Rising chef finds home for comforting Japanese cuisine in Maxwell Park

Wine bar Maxwell Park has been one of DC’s most popular drinking destinations since opening its first location in Shaw four years ago, but the neighborhood has struggled to decide which food to consistently pair with its wines under. the radar listed in cheeky themed menus. This summer, the bar brought in an executive chef to take the cuisine in a whole new direction – comforting Japanese cuisine.

Masako Morishita brings up many memories of his native Japan with items like a McDonald’s-inspired teriyaki burger, savory cabbage pancakes and the same sardine recipe his mother makes overseas.

Award-winning sommelier / owner Brent Kroll’s local bar previously served small snacks and rotating menus from titular DC chefs like Oyster Oyster’s Rob Rubba and Food Network champion Adam Greenberg, but Morishita marks Maxwell’s first executive chef hiring. .

After launching its traveling Japanese comfort food pop-up Otabe In recent years, the up-and-coming DC chef is finding solid ground in a kitchen with his new Maxwell concert, which began just after July 4.

Maxwell’s original location in Shaw, which won a 2019 Local Restaurant Association award for “Wine of the Year Program,” added a 1,000 square foot outpost at Navy Yard in early 2020. Morishita’s menu is only available at Navy Yard at this time. and appears to Shaw starting next week.

“We were looking for someone to plant their feet and sink in – someone on the rise who we think will be the next big thing,” says Kroll, a Proof and Iron Gate alumnus.

A month later, Morishita is already tinkering with new dish ideas to keep customers guessing. “We have a lot of regulars who come here every day or three times a week looking for something new,” she says. “I am constantly changing the menu to make it interesting and fun. I love to cook, so this is my dream job for me.

One of the early best-sellers was inspired by one of his favorite quick and casual fixes in Japan: a McDonald’s teriyaki burger that the chain doesn’t serve in the United States.

“I miss it so much. I wanted to create something similar,” she says. Her take on the burger, delivered between a Martin potato bun and pierced with a glowing neon toothpick for a twist. fancy, is covered with a sauce made from gluten-free tamari, garlic, ginger, sake and sweet rice wine.

A self-proclaimed “tamari sommelier,” Morishita finds uses for the fermented soy product on her menu. She even did a tamari tasting at Japanese brand San-J’s facility in Richmond, Virginia. Tamari is a soy sauce-like product that is originally a by-product of the manufacture of miso. Classically, it’s made only with soy (and no wheat), which makes it more similar in flavor to Chinese-style soy sauce.

“It has a richer flavor than regular soy sauce. San-J is the best [brand] tome. I use it in everything, ”she says.

A sparkling bowl of scallop crudo looks a bit more refined, dressed in pickled plum and yuzu kosho (chili paste) for a fiery finish. She suggests using a spoon to scoop up a broth that she prepares with tamari, sake and sweet rice wine.

“Dashi, that’s my thing. I try to use it as much as possible,” she says. Micro shiso and edible flowers from the local Fresh Impact farm complete the dish.

A bright burrata salad that screams summer is made with a base of macerated strawberries with tamari and sugar, topped with an origami-cut tomato that is marinated in a base of seaweed (kombu) of rice vinegar and maple syrup that reappears as a broth poured next to the table.

Rey Lopez / Eater DC

A can of grilled sardines topped with parsley, garlic and chili is a replica of the appetizer her mother makes thousands of miles away in Kobe, Japan at a small restaurant and bar that has been in the family for nearly 90 years old. His mother and grandmother are both chefs and taught him the art of Japanese cuisine while growing up.

Instead of using a traditional okonomiyaki sauce for her Japanese pancake, she zigzags in for a homemade black garlic aioli. Prosciutto, otafuku (a type of flour), Kewpie mayonnaise, togarashi, and bonito flakes complete the tasty entry. After discovering her food for the first time at a pop-up event at Elle earlier this year – the acclaimed cafe run by her husband Brad Deboy at Mt. Pleasant – Kroll invited her for a tasting trial, and this aforementioned pancake blew her away.

“If she had one dish that would stop me dead, that was it.” It’s delicious and quite filling, ”he says. “I was like ‘don’t change what you’re doing.'”

Her taco rice bowl is an ode to the order she used to receive when she traveled to Okinawa for work. A stacked pile of wagyu ground beef, salsa, lettuce, cheese, Kewpie mayonnaise and hot sauce is a testament to American influences on Japanese island cuisine, due to its proximity to a military base, she says. .

Maxwell’s wines change all the time, so instead of listing specific pairings next to his dishes, guests are encouraged to chat directly with the sommeliers.

“I consider myself to be a janitor. You can’t go to a lot of wine bars and put that on the server, but you can do it here with whoever is waiting for you, ”says Kroll.

Maxwell’s extensive temperature-controlled wine list includes around 50 options by the glass and up to 500 bottles at any given time.

Rey Lopez / Eater DC

Amid the changes in the kitchen, Maxwell Park also made some big changes to the front of the house. Kroll says sommeliers Daniel Runnerstrom and Niki Lang have moved on to other careers during the pandemic. Kroll has found a new partner in Matt Dulle, who recently worked as Director of Beverages for Lazy bear, a San Francisco restaurant with two Michelin stars. Prior to that, he was the first head sommelier at Healdsburg, the luxurious SingleThread from California, who also played on Japanese influences in his farm-focused menu.

Austin Stonebraker Photography / Maxwell Park

“I have the impression that the knowledge of wine does not need to be relegated to the world of gastronomy. It may just be fun, so I was happy to come here, put on a t-shirt, play some great music, and lose my voice. We are on the same wavelength, ”says Dulle.

Dulle and Kroll first met through a mutual master sommelier friend at an educational conference in Sonoma a few years ago. When COVID-19 started causing a lot of turnover, Kroll asked if he knew anyone in his network of star sommeliers looking for work.

“It was literally the perfect day for him to text me,” he says, adding that DC’s energy and love for wine made the decision appealing. “There is a little more heart here and a sense of urgency.”

Austin Stonebraker Photography / Maxwell Park

Austin Stonebraker Photography / Maxwell Park

Maxwell’s new menu complements a wine list that’s also known to be fun and accessible, with rotating themes featuring various varietals from month to month. The August edition is “Bubbles and Boy Bands” with Justin Timberlake as the signature pop star, and this week is specifically devoted to thefts of dry, sparkling lambrusco accompanied by cold cuts.

This fall, look for ‘Royal Tannenbaums’ for reds rich in tannins.

After the pandemic, Maxwell is sticking to his walk-in model, but he’s taking pre-opening reservations for personalized tastings at $ 70 per person. Look for light cosmetic upgrades and a remodeled patio with fans, heaters, and awning in Shaw by year-end. Kroll says he and his new partner Dulle have a common love for New York’s “shoebox” wine bars, which Maxwell was designed to do.

“Maxwell is supposed to be a small business – I get offers for Tysons and Bethesda, I turn left and right. I want there to be two and that’s it, ”says Kroll.