​This DC Eatery Is Among Esquire’s Best New Restaurants In America

WASHINGTON, DC — Dōgon, an Afro-Caribbean restaurant on the bottom floor of the Salamander DC Hotel, has made Esquire’s exclusive 2024 list of the Best New Restaurants in America, which was released Tuesday.

The list of 35 restaurants includes eateries that punch above their price point, are romantic enough for date night, or just a great place for a boozy, delicious night out with friends, Esquire said.

According to the restaurant’s website, Dōgon serves cuisine through an Afro-Caribbean lens and draws from Chef Kwame Onwuachi's unique Nigerian, Jamaican, Trinidadian and Creole background.

“Dōgon represents Onwuachi’s return to our nation’s capital after having conquered New York with Tatiana in Lincoln Center,” Exquisite writes. “With the help of chef de cuisine Martel Stone, Onwuachi has created a menu that tells a story about the cuisines of the African diaspora — and the city itself.”

California and New York each had eight mentions on the list, including the “Restaurant of the Year,” Four Kings in San Francisco, and the “Comeback of the Year,” Le Veau d’Or in New York City.

Other states with restaurants on the list include Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Texas, with two each, and Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Washington state, with one each.