Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump cuts the ribbon at his Trump International hotel in Washington, Oct. 26, 2016. Daisuke Nakazawa, a protégé of legendary sushi chef Jiro Ono, will open a sushi restaurant at the property next year.
After searching for a new business partner for over a year, The Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. will be adding a second restaurant.
Chef Daisuke Nakazawa of the award-winning Sushi Nakazawa in New York City, will helm a new outpost in the converted Old Post Office Pavilion in the summer of 2017, reports the Washington Post.
Nakazawa reportedly signed on with the hotel last month. an apprentice of Japanese sushi chef Jiro Ono, Nakazawa came to fame after being featured in the acclaimed documentary “Jiro Dreams of Sushi.”
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“We are thrilled to welcome Nakazawa, a world-class fine dining establishment to our magnificent new hotel in Washington D.C.,” Donald Trump Jr., executive vice president of The Trump Organization, said in a statement Tuesday. “We look forward to offering our guests an exceptional tasting experience paired with unrivaled service.”
The announcement comes after chefs José Andrés and Geoffrey Zakarian both nixed plans to open restaurants at the hotel the hotel property. In July 2015, both chefs pulled out of their contracts after now President-elect Donald Trump made controversial comments about Mexicans immigrants on the campaign trail.
Andrés' planned eatery, Spanish-Japanese fusion restaurant, was replaced by BLT Prime, David Burke's steakhouse chain. Zakarian's potential restaurant space was turned into a conference room.
Both restaurateurs are now involved in lawsuits with Trump. In July a D.C. superior court judge denied a request by Andres to throw out the breach-of-contract lawsuit, which Trump filed after Andres backed out of a deal to open the Spanish-themed eatery.
Despite the controversy surrounding Trump, Nakazawa owner Alessandro Borgognone said the current political climate in the country has “nothing to do on how we conduct business.” Borgognone also told the Post that the president-elect’s “political views are not our political views.”
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The D.C. Nakazawa restaurant will be very similar to the New York concept, the owner said. Sushi Nakazawa's reputation, combined with a limited number of seats, has made getting a reservation for the $150 sushi bar experience difficult for guests. Still, the omakase experience, a tasting menu of 21 nigiri courses, will carry over to the new Washington establishment, Borgognone confirmed.
Chef Nakazawa is also expected to be in Washington for a “good majority” of the time to establish the new spot, which is set to take over an area at the back of the hotel with its own entrance.
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