Opening this Weekend: A Preview of Lost Society

This post is by Alejandra Owens. You can find her on Twitter at @frijolita or her food blog, One Bite At A Time.

Check out the preview photos of the Lost Society space and some of the dishes you’ll find on the menu.

14th Street. The city’s new restaurant mecca… or, at least wannabe mecca. While some are still only talking about opening a restaurant on 14th Street, others are actually doing it. Enter: Lost Society.

This three-floor, boutique steakhouse is designed to evoke “feelings of a Victorian underground scene.” Velvet curtains envelop dining booths, purple velvet couches are plush and deep and there’s the Victorian bust wall paper to round out the “rich and old” vibe without the more literal “ducks, wood panel walls and dark green paint” D.C.’s usual steakhouse gives you.

The real “oh, mierda” moment Lost Society delivers, and the reason everyone will be flocking there when it opens this Friday, is the third floor lounge/roof deck. An expansive bar and lounge area opens to a large deck (featuring its own bar) that overlooks the corner of 14th and U Streets NW. You won’t be able to look down at the passersby or the cars, but you can see the skyline and impressive murals, and hear the hustle and bustle of everyone’s favorite neighborhood.

Executive Chef Joseph Evans (look for our upcoming profile on him soon) hails from Smith and Wollensky, where he served as executive chef for three years. From what I tasted at last week’s menu sampling, the man can cook a hunk of beef — very well.

Steakhouse-y favorites like mac and cheese, truffled parm fries, zucchini ribbons and shrimp cocktail are all on the menu, but a few standouts like braised pork belly, Wagyu gourmet hot dogs and confit Cornish game hen are sure to become cult classics quickly.

Until the daily temperatures drop below 75 degrees and the humidity along with it, I have a hard time seeing the 14th and U crowd heading out for a country bacon wrapped filet for $27. Come Fall though, Lost Society will be a welcome addition to the rotation of heavy, comfort foodS that Marvin and others on the strip currently offer.

What say you, Borderstanis? Have you been looking for a younger, hipper version of a steakhouse to get your dry-aged ribeye from?

Follow Lost Society on Facebook and on Twitter.

Disclosure: Alejandra received a sampling of the menu and wines at a free media tasting event.