Thompson Italian Opens Second Location In Old Town Alexandria

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Thompson Italian, a family-owned Italian restaurant from a married couple, will debut its second location Tuesday in Old Town Alexandria.

The restaurant is opening at 1024 King St., the former location of Hank's Oyster Bar before it moved to a new location in Old Town North. Thompson Italian is the brainchild of Gabe Thompson and Katherine Thompson, the married chef-owners who previously worked for Italian restaurants in New York City. The couple met as part of the opening staff at Dell’anima in New York City, and they went on to become chef-owners at other New York City Italian restaurants such as L’Artusi, Anfora and L’Apicio.

In 2015, they moved to Northern Virginia and opened their first restaurant, Thompson Italian in Falls Church, in 2019. Katherine Thompson is an Arlington native who was trained at the Culinary Institute of America and became a pastry chef at various New York restaurants. At Thompson Italian, she earned a James Beard nomination for Outstanding Pastry Chef of the Year. Gabe Thompson has been executive chef at various New York City restaurants. He was chef at RPM Italian in DC before the couple opened Thompson Italian in Falls Church.

The team at the Alexandria location includes executive chef Lucy Dakwar, who worked with the Thompsons at the opening of New York's L’Apicio and helped create the menu at Thompson Italian in Falls Church as chef de cuisine. The general manager is Mel Haynes-Dunphy, who was part of the Thompson Italian opening in Falls Church.

Thompson Italian specializes in handmade pasta, desserts and other Italian specialties. Diners can find favorites like garlic bread, meatballs, and olive oil cake plus an expanded menu of pasta and seafood. Some of the items only available at the Alexandria location are gnocchi with braised chicken ragu, sage and Parmesan Panzerotti; whole roasted fish with Taggiasca olives, fennel, salsa verde, tomato romesco and almonds; and Trenne with vodka sauce, Parmesan and smoked mozzarella.

Hours are 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Fridays to Sundays. The restaurant will be closed on Tuesdays, except for the opening day this week.

While reservations are limited for opening day Tuesday, diners can make reservations for the Alexandria location on upcoming days. Bar seating will be first come, first served for walk-ins. Takeout will not be offered during the first week but will be available in the near future.

For more information, visit thompsonitalian.com.