Rose’s Luxury named best new restaurant in country by Bon Appetit

For the first time in the five year history of the “Hot Ten” list, Washington, D.C. is home to Bon Appetit’s best new restaurant in the country. The winning establishment, Rose’s Luxury, is located on Capitol Hill in Barracks Row and is owned and operated by chef Aaron Silverman.

Relatively new to the burgeoning restaurant scene in D.C., Rose’s Luxury reflects Silverman’s desire to please the diner at all costs. The place is absolutely dripping in hospitality, from the waiters who manage to satisfy all of the diners’ needs without coming off as overly doting, to the fact that the kitchen sends a free dish to all solo diners. (Though, in fairness, this may be motivated by the possibility that said patrons are critics.)

Andrew Knowlton, an editor for Bon Appetit Magazine, was the individual charged with making the distinction of which new American restaurant was worthy of the award. According to The Washington Post, he visited hundreds of nominated restaurants before initially narrowing the field of competitors down to a short list of 50 establishments. In explaining his selection of Rose’s luxury to the Post, he indicated that it was, in fact, the aforementioned phenomenal customer service that ultimately set them apart.

“[Rose’s Luxury] represents a shift in dining back to where hospitality matters a little bit more than getting a chefs point across or proving what a hot shot I am,” Knowlton told The Washington Post.
Rose’s offers an unassuming menu and a no-reservations policy, and students taking culinary courses online are encouraged to visit and see for themselves exactly what makes Silverman’s place stand out.

Little Serow, another D.C. restaurant, placed seventh on Knowlton’s list in 2012. The restaurant, run by James Beard Award winner Johnny Monis, focuses on Northern Thai cuisine.