Russia House in Herndon is set to rebrand as a French restaurant this month.
Owners Ali and Homeyra Darugar recently announced on Facebook that the establishment’s final day after 32 years as Russia House will be tonight (Tuesday, July 9). However, they assured patrons this was “not a goodbye.”
“We hope you’ll join us for our final days as Russia House and come back to experience La Bonne Vie,” the Facebook announcement said. “Thank you for being part of our journey, and we look forward to welcoming you to our new chapter.”
The couple opened Russia House in July 1992 with the goal of serving classic Russian cuisine in an “aristocratic” yet warm atmosphere. Homeyra, the head chef, learned to cook from her grandmother after leaving Russia to live with her grandparents in Switzerland, according to the restaurant’s website.
The Darugars will continue to manage the restaurant at 724 Pine Street, which is set to reopen as La Bonne Vie — meaning “the good life” in French — on Thursday, July 11. The change was first reported by Northern Virginia Magazine.
Homeyra Darugar emphasized that it will still be the same restaurant, just with a different name and some changes to the menu and decor.
“We’re going to carry on some of our old dishes that sold very well, but I mean… Russian cuisine is very similar to French cuisine, let’s put it that way,” she told FFXnow.
Homeyra Darugar declined to go into detail about the reasons for the rebranding, stating only that they “no longer want to be associated” with the current name. Some restaurants in the U.S. changed their names or rebranded to distance themselves from Russia after that country invaded Ukraine in 2022.
“Such is life,” she said. “You have to sometimes do what life brings to you, but I don’t want to get in the middle of these things that’s going on in the world.”
La Bonne Vie will maintain the same hours as Russia House, operating at 5:30-8:30 p.m. from Sunday through Thursday, and 5:30-9:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
“I appreciate everything that people could bring to us. Come visit us and have a great meal,” she said.
Photo via Google Maps
