Butterworth’s, a Capitol Hill bistro that opened shortly before the 2024 election, has become a visible meeting place for MAGA-aligned figures and staffers during President Donald Trump’s second term. Coverage from multiple outlets has tied the restaurant’s sudden prominence to inauguration-week events, its ownership links to right-wing media, and a menu that stands out in Washington’s political dining scene.
Butterworth’s, a bistro on Capitol Hill a short walk from the U.S. Capitol, has drawn outsized attention as a gathering place for Trump-aligned conservatives in Washington. The restaurant opened in October 2024, just weeks before Election Day, and its profile rose sharply around inauguration weekend in January 2025, when parties and repeat visits helped turn it into a scene that regulars then carried into the workweek.
Part of the interest has centered on who is behind it. Major investor and namesake Alex Butterworth is an Uber lawyer described by Axios as Uber’s senior counsel, while another prominent investor is Raheem Kassam, a right-wing media figure and former Breitbart editor who has been associated with Steve Bannon’s orbit. Media accounts have described Kassam as a key draw for the restaurant’s Trump-world clientele.
The restaurant’s food and drink have also become part of the story. Axios reported that the menu leans into offal and other organ-meat dishes—items Hutchins described as including bone marrow and liver—paired with natural or “low-intervention” wines. During inauguration-related events, both Axios and The Washington Post reported specialty drinks that included an “American Carnage” cocktail, alongside other politically themed beverages.
Butterworth’s has become a magnet not only for patrons but also for coverage. As the restaurant’s profile grew, Hutchins told Axios that some nights it functions like a normal neighborhood spot, while on others the room fills with influencers and political figures. The Washington Post described a mix of regulars, operatives and guests during inauguration weekend, including events hosted by Bannon—who told the paper he had hosted parties there even though he had not dined there.
Not everyone in Washington’s political class has embraced the restaurant, and some Republicans continue to favor older, less conspicuous Hill haunts. Still, coverage of Butterworth’s has repeatedly framed it as one of the clearest examples of how Trump’s second-term Washington blends politics, media and nightlife into a single social ecosystem—one that a small restaurant can find itself at the center of, whether or not that was the original plan.
