BizBash Best 2020 - 192

washington

Table 56 at Georgetown's French bistro
Brasserie Liberte is dubbed the "Fabergé
Egg," due to its domed shape and intricate
hand-painted patterned mural that seems
to glow. For larger groups, the 250-seat
restaurant offers a private dining room with
its own entrance and a view of a glass wine
cellar housing more than 1,000 bottles.
The moody blue room can accommodate
65 guests or can be divided into two rooms
that can each seat 31 guests. Brasserie
Liberté opened in November 2019. (3251
Prospect St. NW, libertedc.com)

wellness

The honey used in spa treatments at
Gaylord National Resort's Relache Spa
(gaylordhotels.com) is hyper local-it's
sourced from honey bees on the hotel's
rooftop, which were installed in 2017
to support declining bee populations.
Introduced in 2019, the honey massage
features moisturizing honey-infused
coconut oil, as well as a foot treatment with
exfoliating honey scrub and honey-infused
butter. A 50-minute honey massage costs
$155 on weekdays or $165 on weekends, and
an 80-minute honey massage costs $210 on
weekdays or $220 on weekends.

192

2020 bizbash best bizbash.com

Artistic Attractions
Explore new exhibits and performances at these Washington museums
and cultural institutions.
The International Spy Museum reopened in its
landmark new building at L'Enfant Plaza in May
2019, designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners
and Hickok Cole Architects. The new museum
is much larger than its previous home in Penn
Quarter, with several different spaces for events.
The lobby, which boasts large-scale artifacts like
James Bond's Aston Martin DB5, is 5,138 square
feet with room for 190 guests for receptions. For
an outdoor event, the 5,219-square-foot rooftop
terrace accommodates 200 guests for receptions or 150 for a seated dinner. The views are
just as memorable in the museum's ballroom
on the seventh floor, which is divisible into three
different spaces. Event Space A with Capitol
and Washington Monument views spans 2,504
square feet with room for 250 for receptions or
180 for seated dinners. Event Space B with views
of the Washington Monument and the water
spans 2,835 square feet and can accommodate
280 for receptions and 210 for seated dinners.
The 1,783-square-foot Event Space C boasts
waterfront views with room for 175 for receptions
or 120 for seated dinners. All three combined can
accommodate 500 guests. (700 L'Enfant Plaza
SW, spymuseum.org)

in the works
Viceroy Hotels & Resorts will bring Hotel
Zena to Logan Circle, moving into Donovan
Hotel after a $25 million renovation. The
hotel is slated to open in 2020, and the
design will draw attention to women who
have changed the world (think Supreme
Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wall art).
After opening the stunning Sagamore
Pendry in Baltimore, Pendry Hotels & Resorts
is planning on its first hotel in Washington.

In September, the Kennedy Center celebrated
the opening of its $250 million campus expansion
project, dubbed the Reach at Kennedy Center. This
landmark addition designed by architect Steven
Holl features manicured grounds and stunning
pavilions with room for studios and performance
space. For private events, there is the River Pavilion
with interior and exterior space and views of the
Potomac (it holds 268 standing or 110 seated at
rounds) and the Skylight Pavilion with vaulted
ceilings and lovely views (it holds 425 standing
or 300 at rounds). Occasions Caterers provides
event catering. (2700 F St., kennedy-center.org)
The Smithsonian's 1 National Museum of
Natural History revealed its new 31,000-squarefoot fossil hall in June, featuring more than 700
specimens including the "Nation's T. rex." After
closing in 2014 for renovations, the new David H.
Koch Hall of Fossils-Deep Time now includes
interactive and multimedia experiences. The
hall is available for private events, with room for
100 for a seated dinner or receptions for 300-
although it's usually rented in conjunction with
the entire museum, which boasts a capacity of
3,500 guests. (10th St. & Constitution Ave.,
naturalhistory.si.edu)

Slated to open in 2022, Pendry Washington
D.C.-The Wharf will include 5,000 square
feet of indoor and outdoor event space and
will showcase waterfront views along the
harbor.
A new downtown museum devoted to
language and the written word is set to open
on May 31, 2020. Admission will be free for
Planet Word, located in the historic Franklin
School. The museum will offer high-tech
galleries to help build literacy skills, along
with classrooms, a café, and an auditorium.

photos: Courtesy of sMithsonian institution (national MuseuM of natural history), Courtesy of Venues (all others)

Where to Dine in Style

http://www.libertedc.com http://www.kennedy-center.org http://www.spymuseum.org http://naturalhistory.si.edu http://www.gaylordhotels.com http://www.bizbash.com

BizBash Best 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of BizBash Best 2020