Kwame Onwuachi, a former chef at the Kith/Kin restaurant at The Wharf, is returning to D.C. in a partnership with the Salamander Collection, and its Salamander Washington D.C. hotel in Southwest.
Salamander Resorts & Spa took over the location of the former Mandarin Oriental Hotel, and a new restaurant is among several changes it plans to make. The original high-end resort is located in Middleburg, Virginia, and is owned by businesswoman Sheila Johnson.
Onwuachi currently owns and has written several books, including the bestselling cookbook “My America: Recipes from a Young Black Chef.”
In 2019, he was named Rising Star Chef of the Year by the James Beard Foundation.
“The time is right to return to D.C., and I can’t think of a more appropriate location to open a new restaurant that speaks to the character and lineage of D.C. than at this storied Salamander property,” Onwuachi said.
The Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg hosts Onwuachi’s annual multiday culinary event called This year’s event, in partnership with Food & Wine, is on Aug. 17-20, and is already sold out.
The existing restaurant at the Salamander Washington DC, The Lounge, will undergo a redesign by architects Bentel & Bentel, but Salamander gave no timeline for when the new restaurant would open, or what would be on the menu.
London-based real estate company Henderson Park chose Johnson and Salamander to rebrand and refresh the Mandarin Oriental, after it acquired the 373-room hotel from Mandarin Oriental International last year in a $139 million sale.
Salamander operates other resorts and hotels in Jamaica, Anguilla, Charleston, South Carolina, Florida and Aspen.
