To get ready for its 100th anniversary, the Occidental — one of the District’s most famous and storied restaurants — will close sometime after July 15 to undergo a 10-week face-lift.
The exact date when the restaurant will close its doors won’t be set in stone until after July Fourth, said general manager Chauncy Woodly. The Occidental is still working out the construction start date with the renovation company, which Woodly declined to name.
The Occidental is not booking any private functions from July onward as a result. The restaurant typically hosts about 12 private functions a week. Private functions at the Occidental start at $5,000.
The restaurant, which has welcomed every U.S. president since Ulysses S. Grant, is scheduled to reopen in time for its Sept. 18 anniversary — although grand reopening plans have not yet been finalized.
The renovations will include painting, refinishing the floors and new furniture in the dining area and a completely new kitchen, Woodly said.
While there will be minor cosmetic improvements to the dining room during the renovation, which Woodly declined to put a dollar value on, plans are in the works to redesign the space in the future. Woodly said there is no date and no blueprints yet for what the space will look like.
