The space left occupied by beloved Vienna restaurant Bazin’s on Church will gain new life this Saturday. That’s when Evelyn Rose, the first restaurant as independent owners for former Clarity chef Nick Palermo and general manager Sam Schnoebelen will begin serving dinner.
“We’re excited to be open,” Schnoebelen says. “We’re both restaurant people so he likes to cook and I like to operate service and beverage. We’ve been doing everything but that the last couple of weeks. We’re opening independently, so being small business operators is really, really exciting for me and Chef Nick as well.”
After a month of renovations, the restaurant has transformed into Evelyn Rose, complete with 84 seats, including 10 at the bar. A side room will accommodate special events with seating for up to 40.
But this wouldn’t matter if it weren’t for food that will, if all goes well, bring in neighborhood guests more than once a week, said the team. Palermo said he’s especially excited to offer his fried chicken to Vienna diners. The mango-pickle-spiced bird is dark meat only. “Because dark meat is awesome,” says Palermo. The crispy chicken is served with smoked macaroni and cheese, bacon-braised collard greens, and Yum Yum sauce for $22. When Palermo served the dish at Bethesda’s Barrel & Crow, it won best in the city.
“The burger is unbelievably good,” said Schnoebelen. Palermo uses the trim from the Roseda Farm rib-eye steak dish to craft the dry-aged cheeseburger. It’s topped with fontal cheese, caramelized onions, and caraway aioli, and served on a brioche bun with Kennebec potato fries.
Palermo also highlights that he caters to vegetarians or people who prefer a less meaty meal. The opening menu includes an English pea torchon that “eats like a pâté, but it’s vegetables.” In fact, nearly half the appetizers are flesh-free. They also include an heirloom tomato salad with cold-smoked burrata, strawberry-and-tomato gazpacho with goat feta, fried green tomatoes, and even mushroom pappardelle. The pappardelle is also available as an entrée.
Among the larger plates, there’s slow-roasted celery root, served with maitake mushrooms, water spinach, pickled ramps, and a sauce made from mint-like herb mentuccia.
For diners in the neighborhood and well beyond Vienna, this restaurant opening is one to look forward to. And we won’t have to wait long. 111 Church St. NW, Vienna
Feature image courtesy Evelyn Rose
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