Opening Date Set for Bastille Restaurant in Alexandria

Alexandria foodies anxiously awaiting the opening of the new Bastille will be excited to hear there is an opening date for the restaurant.

Chefs Christophe and Michelle Poteaux will re-open Bastille’s doors at its new location at 606 N. Fayette St., at the corner of Fayette and Pendleton, on Monday, Jan. 26. The location is part of the Asher development, two blocks from the Braddock Road Metro station.

The husband and wife chefs/owners will open with dinner service only, but will soon add lunch, brunch and all-day café service in coming weeks. (Christophe is a native of France and Michelle hails from Missouri; the two met when he hired her at The Watergate’s Aquarelle restaurant, The Washington Post noted in a review during their early days.)

Consistently ranking among the capital region’s best restaurants, Bastille’s popularity led it to relocate to a larger space after eight years on N. Royal Street. With two dining rooms, an all-day café, and a large courtyard patio, the new restaurant offers seating for a total of 140, and is equipped for private dining. Rich woods, metropolitan photography, cool green accents and sleek light fixtures highlight changes to the restaurant’s look and feel, but the interiors still reflect the contemporary edge of France today, lending a modern feel to the renowned French café experience.

Chef Dawn Burkart will reunite with her former colleagues, Christophe and Michelle, as Bastille’s Chef de Cuisine. Burkart, who was part of Christophe Poteaux’s team at the legendary Watergate’s Aquarelle, is a proven talent, most recently Chef de Cuisine of Bistro l’Hermitage in Woodbridge. “I could not be happier to have Dawn back in the kitchen with us,” Poteaux noted. “Her style and attention to detail will help take Bastille to the next level.” Known for elegant presentations of traditional, yet innovative dishes, Burkart has a natural flair for exquisite cuisine.

An upgraded kitchen allows the chefs to accommodate more guests and prepare more dishes with new techniques that simply weren’t possible in the former kitchen. Those who have dined at Bastille in the past will find familiar, creative seasonal menus as well as some additions.

Drawing inspiration from the diverse cultures represented in modern-day France, the new menu will showcase diverse flavors from North Africa and the Middle East. The opening menu captures Christophe’s range in dishes that include paella a la plancha and Maine lobster braised in coconut curry broth. In addition to her celebrated desserts, Michelle will offer house-made baked goods such as a daily Galette de Pain flatbread, ice creams and made-to-order cakes for special occasions.

Bastille will be open from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. for lunch and 5-10 p.m. for dinner daily, with weekend lunch and brunch from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. The bar will be open from 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m. daily, with weekday happy hour from 5-7 p.m. For more information call 703.519.3776, visit them on the web at www.bastillerestaurant.com, or find them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

As for its previous location, it will reopen Jan. 22 as Bistrot Royal, offering casual bistro fare.