With La Piazza Birreria, Bethesda’s Cesco Osteria hopes to create a lively gathering place like those found in the town squares of Italy. The restaurant’s patio on Woodmont Avenue, which was previously used for outdoor dining, has been refurbished with recycled wood and will open on Thursday, September 26 as a casual bar serving beer and light fare.
In Italy, “the piazza is where everyone gathers—you go, you gossip,” says Olivia Ricchi, daughter of Francesco Ricchi, founder and executive chef at Cesco Osteria. “It’s a place where people can stop in and chill out.”
Olivia Ricchi and her husband Yann Auzoux, who live in the District, helped come up with the idea to turn the patio into a chill-out space.
“It’s a tricky corner,” she said, referring to traffic that sometimes screeches around the bend and up Montgomery Lane. “If you’re having a sit-down dinner, it can get loud…it works better as a beer garden than a formal dining space. And there’s no real beer garden in Bethesda.”
Ricchi said that like the beer gardens in Germany, the focus will be on the quality of the brews rather than a huge selection, so La Piazza will stock four or five local bottled beers. For starters, the beer list—which will change frequently—will feature a couple choices from Flying Dog. DC Brau and Heavy Seas. Depending on demand, draft beers may be added, she said.
As for the food, look for a short, simple menu comprised of grilled sausages, pizzettes (small pizzas), fried dough sticks, homemade chips and bomboloni (Italian mini-doughnuts).
“The beer bites will rotate as the seasons change,” said Ricchi, who added that outdoor heaters will be installed as the weather gets cooler.
Given the bar’s proximity to CO2 Lounge, which adjoins the restaurant inside, Ricchi said “we were very conscious that we weren’t creating competing spaces. They [CO2 Lounge] draw a much more sophisticated crowd that’s dressed very nicely and is there to have fancier cocktails. Outside will be more of a hangout vibe.”
Addendum: For those who don’t go for beer and fried dough, check out Cesco Osteria’s “fitness menu,” a list of offerings with the calories, protein, carbohydrate and fat content listed under each dish. The menu features five high-protein dishes and five dishes high in carbohydrates, several of which overlap the dishes on the regular menu. But at least you know what you’re getting. The Vitamin C Linguine, with broccoli rabe, tomato, mozzarella and olive oil, is a delicious and comforting way to get 74 grams of carbohydrates, and is well worth the 536 calories and 19 grams of fat. Remember to ask for the calculated menu.
La Piazza Birreria, 7401 Woodmont Ave., Bethesda, 202-841-9114, www.piazzabeergarden.com. The beer garden opens at 3 p.m. on Thursday, September 26.
