“Good food and good eating are about risk.”
-Anthony Bourdain
Just one of many insightful words of wisdom from the late Anthony Bourdain, who never ceased to inspire and embolden so many of us on how to travel, eat, and most importantly, live this incredible life.
Indeed, navigating a city’s dining scene can be a bit risky, but it can also be remarkably rewarding. From the marvelous to the mediocre, below is where to eat, and maybe even perhaps skip, in Washington, D.C. right now.
THE MARVELOUS
American Son
Fried Whole Red Snapper
Housed in the elegant and modern Eaton Hotel, American Son serves up delicious modern American fare with an Asian influence. Their menu is divided into three main sections: bites, plates, and large formats. Our favorite dishes include the mouth-watering fried whole red snapper, charred shishitos, kampachi crudo, and scallops. The tofu gnocchi is also as tasty and as equally decadent as the traditional version, but my only complaint is that it needed a bit more salt.
Charred Shishitos
After you finish your fantastic dinner at American Son, head across the lobby to the Allegory Bar, a speakeasy-style joint for a drink (or three). Service is much to be desired here, but their sultry vibe and smooth tunes are enough to draw you in for an always needed nightcap to wrap up your night.
Scallops
Gravitas
Olive Oil Poached Halibut
The first upscale tasting menu driven establishment to grace the Ivy City neighborhood, Gravitas is a fantastic addition to the area’s dining scene. We loved (almost) everything about Gravitas. The converted tomato packing factory is now an industrial-style open space adorned with high ceilings, exposed brick, and steel beams. Various tasting menus are available; when we visited on a Saturday night, five and seven course menus were offered (five courses at $87/pp and seven at $110/pp). Tables are encouraged to choose the same amount of courses and we chose the five course option– which by the way, was plenty.
Gruyere Agnolotti
The menu is comprised of four categories: light, indulging, hearty, and sweet. Diners can choose from any combination, so for example, if you wanted to choose all five of your courses from the hearty category, you could, although, I personally think you might combust, but honestly, who am I to judge?
Brown rice with poached egg
Favorites of the table include the sunchoke veloute, halibut, brown rice with poached egg, agnolotti, duck breast, and chicken. The venison was dominated by an overly-pronounced amount of cardamom (as stated by T and friends), and the desserts were universally bad. Meaning, among our table of five, we ordered three different desserts and all three were as disappointing as the next. For me to leave the majority of my dessert uneaten is virtually unheard of, so that should speak volumes. Overall, Gravitas is wonderful and I would recommend it to even the most discerning of foodies. At the same time, it’s not without faults and still has some work to do in terms of its dessert department.
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Over 23 years of friendship right here.
Poca Madre
Hamachi Ceviche
My favorite restaurant on the list and chances are you haven’t even heard of it. For some reason, Poca Madre hasn’t received the accolades that some of the other restaurants on this list have. The only thing I can think of is its location. Remember when Penn Quarter was THE hot spot for trendy and sought-after restaurants? While it’s still home to some heavy hitters like Minibar, Fiola, and the Source, many of its other “stars” are, in my opinion, either old and tired (I’m talking to you, Oyamel), or ghastly overrated (Jaleo– I have hated your restaurant every single time I have dined here). But I don’t think it’s the whole Penn Quarter location issue, as there are certainly troves of people who flock to this neighborhood, particularly tourists. Its greatest hinderance, if you ask me, is that it’s tucked behind Taco Bamba, a fun and casual taco spot, in an obscure alleyway that seldomly sees foot traffic and isn’t really visible from the main street. You have to intentionally seek out Poca Madre if you want to dine here. And believe me. You want to.
Arroz Cremoso
Poca Madre is quite possibly the best Mexican food I’ve ever had in Washington, D.C. It’s so exceptional that it managed to transport to me to the culinary havens of Mexico City and Tulum. Every single thing we had here was outstanding. Standouts include the ceviches, especially the hamachi, the octopus, which bathes in mole and ink pepper jam, the arroz cremoso, a velvety melt-in-your-mouth risotto enhanced by maitakes and truffles, the burrito, which T and our friends all swooned over, and the olive port chuleta arabe, which the rest of the table vehemently declared that it was one of the best pork dishes they had ever had.
A Chocolate Lover’s Dream
I don’t think you can go wrong here when ordering–Poca Madre’s commitment to authentic Mexican ingredients and flavors is both impressive and appreciated. Unlike other Mexican restaurants around the District like Mi Vida and Rosa Mexicano, where an artificial tree and superfluous mosaic tiles dominate their spaces, Poca Madre has chosen to enhance their setting with simple, yet inviting, natural light and beautiful lush greenery, a welcomed reprieve from the typical overstated designs.
Their cocktails are creative and complex, and their abounding Mezcal selection will appease even the most judicious of connoisseurs.
Satiated and Stuffed
SIREN
Rockfish with crispy lentils and apple cider sauce
Acclaimed chef and restauranteur Robert Weidmaier finally received a much deserved Michelin Star with his newest venture, Siren, a seafood-centric restaurant housed in Logan Circle’s Darcy Hotel. While the raw bar and playful seafood dishes are the true stars of the show here, the savory sides and decadent desserts also warrant high praise. The dimly lit dining room characterized by rich hues of navy and crimson evokes a romantic setting and service is excellent. The highlight of the night was the perfectly seared rockfish accompanied by crispy lentils and silky apple cider sauce. An overall wonderful dining experience.
