Falls Church was rolling deep at the 2014 Rammy Awards, the biggest event of the year for the Washington metropolitan area’s food and dining industry, held Sunday night at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in D.C. The 32nd annual ceremony from the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington (RAMW) had four F.C.-area restaurants in the running for awards– two with multiple nods.
Falls Church’s big winner on the night was Caitlin Dysart who took home Pastry Chef of the Year honors for her work at 2941 Restaurant. Dysart has been the pastry chef at the Lakeview Drive restaurant since 2012. Winning the title of Regional Food and Beverage Producer of the Year was Red Apron Butcher, the butcher/sandwich shop which opened its first brick-and-mortar location in Merrifield’s Mosaic District in March of last year. Red Apron’s ownership group also took home some hardware with Neighborhood Restaurant Group owner Michael Babin named Restaurateur of the Year.
Finalists from The Little City missing out on top prizes were Pizzeria Orso, up for both Everyday Casual Restaurant of the Year (Toki Underground won) and Everyday Casual Brunch (won by Pearl Dive Oyster Palace) and Mad Fox Brewing Company, which was nominated for Beer Program of the Year (Birch and Barley won). 2941 was also up for Best Wine Program of the Year but lost out to Cleveland Park’s Ripple.
Complete list of 2014 Rammy winners is below:
Formal Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year: Fiola
Upscale Casual Restaurant of the Year: Ripple
Everyday Casual Restaurant of the Year: Toki Underground
New Restaurant of the Year: The Red Hen
Chef of the Year: Haidar Karoum, Doi Moi, Estadio, Proof
Rising Culinary Star of the Year: Michael Friedman, The Red Hen
Pastry Chef of the Year: Caitlin Dysart, 2941 Restaurant
Wine Program of the Year: Ripple
Cocktail Program of the Year***: Jack Rose Dining Saloon
Beer Program of the Year***: Birch and Barley / ChurchKey
Service Program of the Year***: Blue Duck Tavern
Restaurateur of the Year: Michael Babin, Neighborhood Restaurant Group
Regional Food and Beverage Producer of the Year***: Red Apron Butcher
Favorite Gathering Place of the Year: Hank’s Oyster Bar – Dupont Circle
Upscale Casual Brunch***: Mintwood Place
Everyday Casual Brunch***: Pearl Dive Oyster Palace
Favorite Fast Bites***: Amsterdam Falafelshop
Joan Hisaoka Allied Member of the Year: ProFish, Ltd.
Employee of the Year: Stelios Alexandris, 1789 Restaurant
Manager of the Year: Boo Young Kim, District Commons
***Denotes a new award in 2014
