Lance London is bringing his popular Prince George's County restaurant
Carolina Kitchen to Rhode Island Row this fall, and with it, a second restaurant,
CK Burger.
This is the first time a burger spot will be placed next to Carolina Kitchen, a low-country and Southern-cuisine eatery with locations in Hyattsville and Largo. London says that CK Burger is a new concept. A November opening is planned for both restaurants.
"I always wanted to open a restaurant in D.C., I was just looking for the ideal location," says London. "This is near Howard University and the U Street Corridor, only five minutes from downtown. It's at the top of the subway" at Rhode Island Avenue NE.
London has also bought a building on H Street NE near the Atlas Theater that he plans to make into a CK Burger. But he wouldn't set a date for that except to say "in the future."
CK Burger will share the excitement of those cookouts we went to as kids, London says. "The best burgers were at those incredible cookouts." CK Burger will offer traditional all-beef burgers as well as crab cake burgers, soft shell crab burgers, salmon burgers, chicken burgers, and Portobello mushroom burgers. Sides will include french and sweet potato fries, and home-style favorites like potato salad, baked beans and coleslaw. There will be milkshakes in flavors ranging from sweet potato to chocolate-banana, and fresh lemonade made right in front of customers like at a country fair.
The restaurants, together measuring 8,000 square feet, will share a kitchen in a manner similar to that of District Commons and Burger, Tap & Shake in Foggy Bottom, says Executive VP/Operating Partner Cathy Nelson.
The D.C. Carolina Kitchen will be very similar in design, style and feel to the spacious yet cozy Carolina Kitchen in Hyattsville. It will have dining areas, a bar and lounge, and a mezzanine with balconies. For those curious about CK Burger, Nelson recommends taking a "
virtual walkthrough" the restaurant. At CK Burger, customers will proceed through stations and order at the counter; a staff member will bring the meal to the table.
London estimates that the two restaurants at 2350 Washington Place NE will bring roughly 150 to 170 jobs to the District.