The Ultimate Guide to Washington D.C. Dining, Drinks, and Coffee

My restaurant recommendations for anyone craving good DC eats — outside of only Jose Andres.

I’ve long advertised this blog as having D.C. content, so I suppose I need to make good on my words, don’t I? In the below post, we will be advertising my favorite places to eat and drink in the city.

Why should you listen to me? Well, maybe you shouldn’t, but I’ve tried 100+ places in D.C. according to my Beli, so that’s something.

My top (eleven) places in DC:

• Perry’s Restaurant, Adams Morgan → Japanese. One of the most gorgeous places in the city. The sushi here is wonderful, and the udon carbanara here is to die for.

• Moon Rabbit by Kevin Tien, Penn Quarter → Vietnamese. Another one of the prettiest places in the city, especially when it’s sunny out, but also easily the best service I’ve gotten in the city. This is on the pricier side. Menu sometimes revolves, and we loved the shrimp thermidor and the seaweed dessert.

• China Chilcano by Jose Andres, Penn Quarter → Peruvian. This is my personal favorite of the Jose Andres places. We adore the aeropuerto fried rice; also a huge fan of the dancing yucca and the jalafito norteno. I do enjoy the potatoes huancaina but want to try other potato/ceviche dishes next time.

• Pisco Y Nazca Ceviche Gastrobar, Farragut → Peruvian. Maybe I’m just partial to Peruvian fried rice, but the chaufa here is unbelievably good. I also like the nikkei ceviche and loma saltado. They also have a fairly decent $45 prix fixe.

• The Smith, Penn Quarter → American. This was my first date spot with my now-partner of a year and a half (as of last week, yay!) so I’m very partial. Their brunch is particularly to die for; $19 for both an egg dish and a brunch cocktail is a great deal for DC.

• Agora, Logan Circle → Middle Eastern. One of the more underrated places in D.C. I adore the branzino, the cauliflower, and the mixed cheese pide; I also think the rose ice cream here is beyond good.

• Centrolina, Penn Quarter → Italian. Both some of the best food and service in D.C., but the food portions are not big enough for the price. The tagliolini oyster cacio e pepe is one of the best pastas I’ve had in my life.

• Oyamel Cocina Mexicana by Jose Andres, Penn Quarter → Mexican. This is the best Jose Andres, and one of the better nice-places, for a big group meal because of the cheaper tacos. My favorite dishes here are the camerones al mojo; atun pacifico ceviche; and pulpo negro.

• The Red Hen, Bloomingdale → Italian. A hidden gem! The atmosphere of this place is one of my favorites in the city. I’m a sucker for the mushroom mafalde pasta, arancini, and ricotta toast.

• Dauphine’s, Farragut → Creole. This spot is delightful and has some of my favorite seafood in the city.

My top (eight) casual places in DC:

• Indigo, H Street → