Baker’s Daughter Prepares for Second DC Venue
By Nicole L. Gill, Council Magazine
During the coronavirus pandemic, many businesses and industries were forced to rethink how they operate. Could restaurants survive on a take-out and delivery model? Would diners be willing to bring home the meals they ate at restaurants?
At the end of 2020, the National Restaurant Association said more than 110,000 restaurants closed in the wake of the pandemic. While some restaurants fought to survive, others saw an opportunity for growth.
Chef Matt Baker, owner of Gravitas and Baker’s Daughter in Washington, D.C.
Photos by Leading DC
“We just saw an opportunity in the market for people that wanted to have really executed high-quality cooking that’s approachable, at an approachable price point” and available through delivery or a nontraditional sit-down restaurant, said Chef Matt Baker, owner of Gravitas and Baker’s Daughter in Washington, D.C.
When the pandemic happened, it was a challenge for Baker to tell his Gravitas staff that he was unable to employ them because of the uncertainty and the downturn of the business, he said.
The first Baker’s Daughter is in the Ivy City neighborhood in northeast Washington, D.C.
“Just knowing the effect that I had on people and how challenging that was, it really inspired me to try to create more jobs and try to create a foundation that gave some stability to our employees,” Baker said in January.
“So that was really a driving factor,” Baker said. “And that’s one of the reasons why I’m also optimistic about trying to do more businesses right now. I think there’s a lot of really talented, good people that are out of work and … we’d love to bring them on to our team and give them a home for a while.”
““Every location we open is going to be exciting and different and an opportunity for us to create some exciting dishes.””
Avocado toast
In the middle of the pandemic in August, Baker opened Baker’s Daughter – a reference to his young daughter – across the street from Gravitas in the Ivy City neighborhood. Now, a second Baker’s Daughter is scheduled to open in late spring in Chinatown.
The new location at 7th and I streets northwest will be a few blocks north of Capital One Arena.
“This is really just an optimistic hedging our bets thinking that coronavirus is going to get under control over the course of the next 12 to 18 months and we’re going to slowly start to see Chinatown, downtown come back to life a little bit with sporting events and concerts and large public gatherings again,” Baker said.
Baker’s Daughter is a market and café that offers food and meals that can travel. The restaurant is open for all three meals and has what Baker refers to as a “really unique and interesting selection of meals.” They are meals that “we treat with the same type of care and precision that we do at Gravitas, at our Michelin restaurant. But the cooking is just a little bit more approachable; and the price points a little bit more approachable.”
Gravitas earned its Michelin star in 2019. According to the Washington Post, the star “designation was created almost a century ago by a tire company with the goal of getting diners out on the road … to discover far-flung gastronomic destinations.”
The Baker’s Daughter menu spotlights breakfast sandwiches, soups, pastries, salads, and entrees. The market’s goods include cheeses, hummus, sauces, juices and smoothies.
Texas beef chili
“We do a lot of really interesting, traditional classic soups,” Baker said, naming the restaurant’s matzah ball, Mexican posole, Italian ribolita and classic chicken noodle soups. “So these are all really, really hearty soups that especially for the winter time are perfect.” In addition to the soups, Baker touts breakfast pastries, cookies and desserts such as chocolate pot de crème and banana pudding. “These are all just really phenomenal dishes that are just really easy to put in your bag and take it home with you and eat it later that night and it’s going to be delicious.”
While the Baker’s Daughter concept is still young, Baker acknowledges the team is still trying things out. “There are some new menu items that we’re going to be rolling out so I think the best is yet to come for Baker’s Daughter.”
Baker’s Daughter
1402 Okie St NE
Washington, DC 20002
