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Inside Estuary, the Voltaggio Brothers’ Hotel Restaurant in CityCenter

It’s expected to open in the Conrad in February 2019

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Conrad’s centerpiece restaurant, Estuary, comes from James Beard nominees Bryan and Michael Voltaggio.
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Tierney Plumb is the editor of Eater DC, covering all things food and drink around the nation's capital.

More details are emerging about Hilton’s 360-room CityCenter hotel, the Conrad, which is preparing to start feeding fans of Top Chef alums Bryan and Michael Voltaggio in the first quarter of next year.

The Conrad is planning to open at the corner of New York Avenue and 10th Street NW in February 2019, according to a release. Conrad Washington’s reservations portal went live on Tuesday, November 13, and will welcome its first overnight guests starting March 15.

The Voltaggio brothers, who are getting ready to celebrate the second anniversary of their eponymous steakhouse inside MGM National Harbor, are tag-teaming for a second time in D.C. with Estuary. While menu details are slim for now, last week at the high-profile Capital Food Fight the brothers previewed one dish that’ll likely make its way onto plates at Conrad: masa and potato-crusted calamari. The celebrity chefs also run 1-year-old fish sandwich shop Strfsh in Southern California.

The D.C. natives have recently downsized their coast-to-coast footprints as they shift focus on opening their hotel restaurant. Bryan shed Range and Lunchbox in Chevy Chase and Aggio in Ashburn, Virginia, this year. He still runs Volt and Family Meal in Frederick, Maryland. Michael, who closed Ink.Well in SoCal this year, will trade California sunshine for winter in D.C. to help get Estuary up and running, the team tells Eater.

Conrad Hotels & Resorts is a portfolio of 34 luxury properties worldwide, with hotels in New York, Hong Kong, London, the Maldives, and Bora Bora. D.C.’s debut Conrad is designed by top Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron, also behind The Tate Modern in London. The 10-story, glass-enclosed hotel anchors the second phase of CityCenterDC.

D.C.’s hotel restaurant scene continues to boom thanks to recent arrivals from The Line in Adams Morgan and Eaton DC. Downtown will soon get the Marriott-owned Moxy Hotel, complete with two restaurants from Baltimore’s Atlas Restaurant Group.

Scenic stopping points at Conrad include a sleek rooftop bar and dedicated event terrace featuring panoramic views of the U.S. Capitol. Scroll on for a look at renderings of the Conrad, including its signature Estuary restaurant:

The super-modern Estuary hotel restaurant at Conrad features lots of marble, wood tones, and pops of red lining the open kitchen.
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The rooftop bar at Conrad. Charged with the hotel’s minimalist interior look is Rottet Studio, a titan in the hospitality space also behind NYC’s famed Henry and Hudson Common bars.
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Big spenders with room keys to club-level guestrooms and suites will have access to a top floor amenity called Sakura Club. The cherry blossom-inspired space will offer made-to-order meals by a private chef, a dedicated club concierge, use of private meeting rooms, priority reservations at Estuary, and special access to rooftop bar events.
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Estuary will be flooded in natural light thanks to floor-to-ceiling windows.
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