Team
William Simons
William Simons is the Director of Operations and Wine Director at Albi. A Baltimore native, Simons brings nearly two decades of experience as a wine professional, sommelier, and restaurant manager to the team, which he joined at the outset, opening Albi as Lead Sommelier before taking the helm as General Manager - a role he filled for 2.5 years. Simons holds the Advanced certification through the Court of Master Sommeliers, and was awarded both the Walter Clore and Rudd scholarships for taking top marks on his exams.
Simons' wine list draws from a wide range of sources, regions, and varieties to complement Albi's hearth-fired cuisine. Both irreverent and bookish - with perhaps a smattering of punk - he divides the list by style, featuring an impressive vertical of Chåteau Musar, quotes from Freddie Mercury, Emily Dickinson, and Estelle Costanza, grapes familiar and niche, historical asides, a bent toward artisan producers from both the Old World and New, and a brief meditation on the Big Bang.
Alicia Wang
Alicia Wang is the executive pastry chef at Albi, where she oversees pastry, viennoiserie, and bread productions.
Wang began her restaurant career in the front of house while studying at the University of Virginia, but was immediately drawn to the action in the kitchen. After earning a degree in mathematics, she moved to Los Angeles and began working professionally in pastry, earning the title of Head Pastry Chef at Thyme Café & Market in just two years. She broadened her skillset at Craft LA as a savory cook before moving back to the D.C. area in 2016.
After a stint as Chef de Partie at Michelin-starred Kinship and Métier, she joined The LINE Hotel D.C in 2017, where she managed pastry production for multiple outlets. After spending time at Tatte Bakery & Café, Wang returned to The LINE Hotel as Executive Pastry Chef in the spring of 2021, opening the fine dining restaurant No Goodbyes while overseeing both viennoiserie for the hotel's coffee shop and high-volume bread and dessert production for events.
In the summer of 2022, Wang joined the team at Albi. She brings to the team an array of skills from her background in French fine dining, pastry production, and leadership.
Alex Bookless
Alex Bookless brings over 20 years of experience in food and beverage service to her role as Albi's Bar Director. Bookless has worked behind some of the best bars in D.C. and beyond, including roles at the original Passenger in Shaw, Café du Nord and Flour + Water in her native San Francisco, Beverage Director of the Eaton Hotel in the District, and running all things pizza at the popular June pop-up.
Bookless' recipes have been featured in publications such as Imbibe, Cosmo, NPR, Self, and more. She brings a keen eye for detail, an easy-going humility, and an appreciation for humor and irreverence to her work driving the creative bar program at Albi. Always looking to find intersections between techniques and ingredients behind the bar and in the kitchen, Bookless' cocktail program seeks to echo and complement Chef Rafidi's seasonal menus throughout the year.
Patrick Pervola
Patrick Pervola is Albi’s Research & Development Chef. Born and raised outside of Baltimore in Pasadena, Maryland, Pervola's career in restaurants began at the age of 14 when a summer job at a family friend's crab shack sparked his interest in hospitality.
Pervola attended culinary school in Pennsylvania, and afterward joined the opening team at the Four Seasons Baltimore in 2011, under Chef Michael Mina. In 2015 he took on the role of Sous Chef at 21c Museum Hotel in Louisville, KY, though he returned to Baltimore and MINA Group and rose through the ranks at several of the company's restaurants before accepting a position as Sous Chef at A Rake's Progress in The LINE Hotel.
Pervola first worked with Chef Rafidi while they were both cooking for MINA Group in 2011. He became one of Rafidi's earliest collaborators and has been a part of Albi from day one, beginning as the opening Executive Sous Chef, and now overseeing culinary direction at both Albi and YELLOW.
Samuel De Moya
Samuel De Moya is the Chef de Cuisine at Albi. Born to a first-generation Dominican-American family and raised across a plethora of cities, De Moya spent much of his childhood in kitchens and around dining tables, where food became a vehicle for connection and community. He studied acting in college, which sparked a love of storytelling that found expression in the kitchen.
He began cooking professionally with wood fire, developing a deep respect for heat and technique – a foundation that drew him to Albi, where the hearth and Chef Rafidi’s narrative-driven approach to Palestinian cuisine closely aligned with his own values. De Moya’s career includes roles at Misi by Missy Robbins and Fiola Mare, before joining Albi as Sous Chef and stepping into his current role in 2024. A believer in curiosity and collaboration, he fosters a kitchen culture rooted in play, growth, and shared creativity. Outside of work, he is an avid photographer and continues to find inspiration beyond the plate.
Gianna Verri
Gianna Verri is the General Manager at Albi, where she leads the front of house team with warmth, intention, and a deep commitment to hospitality. A native of Staten Island raised in a food-centric Italian-American household in New Jersey, Verri was drawn to restaurants early on and earned her degree in Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management from the University of Delaware.
She began her career behind the counter of an Italian deli and as a pastry cook, later joining the all-women cheesemonger team at Right Proper Brewing Company, an formative experience that shaped her collaborative leadership style. Initially drawn to Albi by its pastry program, Verri brings to her role a strong sense of care, conviction, and pride in advancing Albi’s mission of Palestinian storytelling through hospitality. Outside the restaurant, she is an avid watercolor artist and can be found wandering through DC’s botanical gardens.