THE MEDIOCRE
LA VIE
La Vie reminds me of a venue that you would see in Miami or even Los Angeles, complete with a sleek and posh ambience, booming loud music, and meticulously-dressed beautiful people gracing its spacious and stunning scene. We came here after attending a concert next-door at the state-of-the-art Anthem Theater, and let me tell you, there aren’t many times I feel underdressed anywhere in D.C., let alone the universe, but at La Vie on a Saturday night wearing jeans, boots, and a tunic? Well, just say that I guess there’s a first time for everything.
Mediterranean Sardines
The Washington Post recently gave La Vie a scathing review, and I don’t think it’s really justified. Yes, La Vie may not be a true dining destination in itself, but for a place where the cuisine is not the primary focus, we found the food to be surprisingly good. Was it the best meal of our lives? Of course not. Not even close. But we liked it enough that we will definitely return, and this time I’ll be wearing my 5 inch heels and high-slit dress, thank you very much.
Rake’s Progress
So this is the portion of the blog where I make my often-needed disclaimer. I did not eat a full dinner at Rake’s Progress, just a few appetizers in the bar area. But still, I expected so much more from this highly-lauded restaurant, meaning, I’m not itching to return here for a full-scale meal anytime soon. I’ll admit it, I had ridiculously high expectations. Its sister-restaurant, Woodbury Kitchen, is one of our all-time favorite restaurants. Like in life. We have dined here numerous times, and you guys…IT’S IN BALTIMORE. Now there’s nothing wrong with Baltimore, but to be honest, in terms of its restaurant scene, there aren’t many places that are exceptional enough to lure us from D.C to make the 45-60 minute drive. But Woodbury Kitchen is that restaurant. It’s so ridiculously good that we would likely drive to the ends of the end if it meant having another one of their incredible dinners here.
So the mediocre plates at Rake’s Progress, coupled with the poor and slow service, were not only disappointing, but also a huge turn-off for potential future returns.
There is no question that the ambience is exceptional and arresting. Rake’s Progress is located on the top floor of the sleek and sexy Line Hotel, a dramatic and trendy hotel that in its former life, served as a church. Remnants of the church’s organ pipes now make up the looming statement piece chandelier, which accentuates the striking space. The main floor eatery, Brothers and Sisters, is as equally average as Rake’s Progress. Nothing was bad at either place, but neither spot is exactly cheap, as you’re clearly paying for the swanky location and name. My advice is to come here for drinks—the lounge area in the lobby is a scene to be seen and offers a fabulous backdrop while sipping on some cocktails.
St. Anselm
If you blink, you’ll likely miss the newest and hottest of what seems like weekly addition to D.C’s burgeoning Union Market. I swear, every time I go, there’s a new restaurant, bar, or shop sprouting up on its streets. St. Anselm is just one of the newest spots to join the area, helping to propel the neighborhood to one of the most desirable and vibrant in the city. Friends and I had lofty expectations for St. Anselm, as it’s regularly included on numerous Hottest New DC Restaurants lists.
Cauliflower with Tahini & Puffed Amaranth
The food is Modern American fare, featuring many traditional dishes like salads, salmon, ribeye, and vegetable sides. Everything we ordered was solid and well-seasoned, but nothing blew us away. I found the menu to be quite boring and predictable, and was surprised that a restaurant with so much buzz around it wasn’t serving more imaginative and cutting-edge plates.
St. Anselm definitely has that comfortable neighbored gem feel to it, and I can see returning if I lived in the neighborhood, if anything to hang out their prominent bar. But nothing compelled me or my friends to go out of our way for a return visit, not when there are so many other better choices around the District.
Trusted & True
I didn’t put the following three restaurants in either category, nor did I take one single photo during my recent visits–but I wanted to include them because I’ve recently returned to each of them for either a second or sixth time, and applaud their consistency and dedication to great food, warm and affable service, and inviting and convivial environments.
ETTO
We recently returned to Etto on a whim and it was the perfect remedy to a Friday night that didn’t quite turn out as initially planned. The staff bent over backwards to help us score two seats, which is no small feat in this cozy neighborhood of a gem. Soul-satiating wood-fired pizzas and bold Sicilian red wines more than atoned for the bone-chilling temperatures that awaited outside, offering an ideal reprieve from a frigid December night. Other standouts include the anchovies in green sauce and arancini.
ivy city smokehouse
I love those places that you know you can return to again and again and be confident that you will always have a wonderful all-around experience. We have visited Ivy City Smokehouse nearly more times than all of the aforementioned restaurants combined. For some reason, we seem to end up here a lot–double dates, friends’ events, and neighborhood distillery crawls have drawn us here many times over, and it is consistently a great time. No pretenses or frills, just good quality food in a familiar and laid-back atmosphere. Favorites include the smokehouse board (the salmon candy is insanely good), po’ boys, and garlic shrimp.
LITTLE PEARL
I wrote a piece about my love for Little Pearl earlier in the year, and I’m happy to report that eight months later, the love affair is as strong as ever. I recently celebrated a friend’s birthday dinner at this charming spot, where the entire menu had changed since my initial visit, but was just as glorious as ever. This delightful eatery is as enchanting and enticing as it gets, folks. If you haven’t been yet, go! Your tastebuds will thank you.
If you’re even remotely a foodie, it’s hard not to feel like you’ve hit gastronomy jackpot in our nation’s capital. And the even better news? There are no signs of stopping anytime soon, and I think we can all cheers to that. Here’s to more magnificent meals and boundless amounts of gluttonous glee!
Gravitas’ Sunchoke Veloute
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