A New Riverdale Food Hall Nets NYC’s Hit Korean Eatery Mökbar

Riverdale, Maryland’s stylish new food hall locked down a respected trio of chefs serving top-tier sushi, hot fried chicken sandwiches, and Korean dishes.

Le Fantome, situated at The Station at Riverdale Park Development (4501 Woodberry Street), carves out room for three dedicated dine-in stalls, a full-service bar, and six ghost kitchen vendors. The all-day lineup is curated by Hospitality HQ founding partner Akhtar Nawab — an award-winning chef and restaurateur behind Mexican hotspots Alta Calidad in New York and Otra Vez in New Orleans.

Here’s a look at each opening stall across the 8,500-square-foot food hall:

Mökbar: Esther Choi (and Nawab’s friend) adds a fourth casual outpost of her hit Korean eatery, marking its first location outside of NYC. With outposts in Chelsea Market, Brooklyn, Midtown, Choi is known for her chicken katsu, bulgogi, kimchi, fresh ramen noodles, and more.

Mökbar

Sonny & Sons: Top Chef: D.C. (Season 7) winner Kevin Sbraga and self-proclaimed “chicken whisperer” offers hot chicken sandwiches, sides and desserts. The stall is lovingly named after his father.

Sonny & Sons

Horu Sushi: With over 20 years of experience in the art of sushi, chef Chin “Steve” Liang focuses on fresh fish imported directly from Japan and Hawaii. Liang opened his first restaurant venture inside Plano, Texas’s large Legacy Hall in 2019 with just three types of fish available daily to craft ahi tuna towers and truffle salmon rolls.

Horu Sushi

Having Nawab on board at the food hall is a big deal. A protege of Tom Colicchio and mentor to David Chang, Nawab helped NYC’s Craft win the James Beard Foundation’s “Best New Restaurant” during his early 2000s tenure there.

Nawab turned to Mexican cuisine and ran NYC hotspot La Esquina before opening Alta Calidad in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn in 2017. He says he plans to bring some of his best-selling tacos down to the Prince George’s County food hall. Nawab also has ties to D.C.; he formerly ran the kitchen at Shaw’s popular Table and he’s currently a partner at Mt. Vernon Triangle’s chic new hotspot Bar Chinois.

The ghost kitchen part of the equation at Le Fantome plans to highlight local makers and chefs, including D.C.’s Laoban Dumplings and Indian and Nigerian cuisine.

Nawab and Le Fantome’s owner Cafritz Enterprises “shared a real interest in creating something interesting and different,” Nawab tells Eater. “It’s an interesting blend of vendors and great personalities.”

Liz Clayman

The hybrid service model features both QR code-enabled menus and waiters circling the 83-seat hall, which includes a 35-seat bar and 24-seat seasonal patio. The look from Philadelphia-based Eimer Design features lush greenery and playful tributes to the “phantom” of Le Fantome.

Located near the University of Maryland, Hyattsville, and Mount Rainier off the Route 1 corridor, Le Fantome augments Riverdale’s rising reputation as a dining attraction. Its mixed-use complex, also home to Denizens Brewing Co., sits not too far from brisket standard-bearer 2Fifty Texas BBQ.

Operating hours, the full vendor lineup, and menus will be revealed closer to opening (the goal is July, says Nawab). Owned by Cafritz Enterprises, the project is led by Cushman & Wakefield, Hospitality HQ, and Colicchio Consulting.

Mökbar