M. FRANCES

PROJECTED OPENING: Summer 2024 

1452 4th Street NE 

M. Frances, a non-profit fine dining restaurant from The Lee Initiative, will be opening in DC's Union Market neighborhood this Summer. M. Frances's mission will be to serve as a think-tank project, implementing real time research and solutions for independent restaurants to be more sustainable, innovative, and fair. With the help of university partners, mentor chefs, and an in-house research team, M. Frances will tackle some of the most pressing issues facing the restaurant industry and publish the findings in an open-source method. M. Frances will be the first of its kind in America. The restaurant will offer a hyper-local and seasonal seven-course tasting menu which will be created by a collective of chefs rather than the traditional Executive Chef method. The all-female culinary team will consist of: Chef Amy Brandwein, Chef Lisa Donovan, Chef Liliana Myers, Chef AuCo Lai, Chef Taylor Davis, and Lindsay Ofcacek. For more information, visit The LEE Initiative's website here.