“Chef Johnny Spero’s Michelin-Starred Reverie Reopens March 26”

3201 Cherry Hill Lane NW courtesy Reverie

From a press release:

“Reverie, Chef Johnny Spero’s esteemed Michelin-starred tasting experience in Georgetown will officially welcome guests again beginning on March 26 with reservations going live on Resy Friday, March 15. Chef Spero brings new life into the restaurant, which tragically burned to the ground in 2022, creating an offering that is reminiscent of the original Reverie menu and restoring a space that feels familiar, yet renewed.

A neighborhood gem,

Reverie is an intimate, transportive dining experience that is bold, surprising and playful with a menu that draws from the local daily catch, as well as the finest global ingredients. The restaurant is inspired by Chef Spero’s global travels, but rooted in his Mid-Atlantic upbringing, bringing to life a fine-dining experience without pretension or fuss. Hidden in a Georgetown alleyway, Chef Spero has redefined luxury in a comfortable, inviting atmosphere, showcasing masterful culinary creativity alongside upbeat music and minimalist decor.

After enduring the loss of his restaurant, book collection, knives, career recipe notebooks and more during Reverie’s heartbreaking fire, Chef Spero opened Bar Spero, a more casual concept, in September of 2022. A few months later, Chef Spero took Reverie on the Road through global pop-ups with high-profile partners such as Bell’s in Los Alamos; Saison in San Francisco; and Commis in Oakland. His pop-up tour also took him around the world to destinations including Kyoto, Seoul, and Maine, allowing Chef Spero to draw inspiration for the new menu along the way. The opportunity to work in some of the best kitchens in the world served as an opportunity for research and development, in which Chef Spero could tweak, refine and grow his vision for Reverie’s rebirth.

“Saying that I’m excited to be back in the kitchen at Reverie really doesn’t do it justice. It’s a mixed bag of emotions; lighting the stove again, relearning the muscle memory from spending four years in this space and now transforming it into something entirely new,” said Chef Johnny Spero. “The restaurant is still a familiar place; it just feels like it grew up a little bit. We talk about fire preserving rather than destroying, which I think is important because I don’t want to lose what Reverie was. We are just picking up where we left off the day before the fire, continuing the story with a couple small edits.”

Chef Spero chose to retire Reverie’s original menu and begin anew, while still retaining familiarity for those who loved the first iteration. The tasting menu skews heavily coastal with dishes that are seafood and vegetable-forward. While the menu will change frequently, guests can expect to see Reverie classics such as the Scallop in an edible shell with yuzu kosho, sunchoke, black trumpet mushroom; the Lobster Tail with melon seed milk, rice honey and fennel pollen; and the Strawberry Gochujang Sorbet with frosted geranium, lemon verbena, and green juice.

Playing into the innate sense of intentionality behind the entire Reverie concept, the beverage program will focus on sustainable and low intervention wine, spirits, and non-alcoholic options. Reverie offers a wine pairing in addition to an elevated non-alcoholic pairing, created with a few of Chef Spero’s favorite brands such as Ruinart, NON, Unified Ferments, and Jörg Geiger selections, ensuring that there is an option for all guests who walk through the door.

With only 36 seats, the Reverie experience is intimate and personal. Chef Spero chose to rebuild Reverie in its original location after spending years establishing its home alleyway into a culinary destination. Simultaneously indulgent and charmingly unpretentious, Reverie takes guests away from the busy streets of D.C. and transports them into a dining room that could be anywhere in the world. Reverie’s entry welcomes guests to immediately decompress through a Japanese stone garden prior to entering the space. With natural light beaming through the restaurant, the doorway faces the open kitchen, featuring a 20-foot granite countertop. Inspired by the fire and Chef Spero’s love for the use of Shou Sugi Ban—the Japanese technique of preserving wood by charring it with fire, the space is reminiscent of Reverie’s perseverance with fire itself, with columns wrapped in pitch-black Japanese burnt wood surrounding the dining room. The new open space welcomes guests to view Chef Spero and the culinary team at work in the kitchen from the dining room. Additional design elements include 16 different custom dishes from Cloud Terre and Material Things that were curated to match Chef Spero’s menu.

The second iteration of Reverie returns March 26. Located at 3201 Cherry Hill Lane NW in Georgetown, the restaurant will be open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.”