
