Chef Fabio Trabocchi took CBS Mornings inside Fiola Mare on Saturday, September 26, 2026, and the segment put DC hospitality on national television. Correspondent Ed O’Keefe joined the James Beard Award winner for a full lunch on the Georgetown waterfront.
O’Keefe Sat Down for Lunch on the Potomac
The lunch at Fiola Mare, the seafood restaurant perched along the Potomac River, aired as part of The Dish on CBS Mornings. Trabocchi called the restaurant a love letter to seafood and described his work as a wonderful obsession built on making guests feel welcome. The piece also noted that he runs six restaurants in the nation’s capital, including his first, Fiola, which holds a Michelin star.
A Sharecropper’s Son Built a DC Dining Empire
Trabocchi grew up in Italy’s Le Marche region, and he told O’Keefe that everything he cooks traces back to his father, a sharecropper. His father took him into the fields to meet farmer friends and pick tomatoes at peak season. Sunday mornings meant waking to coffee, simmering sauce, and gnocchi dough on the table.
He trained under Gualtiero Marchesi, whom CBS described as the first Italian chef with three Michelin stars, then cooked in London, Spain, and Moscow before landing in Tysons Corner, Virginia. There, at Maestro inside the Ritz-Carlton, he finally cooked for his father, who teared up at the table!
The Menu Moved From Sea Urchin Bucatini to Wonton Lobster Ravioli
The lunch opened with a cocktail called the Sexy Fish, followed by a garden salad built from 15 to 17 kinds of herbs, flowers, lettuces, and radishes. Next came hamachi crudo with Amalfi lemon and house-made bucatini tossed with sea urchin and an emulsified prawn stock.
The table also saw branzino and a seafood tower with West Coast oysters, saffron mussels, and king prawns from Spain. Trabocchi said the lobster ravioli can never leave the menu, since it keeps the lobster in chunks and uses wonton wrappers.
Martinis rounded out the meal, including the Dirty Bliss, made with olive-infused vodka and caper berry brine, and Oysters and Pearls, a Tanqueray infused with oyster shells and paired with caviar.
Washington Gave Him a Home With a European Feel
Trabocchi said Washington offers a comfortable life with a feel close to Rome, and that he fell in love with the city. He credited the people around him for his success and named his family and his children as his proudest achievement.
The name Fiola comes from a dialect word in his home region that means my sweetheart, the term a father or grandfather uses for a child. The flagship restaurant opened in 2011 and has held its Michelin star since 2017, according to its website.
Fabio Trabocchi’s Restaurants Span DC, Arlington, and Beyond
The Fabio Trabocchi family of restaurants is centered in and around Washington, DC. First, there is Fiola, the Michelin-starred flagship that opened in April 2011 at 601 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, with its entrance on Indiana Avenue, DC 20004.
Next, Fiola Mare opened in February 2014 at 3050 K Street NW, with its entrance at 31st Street and the waterfront, DC 20007.
Finally, Del Mar, the Spanish coastal restaurant at The Wharf, opened in October 2017. Each one earns its own reservation!
Sfoglina Pasta House, the neighborhood spot for handmade pasta, has three locations. Van Ness sits at 4445 Connecticut Avenue NW, DC 20008, while Downtown is at 1099 New York Avenue NW, DC 20001. Rosslyn, across the river, is at 1100 Wilson Boulevard in Arlington, VA 22209.
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