Au Bon Pain, the international café bakery and a leader in the fast casual restaurant category, announced the opening of a new café in Washington, D.C. This new location, 801 17th St. NW (in Lafayette Tower at the corner of 17th and H streets, near the Farragut West Metro stop), is the 21st Au Bon Pain café to open in Washington, D.C., and the surrounding area. There are more than 310 Au Bon Pain locations in the U.S. and internationally.
Serving healthy breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts, and coffee, the new Au Bon Pain is close to the White House, George Washington University, and numerous local businesses, making it an ideal destination for students, tourists, and the local community. In addition to offering a new fast casual dining option in the area, it will also add a projected 30 to 35 jobs.
The café, occupying approximately 2,100 square feet of Lafayette Tower at the corner of 17th and H streets, is located in a previously unoccupied space. The grand opening event on January 15 will be marked with a red-ribbon-cutting ceremony plus special giveaways to the first 100 customers, as well as a sweepstakes through January for all Washington, D.C.–area Au Bon Pain cafés. Two winners will be selected from each café to receive either one free sandwich or one free coffee per week for a year.
“Our nation’s capital is a dynamic place to live, work, shop, and eat. We are delighted to open this new location and serve delicious, healthy, and sometimes indulgent food to people throughout the Washington, D.C., area,” says Sue Morelli, chief executive officer. “We are pleased to offer a variety of menu choices—from smooth, flavorful coffee to distinctive soups to made-to-order sandwiches and salads to freshly baked desserts—that appeal to a variety of diners any time of day.”
Au Bon Pain’s culinary head, chef Roger Bowles, has developed other new limited-time-only menu specials for winter. The new winter menu specials include a new hot sandwich plus additional items, including:
· Oven Hot Country Grilled Cheese, Tomato & Bacon—Cheddar, sliced tomato, and applewood smoked bacon on country white
· Tomato Basil Bisque Soup—Vegetables and smooth tomato puree, simmered in a creamy vegetable broth with basil, fennel, and sweet cream
· Bacon and Cheddar Scone—Crumbled applewood smoked bacon, cheddar, and chives
· Caramel Pecan Turtle Cupcake—Rich chocolate cake topped with chocolate frosting, creamy caramel, chocolate chips, and chopped pecans
· Greek Vanilla Yogurt & Banana Honey Parfait—Greek nonfat yogurt over fresh honey-glazed bananas with a side of honey granola
“Customers throughout Washington, D.C., know and love Au Bon Pain,” Bowles says. “We’re excited about this new location and providing a restaurant choice to the many people who frequent this area. We look forward to serving this community with favorites they know and love, as well as some inventive new menu items.”
The Au Bon Pain at 801 17th St. NW can be reached at 202-296-1109 and will be open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. Catering is available by calling 1-800-765-4227. All major credit cards are accepted.
