With paint on his clothes and scraped knees, Wright has his hands full with a total redo of the space. Blues, browns, and tans have replaced the old colors and a marble floor was installed around the 8-foot bar. A lounge area seating ten is tucked into the front space facing the windows on Grace Street, while tables accommodate up to 55 guests. The intimate vibe is intentional after years in the cavernous Bistro 27, which seated over one hundred. “I’ve always gravitated to small, intimate places like Off the Record in the Hay Adams Hotel,” he says, referring to the D.C. hotel’s subterranean bar. “I knew that if I ever got to create a restaurant from the ground up, it would be a cozy wine bar. Henley on Grace is it.”