Eataly Heading To DC In 2012 With Plans To Go Even Bigger

Whoa, guys. Eataly is coming to DC. Owner Joe Bastianich tells the Huffington Post that the colossal Italian food emporium that he opened with Mario Batali in New York last summer is not just expanding to LA, but also to our nation's capital. And that's not all. Bastianich says that Eataly DC will be even bigger than its New York original — which, by the way, is a 50,000-square-foot mecca packed with 12 restaurants, a beer garden, a cooking school, and an exhaustive Italian market that sells salumi, fresh pasta, mozzarella and other imported products that you probably won't see at your local grocery store. The approximate date given for the expansion is "by the end of 2012," though timing depends on whether the team finds the right space. Finding the right space will also determine which new location opens first — DC or LA.

So, if all goes according to plan, soon we're going to be food hall central 'round here. Bryan Voltaggio announced plans just a few weeks back for a market of his own out in Frederick that combines a dining room with food counters and a specialty store selling products he uses at Volt. And, don't forget, the Eat Good Food team behind Restaurant Eve, Virtue Feed & Grain and other Alexandria restaurants has big plans to open their own Eataly-esque food hall called Society Fair, complete with a bakery, a butcher and, of course, a market. Both markets have been compared to Eataly, though Voltaggio points out to the Huffington Post that his market will be based on American food rather than Italian.
· Eataly To Open DC, LA Locations As Early As 2012 [HuffPo]
· More details on Society Fair [WBJ]
· All Previous Bryan Voltaggio Coverage [-EDC-]