WASHINGTON, DC

Although the cornerstone of this Michelin-starred Navy Yard restaurant and wine bar is a 10-foot hearth that fills the room with warmth, the real foundation is to be found in the name, Albi—Arabic for “my heart.” After a fifteen-plus year career cooking food from other regions, this is the first chance chef Michael Rafidi has had to cook his heart, the Palestinian and Jordanian food of his childhood—a lively mix of salt, citrus, umami and smoke. To match bold and fresh dishes like crab hummus and barbecue lamb kebobs, wine director Brent Kroll has built one of the most interesting wine lists in the country, full of salty whites and smoky reds from countries such as Turkey and Lebanon, to continue to tell the story of the Levant in the glass. 

INCLUDED IN THE FEAST

Albi

MICHAEL RAFIDI

Although he says his stage at Copenhagen’s Noma in 2011 was the most impactful of his career, it was chef Michael Rafidi’s grandmother, herself a chef, who set him in this direction in the first place. Now that he finally has a chance to cook his truth, Rafidi is being recognized as one of the country’s top chefs and has been a finalist for James Beard awards two years in a row. Mindful of the role his grandmother (a.k.a. his “secret weapon” and whom he still consults) played in encouraging his interest, he’s paying it all forward with a serious mentoring program in which he passes on the family foodways to the next generation.

JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION

JBF Finalist: Best Chef Mid-Atlantic 2023

EATER DC

Chef of the Year 2017

MICHELIN GUIDE

One Star

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WHY WE LOVE IT

Chef Rafidi’s sofra menu is a nod to the Levantine tradition of gathering around the sofra, a low table laden with meze spreads—course after course of delicious small plates. Sharing Albi’s sofra experience with friends is surely one of the best ways to spend an evening we know of.

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