At Officina, Italian Dishes Showcase High-End Ingredients by the Wharf | Eater DC

"Three weeks after opening, I watched chef Nicholas Stefanelli—in red Nike high-tops and a short-sleeved chef’s coat—compare running this three-story “workshop” to tuning a sports car as he fine-tunes a massive new project on Washington’s Southwest waterfront. The behemoth houses five components: a first-floor cafe and market with a butcher shop, a second-floor bar and dining room, and a rooftop terrace, all built from an idea he’d had eight years ago for a combined macelleria and trattoria. The food philosophy is deliberately stripped-down so ingredients shine: a salumi program that already includes house-cured pounded beef bresaola and pancetta (which he likes raw), with prosciutto, mortadella, nduja, soppressata, and coppa imported from Italy; hand-rolled ravioli filled with braised veal necks, shanks and trimmings glazed in a butter-rosemary sauce, finished with 24-month Parmigiano Reggiano and available with shaved white Alba truffles for a $95 supplement; bucatini all’Amatriciana made with Gragnano pasta, cured pork (guanciale or pancetta), red onion, chiles, cracked pepper and Pecorino Romano (Stefanelli admits he sometimes adds tomato despite purists); an aromatic grillata mista of swordfish, calamari and prawns simply seared with olive oil, lemon and herbs; and a butcher-driven dry-aged beef program selling 60-day dry-aged cuts and grilled ribeyes in 20-ounce ($68) or 40-ounce ($135) portions finished with an herb-infused olive oil, balsamic and a sprinkle of Fiore di Sale from Trapani that’s also sold in the market. Behind the scenes, the operation is vast and exhausting—about 115 employees, pre- and post-show rushes from the nearby Anthem, dishes being sent between floors to meet demand—yet Stefanelli still smiles as he pursues this “culinary playground” where people can source meats, wine, olive oils and more; the second-floor salotto also houses a rare amaro library and a paper plane cocktail that showcases the house approach to amari-driven cocktails." - Gabe Hiatt