Sun. June 22, 2004
Washington, DC — The Downtown DC Business Improvement District congratulates hot spots DC Coast, TenPenh, Zaytinya and Zola, which all took home top honors at the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington’s annual awards gala Sunday night.
Jeff Tunks of DC Coast and TenPenh received the coveted RAMMY Award for Chef of the Year at the elegant awards banquet. Gus DiMillo, Tunks’s business partner at DC Coast and Tenpenh, was named Industry Ambassador of the Year.
Tunks was honored for creating striking and unique fare at his restaurants. At DC Coast, on K Street, NW, Tunks “presents his modern American cuisine with an engaging flair for flavors, inspired by his experiences in the mid-Atlantic, the Gulf Coast and the Pacific Rim,” according to the awards committee. At TenPenh, on Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Tunks’s “cooking experiences in Vietnam and Bangkok brought an array of authentic- style dishes to the table—not so foreign as to frighten, but exotic enough to refresh even the most jaded palates.”
Zaytinya, located in the new Pepco building at 9th and G Streets, NW, won the award for New Restaurant of the Year. The Mediterranean-themed gem is one of three much- honored Downtown restaurants (along with Jaleo and Café Atlantico) owned by the triumvirate of Roberto Alvarez, Rob Wilder and James Beard Award-winning chef Jose Andres. Downtown restaurants received four of the five nominations in the New Restaurant of the Year category; along with winner Zaytinya, nominees included Chef Geoff’s Downtown, Poste and Zola.
Zola, in the International Spy Museum, won the RAMMY Award for having the Wine and Beverage Program of the Year.
Darnell Davis of the Willard InterContinental Washington (and its restaurants The Willard Room and Café 1401) was named Restaurant Employee of the Year.
Paul Cohn of Georgia Brown’s (among many fine DC dining establishments) was honored with a special Duke Zeibert Capital Achievement Award not only for his incredible track record as a restaurateur, businessman and advocate for the city but also for his leadership in the creation of the new Convention Center as a board member of the Washington Convention Center Authority.
The gala and awards show was held before a packed house of more than 1,000 at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, and celebrated the perseverance of the hospitality industry during a year in which restaurants faced the effects of terrorism, war, SARS and economic uncertainty. Despite all obstacles, hospitality remains the largest private industry in the region (only the federal government employs more people).