Sunday is International Women’s Day and we’re celebrating in the best way we know how: food! From culinary legends to rising stars, here are eight women who are shaping D.C.’s restaurant scene with everything from pastries to pulao.
Shamim Popal (Lapis)
Chef Shamim Popal and her family fled Afghanistan when the Soviet Union invaded in the 1980s, eventually landing in D.C. Despite having no formal culinary training, she opened a successful restaurant group alongside her husband and children, which includes Lutèce, Pascual, Maison Bar à Vins, and Lapis. Popal still runs the kitchen at Lapis where she whips up delicious, healthy, home-style Afghan food.
Masako Morishita (Perry’s)
Morishita came to D.C. to be on the Washington Commanders cheerleading team, where she worked for five years (even becoming captain) before getting into cooking. “I learned a lot of relevant skills as captain because it was all about managing the team,” says Morishita. She took over Perry’s in Adams Morgan in 2024, quickly turning the local spot into a critically-acclaimed destination for Japanese comfort food.
Morishita in the Perry’s dining room. (Photo courtesy of Scott Suchman)
Amy Brandwein (Centrolina, Piccolina)
Amy Brandwein is a eight-time James Beard Award-nominated chef and mastermind behind D.C.’s contemporary Italian mainstay Centrolina. She is also a strong advocate for women in the industry and a legend in D.C.’s food scene. Centrolina has 100% female leadership. If you swing by, she says not to leave without getting their daily homemade pasta and the tuna crudo.
Rose Previte (Maydan, Medina, Sook)
Before opening her first restaurant, Compass Rose, Rose Previte spent three years traveling to over 30 countries. Now, she is the chef and owner of some of D.C.’s most acclaimed restaurants, including the recently opened Sook. She also published one of our favorite local cookbooks, “Maydan.”
Paola Velez (Providencia)
Paola Velez is an award-winning D.C.-based pastry chef and the author of “Bodega Bakes.” You may recognize her from shows like “The Today Show” and “What Am I Eating." She runs the desert program at Providencia on H St. NE and started the movement Bakers Against Racism. She told us her style is “whimsical, playful Americana foods — bursting with sazon and Latino flavors.”
Paola Velez (right) and the rest of the Providencia team. (The Washington Post/Getty Images)
Seng Luangrath (Thip Khao, Padaek, Baan Mae)
I, like many Washingtonians, am a Seng Luangrath fan girl. Luangrath is personally responsible for the takeoff of D.C.’s Laotian food scene. She fled Laos during the Vietnam War and learned to cook in a Thai refugee camp before coming to D.C. and opening Thip Khao in 2014 with unapologetically Lao dishes that got national attention.
Jovana Urriola (Cafe Unido, Colada Shop)
Panamanian chef Jovana Urriola spent time as a private chef for actor Owen Wilson and competing in "Top Chef" before coming to D.C. to revamp Cafe Unido and eventually, take over Colada Shop. She specializes in Latin American cuisine with a Panamanian touch. On her off days you can find her eating at Queen’s English.
Najmieh Batmanglij (Joon)
Known as the Julia Child of Persian cooking, Najmieh Batmanglij was born and raised in Iran before moving to the U.S. in 1983. Her multiple cookbooks have won dozens of awards and The New York Times declared her one of “seven immigrant women who changed the way Americans eat.” She now brings her recipes to life at her restaurant Joon in Tysons Corner.
