2Fifty Brings Its Mouthwatering Meats to Mt. Vernon Triangle Next Year

The team behind Maryland’s revered 2Fifty — widely considered one of the best barbecue places in the region — will bring a sit-down smokehouse to the heart of D.C.

2Fifty CEO Debby Portillo and award-winning pitmaster Fernando González just secured a lease for the Mt. Vernon Triangle space where Toscana Market currently stands (414 K Street NW), with plans to open in early 2024.

Oak smoke and fatty, wagyu-grade beef make the brisket stand out at the couple’s Riverdale Park, Maryland destination for Central Texas-style barbecue since 2020. The core menu in D.C. will showcase other wood-smoked sensations like tender beef and pork ribs, buttery turkey, and juicy sausage links made in-house.

2Fifty/rendering

Portillo and González, who are part of a large restaurant family in El Salvador, plan to play up their Latin roots at their new D.C. address with items like barbecue pupusas. Other rotating specials include pastrami beef ribs and smoked duck.

2Fifty, which got its start as a farmers market stand, first came to D.C. in 2021 with a condensed menu served out of a Union Market stall. Unlike its two existing locations, the future D.C. digs will operate on a first-come, first-serve basis — which was always the operational plan before the pandemic got in the way.

“Very reminiscent of barbecue joints that sell until sold out. The line will start with the cutter and we will not have online or phone orders,” says Portillo.

For its latest location, the team tasked the top manufacturers at Mill Scale Metalworks to make two custom, 1,000-gallon smokers to be towed to D.C. from Lockhart, Texas.

Rey Lopez/Eater DC

Rey Lopez/Eater DC