“Taco Bamba returns to The District this fall in the new City Ridge development!!”

From a press release:

“Taco Bamba returns to The District this fall in the new City Ridge development located at 3900 Wisconsin Ave. NW. This will be the local taqueria’s first location in D.C. following the 2020 closure of the Chinatown store due to the pandemic. At 3,100 square feet, plus 1,500 square feet of patio, this will be the largest Taco Bamba yet.

Later this month, Taco Bamba Landmark will open its doors to the public in Alexandria, Va. on April 20. Landmark will be the sixth Northern Virginia location. The City Ridge project is Taco Bamba’s fourth new location planned for 2022, part of Albisu’s ongoing expansion fueled by new hires like award-winning Pittsburgh-based chef, Justin Severino, and long-time D.C.-based chef, Harper McClure, most recently the executive chef of Mintwood Place.

“Taco Bamba isn’t just a chef-driven restaurant, it’s run by some of the finest and most talented chefs I’ve ever known,” said Albisu. “Attracting chefs like Justin Severino and Harper McClure is a huge win for Taco Bamba. Their creativity and decades of experience running exceptional restaurants only makes our team stronger. Taco Bamba is a place where chefs can apply their individual talents inside and outside the kitchen. The chefs are what makes Taco Bamba so special; they not only create unique menus for all our locations, they run our operations and design our stores. They do whatever it takes to make each guest experience unique and memorable.”

Justin Severino is a four-time James Beard Foundation award nominee and the chef/owner of Pittsburgh-based businesses, Morcilla and Salty Pork Bits, both of which he designed and built. Severino joins Taco Bamba as the Director of Restaurant Development, as he will oversee the construction and design of all new locations and contribute to menu development.

Harper McClure was most recently the executive chef of Mintwood Place, and his career has included stops at notable D.C. kitchens such as Le Diplomate, Brothers and Sisters and BRABO. McClure is currently the chef and general manager of Taco Bamba Vienna.

Severino and McClure join a growing list of classically trained chefs with fine-dining backgrounds who, like Albisu, traded their chef whites for Taco Bamba t-shirts. Senior chefs and managers, Tom Hall, Faiz Ally, Greg Lucero and Tim Raymond came from Del Campo and Poca Madre. Regional General Manager Travis Timberlake spent more than a decade as the chef and general manager for various Passion Food Hospitality restaurants.

Albisu has not yet named a chef and general manager for Taco Bamba City Ridge, but like all his taquerias he and his team of chefs will design a unique menu inspired by the surrounding neighborhood. City Ridge will follow anticipated openings in Landmark, Va. and Gaithersburg, Md. this spring, as well as Herndon, Va. this summer.”