Chef Jamie Leeds on Tuesday unveils her new 1,800-square-foot addition to Dupont Circle mollusk mecca Hank’s Oyster Bar (City Paper readers’ pick for “Best Seafood 2011“). The expansion, complete with two bars and a lounge area, doubles the size of Leed’s popular restaurant, adding some 68 seats inside and another 40 seats on the outdoor patio. Click over to Metrocurean for photos of the interiors.

Leeds is also taking the opportunity to debut an all-new oyster, called the Hayden’s Reef, developed in collaboration with Montross, Va., oyster farmer Bruce Wood and raised in the Nomini Creek area of Westmoreland County, which is said to have one of the lowest salinity estuaries in the Chesapeake Bay.  According to a press release, this low salinity allows for “a unique sweet flavor that produces one of the finest half shell, baked or fried oysters.” A rep for the restaurant tells Y&H the new oysters would be pulled from the water on Monday and delivered fresh for Tuesday’s 5 p.m. opening.

Image courtesy of Hank’s Oyster Bar