The Hamilton, a sprawling, two-story restaurant and live music venue owned by the Clyde’s Restaurant Group in the space previously occupied by the Borders Books and Music at 14th and F streets NW, received its official blessing today from District officials.

Mayor Vince Gray, D.C. Council Chair Kwame Brown and Councilmember Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) attended a breakfast this morning to—as Clyde’s CEO John G. Laytham called it—”inaugurate” the new venue. (It was an obvious choice of words considering the speakers’ repeated references to The Hamilton’s two-block distance from the White House, though Alexander Hamilton, having been born in the British West Indies, was ineligible to serve as president.)

While the crowd sampled some of the restaurant’s breakfast menu—items included French toast, bacon, sticky buns, a piquant and saucy Denver omelet—Brown called The Hamilton “the hottest place” to open in recent memory. Considering the price tag on the 37,000-square-foot establishment, it’s safe to say Clyde’s and the city are hoping that’ll be the case. In an interview last week with Washingtonian, Laytham told Carol Joynt The Hamilton cost $24 million to build. The District kicked in $4.5 million in tax incentive financing, one of the largest outlays the TIF program has made for retail development.

So far, city officials seem to be pleased with the bang for taxpayers’ bucks. “Downtown was dead,” Evans said, citing the neighborhood’s relative lack of nightlife and commerce. Evans, and others who spoke, mentioned the building’s history as the department store Garfinckel’s. He was also quick to remind the audience in The Hamilton’s 400-seat performance space that all of Clyde’s D.C. locations (including the Old Ebbitt Grille one block away) are in his jurisdiction.

Then, Evans walked back to his seat on the stage before remembering it was his job to introduce the mayor.

Gray, who talked about how downtown Washington was more sociable neighborhood when he was growing up, said The Hamilton was a game-changer for the District’s business profile.

“This is going to continue to notch up our game,” he said about the 500-seat restaurant, which like other Clyde’s properties, features expansive dining rooms and vaulted ceilings. The performance area, with a three-tiered main floor and overlooking bar in the rear, is hung with black-and-white photographs of mostly dead rock stars. Gray cited multiple times Marketwatch’s “Best Cities for Business” rankings, which the District has topped for two years in a row.

The mayor also couldn’t miss a plug for D.C. statehood, finishing his prepared remarks by saying, “Maybe one day, people will stand up and say D.C. should recognized as the 51st state!” (Gray and members of the council are traveling to New Hampshire Thursday to lobby the legislature there on exactly that.)

The Hamilton, which opened December 18, has hired 387 full- and part-time employees to staff its 24-hour operation. Of those, 207 are District residents, making the restaurant the largest participant in the “One City, One Hire” program, Victor Hoskins, the deputy mayor for planning, told DCist.

“No question this will be an anchor,” Gray said in an interview after his speech, adding that he expects to see more development in the downtown area.