6 days in Washington DC- 10/18- 10/23/2024

Day 5- Dinner at Centrolina-10/22/2024

We are heading to Centrolina restaurant for dinner tonight.  Centrolina has been a Michelin Guide–recommended restaurant (often called a Michelin Plate or Selected Restaurant), meaning inspectors highlight it for high-quality cooking and consistency. While it does not currently hold a Michelin star, it is widely respected locally and frequently appears on “best restaurants in D.C.” lists. Chef Amy Brandwein has earned strong recognition for ingredient-driven Italian cuisine and thoughtful execution.  Many diners actually appreciate that it feels less formal than starred restaurants while still delivering Michelin-level quality and creativity.

To get there were walked through one of Washington, D.C.’s most upscale and modern districts located around CityCenterDC, with a concentration of luxury boutiques.

This CityCenterDC & Downtown Luxury District, where all the high-end retail, luxury apartments and condos, offices are located, opened around 2014 by transforming several downtown blocks into a European-style urban neighborhood.

Designed as a luxury pedestrian district with wide walkways, modern architecture, public art, and outdoor seating.

Centrolina is located in this big alley, next to Hermes store.

Centrolina is one of Washington’s most respected modern Italian restaurants. It was created by Amy Brandwein, a James Beard Award–nominated chef known for refined yet comforting Italian cooking. The restaurant focuses on seasonal Italian cuisine inspired by different regions of Italy, especially northern and central Italy.

As soon as you enter, the large bar immediately anchors the space. The bar is energetic, filled with locals, professionals, and regulars stopping in for wine or cocktails. Marble and warm wood tones give it an upscale feel without being intimidating. Many guests dine directly at the bar, making it feel like an Italian aperitivo scene.

At the far end, the open kitchen becomes the focal point, where you can see chefs working continuously, rolling pasta, plating dishes, coordinating orders. Stainless steel, bright lighting, and visible motion create a sense of precision and energy.

Beyond the bar, the dining area feels warm but modern.   Clean-lined and contemporary rather than rustic, neutral colors and natural materials,  soft lighting that becomes especially inviting in the evening, closely spaced tables that encourage a buzzing, communal energy.  The overall effect is urban Italian elegance, refined yet relaxed.

Hoa starting the meal with a Negroni. A Negroni is one of Italy’s most classic pre-dinner cocktails. Made with equal parts gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth, Bitter, herbal, slightly sweet, and citrusy, and designed to stimulate the appetite.

The dinner and dessert Menu.

Selection of homemade piccolina bread, with extra virgin olive oil. This is deceptively simple but foundational to Italian dining.

Piccolina breads are small, house-made breads with varied textures, often airy interiors with crisp crusts. Served with high-quality extra virgin olive oil, meant for dipping rather than butter.

Peperoni shishito & Escamillo peppers, Bagna Cauda.  This dish is rooted in northern Italian tradition.

Shishito & escamillo peppers are blistered until lightly charred with a smoky, sweet, occasionally spicy. Bagna cauda (“hot bath” in Piedmontese Italian) is a warm sauce of olive oil, garlic, and anchovy that is deeply savory and umami rich.  The salty anchovy-garlic sauce contrasts with the sweet peppers, creating a balance of smoke, salt, sweetness, richness. This is a classic Italian vegetable dish elevated through technique.

Bucatini Squid Ink, Cuttlefish, Fennel Sausage, Tomato and Basil

Bucatini are thick, hollow pasta that hold the sauce beautifully.  The squid ink adds a deep black color, subtle briny, oceanic flavor rather than strong “fishiness”. The Cuttlefish is tender, the fennel sausage is aromatic, slightly sweet, with herbal notes from fennel seed. The tomato & basil sauce add brightness and acidity to unify land and sea flavors.  It’s a sophisticated example of Italian cuisine blending surf and turf.

Miale Iberico Presa Pork Shoulder Steak, charred purple broccoletti, sweet red onion, salsa verde.

Iberico presa is a priced cut from Iberian pork, intensely marbled, almost steak-like, with a nutty, rich flavor due to the pigs’ acorn-fed diet.

The charred purple broccoletti is slightly bitter greens balanced by smoky grilling, the sweet red onion is caramelized and has a nice sweetness flavor.  The salsas verde is a bright herb sauce made with parsley, capers, olive oil, acidity to cuts through the fat and refreshes the palate.

The composition follows classic Italian logic: rich meat + bitter greens + acidic herbs = perfect balance.

Amata, Centrolina version of tiramisu.  Made with pistachio cake, matcha, mascarpone, occhi americano, honey

It is a creative reinterpretation rather than a traditional tiramisu.  Instead of coffee-heavy tiramisu, this version feels lighter, more aromatic, subtly bittersweet and modern. It finishes the meal with elegance rather than heaviness.

The lively restaurant welcomed us with a bustling bar and an open kitchen that set an energetic tone for the evening. We began with a Negroni and shared homemade piccolina bread with olive oil and blistered shishito peppers with bagna cauda, followed by a rich squid-ink bucatini with cuttlefish and fennel sausage and a beautifully prepared Iberico pork shoulder with charred broccoletti and salsa verde. Dessert was the Amata, Centrolina’s refined interpretation of tiramisu with pistachio cake, matcha, mascarpone, and honey,  a light and elegant ending to a memorable meal. We truly loved this restaurant and were very glad we chose to come here.

NEXT... Day 5- D.C. at night

Filed under: Restaurants