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Meet Matt and Tony’s, an All-Day Bloody Mary and Brunch Spot for Del Ray

A Ted’s Bulletin alum makes corn flake-crusted French toast, chorizo Scotch eggs, and other quirky comfort foods

Bowls and plates on a table filled with waffles, eggs, and yogurt
Matt and Tony’s all-day menu is filled with eggs, carbs, and hearty breakfast bowls.
Francesca Calisti/Matt and Tony’s
Tierney Plumb is the editor of Eater DC, covering all things food and drink around the nation's capital.

Todd Miller, the pastry chef credited with making Ted’s Tarts a D.C. phenomenon, pops back up at another nostalgia-inducing brunch place in Alexandria’s Del Ray neighborhood.

Matt and Tony’s All Day Kitchen + Bar, opening Wednesday, March 16, comes from first-time restaurant owner Matt Sloan, who formerly led front-of-house operations at Daikaya and Matchbox and helped open Ada’s on the River nearby.

Family-friendly Matt and Tony’s fills in a 127-seat space left behind by short-lived Charlie’s On the Avenue (1501 Mount Vernon Avenue, Del Ray). Before that, it was FireFlies – where President Barack Obama curbed a burger craving back in 2014.

A few years back, Ted’s Bulletin’s then-corporate pastry chef Todd Miller led the mass production of its cult riffs on Pop-Tarts. At Matt and Tony’s, Miller’s latest childhood remix is a Rice Crispy-like bar with peanut butter fudge and chocolate.

Matt and Tony’s opens six days a week (closed Mondays) starting at 8 a.m., which means morning bloody marys could become a new Alexandria trend. One of two anytime bloodys comes with bacon-infused vodka, chipotle, lime, a meat stick, and bacon salt.

A bloody mary with a big sprig of celery
A house bloody mary infuses vodka with celery.
Matt and Tony’s

All-day brunch includes corn flake-crusted French toast engineered with cinnamon egg custard and chicken chorizo-stuffed Scotch eggs. The daytime menu includes gluten-free cornmeal pancakes slathered in mole maple syrup and a hearty bowl of homemade steel cut oatmeal with quinoa, millet porridge, and sweet or savory add-ins.

Familiar comfort foods with a twist include baked mac and cheese loops in cheddar mornay and crispy jalapeno, and a turkey meatloaf gets a barbecue balsamic drizzle.

A beverage program filled with spritzes and sangrias includes cocktails like a vodka-based “Wild Goose Chase” with apple and St. Germain and a tamarind-and-tequila “Phoenix.”

An earthy look put together by designer David Anthony Chenault (Bar Bao, Pamplona) plays off a central seating area surrounded by live trees.

Matt and Tony’s sports stone-toned brick walls and lots of American oak accents.
Francesca Calisti/Matt and Tony’s
Wine and water glasses on an outdoor table with a napkin and silverware.
Matt and Tony’s has a 40-seat patio.
Francesca Calisti/Matt and Tony’s

The “Tony” part of the name pays homage to Sloan’s great grandfather, an Austrian immigrant-turned-acclaimed NYC baker (he even made rye bread for President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration, says Sloan). Breads and pastries are naturally a focus across the menu, starting with baskets of scallion cheddar biscuits to anytime desserts like “Tony’s” torte (Viennese chocolate cake) and gingerbread bread pudding.

Matt and Tony’s opens with dine-in service until 9 p.m. (and 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday), with takeout and delivery to follow.

French toast, an egg skillet, and cocktail on a wood table
All-day French toast joins eggs skillets and a long list of cocktails at Matt and Tony’s.
Matt and Tony’s