Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/759645
84 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } DECEMBER/JANUARY 2016/2017 { haute hospitality } DEBUTING IN 1967, THE HOTEL AT THE FAMOUS WATERGATE complex was a shining example of modern architecture. The futuristic design, with its curving undulations stood in stark contrast to the stodgy neoclassical style of other important D.C. landmarks. Offering unrivaled views of the Potomac River, the hotel was the epitome of luxury, and frequented by the global political elite. Infamy arrived at the Watergate only five years later in the form of a seemingly inconsequential break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters, housed in offices in a building adjacent to the hotel. The investigation into the crime would end the political career of President Richard Nixon, and the name "Watergate" would become forever associ - ated with scandal. It fell out of fashion, and financial problems followed, plaguing the hotel and a series of subsequent owners until it closed its doors in 2007. In 2010, Jacques and Rachel Cohen purchased the hotel. It reopened in June of 2016. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE WATERGATE HOTEL A view of the Kingbird main dining room at the renovated Watergate Hotel. And, if you stay, your room key will remind you, "You don't have to break in." A Repaired Reputation AFTER A $200 MILLION RENOVATION, ONE OF THE MOST NOTORIOUS HOTELS IN THE WORLD THE WATERGATE HAS REOPENED IN WASHINGTON, D.C. by David D. Denton PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE WATERGATE HOTEL Sommelier Charles Kelley. Sommelier Nial Harris-García.