Frankie's Kitchen & Cocktail Bar — Restaurant in Alexandria

Old Town Alexandria has a new gathering place. Located a few blocks south of King Street on S. Washington Street, Frankie's Kitchen has a bar where conversations are easily heard and a vibe among its clientele that's straight out of Old Town. Tara has been a guiding force in Old Town for at least the ten years that I've lived at Hunting Point, and it was great to see her orchestrate the bar and the dining room. Frankie's Kitchen has reinvigorated the space previously occupied by Faccia Luna, and as far as I can tell has brought a welcome aura of authentic Italian cooking to the block shared with Southside 815 (another Old Town stalwart).

The Kitchen is a very welcome addition, with a menu that covers small bites as well as traditional Italian dishes - including the Old Towner wood-fired pizza (tomato base, mozzarella, sausage, mushroom, and roasted pepper, $18 for the 10-inch and $24 for the very ample 14-inch); a Fontina burger (double patty, onion bacon jam, fontina (a semi-soft cow's milk cheese), and a secret sauce on a brioche bun, $17); and their basil pesto agnolotti (fresh pasta stuffed with fresh mozzarella, sun dried tomato, pine nuts in a basil pesto cream sauce) - all of which the patrons at the bar when I was there earlier today spoke of very highly. I had the eggplant parma ($13 as an appetizer) - perfectly seasoned, appropriately sized, and zero leftovers.

I think clientele who sought out Faccia Luna pizzas will be very pleased with what Frankie's has to offer. For D.C. and the DMV, the prices are reasonable; there's a great happy hour menu, and there's space in the main dining area that should lend itself to intimate dinners, group gatherings, and everything in between. So far, the food and the ambience have been...

Excited to try a new spot in the hood, and curious how it would fare on the same block as everyone’s favorite dive. The staff was mostly nice and accommodating, though we felt rushed as we finished up our meal - it was close to closing - but they were technically still open. The decor is bright and clean. Love the idea of a restaurant in back bar in front, but with little separating the two, it seemed to be having an identity crisis. I’m not crazy about sportsball in 4k staring me down during dinner. The menu is basically elevated bar food, and though extensive, seemed overpriced for what it was. 2 apps, 2 drinks each, 1 salad, 1 small pizza = $165. My partner and I both asked for a substitution, which they graciously granted (they ensured we knew that their policy is not to do so) but were surprised to be charged full price ($8!) to swap one kind of meat for a different kind of meat. There was also a martini up charge, but our server had already left and we were already being hustled out so it wasn't worth it to ask. All in all, worth checking out, as they are still new and getting their sea legs, but expect hit or miss in...

We got together for lunch at Frankie's today. It's a nice restaurant. I had been for dinner when it was Facia Luna, but the decor etc has changed completely. It's brighter and has more tables and chairs. So we ordered appetizers to share (Ahi Tuna Wontons). We were 4 friends and there were 4 Wontons in each dish, so we got 2 orders. That was perfect for us. The wontons were delicious and we cleaned out the plates!! For our mains, I ordered the Spicy Pasta Alla Vodka with sausage, 2 friends ordered the Basil Pesto Agnolotti and one ordered the Garlic Shrimp Pasta. The agnolotti was a bit hit. They said the pesto was delicate and flavorful and the stuffed pasta was really tasty. My spicy pasta was alright. It could have done with a little more sausage. The garlic shrimp was okay too. Nothing special. Next time, I would just get some wine and have the Ahi Tuna Wontons and perhaps the Steak Crostini (sounds good). Or get a pizza.

The staff are very pleasant and helpful, always smiling and responding to...