iT'S A FAMILY PLACE.
nearly three decades ago, our family was forced to flee afghanistan after the soviet invasion, leaving family and possessions behind like many refugees before us.
like many immigrants to america, we pursued an entrepreneurial path to channel our creativity and take part in the american dream. in 2003, we opened our first restaurant cafe bonaparte, which is now home to lutéce. over the last nineteen years, we added two more european-inspired venues to the popal restaurant group, napoleon bistro (2007)—now home to lapis, and malmaison (2013)—now home to berliner .
lapis has been a dream a long time in the works. here we cook the flavors of our childhood, and fill the kitchen with scents of a distant home. we invite you to join us around our family table and savor the flavors of our history.
meet our chef
When Chef Shamim first came to the U.S. in 1987 as an Afghan refugee, she didn’t even know how to cook rice. But with some long-distance calls to her mom in Afghanistan, secret cooking lessons from her uncle, and a lot of (carefully worded) feedback from her husband and kids, she quickly became the top chef for our family. Thirty-five years later, she’s the Executive Chef here at Lapis, bringing the Afghan dishes we loved growing up to our neighbors in Adams Morgan. Chef Shamim—or “Mum,” as we call her—focuses on making dishes that are tasteful, healthful, and able to survive the (much more candid) feedback from her grandkids. She makes everything from scratch, from the breads to the recipes themselves, using only fresh, halal, and flavorful ingredients. Her culinary instincts have earned us Michelin’s Bib Gourmand every year there’s been a guide in D.C., and she is a finalist for the 2022 RAMMY Chef of the Year award in D.C.