Hank's Oyster Bar is a chain of

oyster bars Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not ...

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, and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

in the United States.

Background

Founded in May 2005, the flagship restaurant was named "Hank's" after fisherman Hank Wolfe Leeds, the father of founder and chef Jamie Leeds. Menu offerings at the oyster bar have included oysters on the half shell, " Hog Island-style BBQ" oysters, fried oysters, locally sourced seafood, crab cakes, clam chowder, and lobster rolls. Southern-inspired cuisine at the restaurant includes Oyster Po'boys. The restaurant's first location is in D.C.'s

Dupont Circle Dupont Circle (or DuPont Circle) is a traffic circle, park, neighborhood and historic district in Northwest Washington, D.C. The Dupont Circle neighborhood is bounded approximately by 16th Street NW to the east, 22nd Street NW ...

. It has since expanded to other locations throughout the years, including

Old Town Alexandria Old Town Alexandria is one of the original settlements of the city of Alexandria, Virginia and is located just minutes from Washington, D.C. Old Town is situated in the eastern and southeastern area of Alexandria along the Potomac River. Old ...

(2007), D.C.'s

Capitol Hill Capitol Hill, in addition to being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues. It is one of the ...

Eastern Market area (2012), the

Wharf A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring locatio ...

in D.C. (2017), a

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location, and a

cocktail bar A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink. Most commonly, cocktails are either a combination of spirits, or one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as tonic water, fruit juice, flavored syrup, or cream. Cocktails vary widely across ...

offering. The restaurant chain has offered two proprietary oysters, including the

Eastern Shore Eastern Shore may refer to: * Eastern Shore (Nova Scotia), a region * Eastern Shore (electoral district), a provincial electoral district in Nova Scotia * Eastern Shore of Maryland, a region * Eastern Shore of Virginia, a region * Eastern Shore (Al ...

"Salty Wolfe" (named after Wolfe Leeds) and the Nomini Creek "Hayden's Reef" oysters.

Causes

The Hank's Oyster Bar chain is a supporter of the

Chesapeake Bay Foundation The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) is a non-profit organization devoted to the restoration and protection of the Chesapeake Bay in the United States. It was founded in 1967 and has headquarters offices in Annapolis, Maryland. The foundation has ...

’s "Save the Bay" campaign, serving as a hosting sponsor of the annual “D.C. On the Half Shell” event.

Awards

Hank's Oyster Bar has been featured by numerous media outlets and organizations, including ''Bon Appetit, Gourmet, Food & Wine, The Washington Post, Southern Living,'' and the ''James Beard Foundation.'' In 2006 and 2007, the restaurant was recognized as a "Best New Restaurant" and "Best Neighborhood Restaurant" by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington. In 2014, ''The Washington Post's

Express Express or EXPRESS may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * '' Express: Aisle to Glory'', a 1998 comedy short film featuring Kal Penn * '' The Express: The Ernie Davis Story'', a 2008 film starring Dennis Quaid Music * ''Express'' ...

'' named Hank's as a "Best Seafood Restaurant." In 2019, the restaurant was recognized in ''Washingtonian Magazine's'' "Best of Washington" Readers’ Poll as the "Best Raw Bar" and "Best Bloody Mary." The restaurant was named "Best Oysters" in ''Virginia Living Magazine's'' 2019 "Best of Northern Virginia" awards. Leeds and Hank's Oyster Bar were selected as a ''Washington Business Journal'' "Business of Pride" honoree in recognition of LGBTQ-inclusive hiring and advocacy within the DMV area. The restaurant is included in the

Michelin Guide The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin star (classification), stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The ac ...

of the "Best Seafood Restaurants in Washington, DC."

In popular culture

The restaurant is visited and described by the characters in the 2015

political thriller A political thriller is a thriller that is set against the backdrop of a political power struggle, high stakes and suspense is the core of the story. The genre often forces the audiences to consider and understand the importance of politics. The ...

, " Detained" by Don Brown, the first novel in the ''Navy JAG'' series. In the 2020 novel ''The Rembrandt Conspiracy'' (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) by Deron Hicks, the restaurant is dined at by the book's central characters.

References

External links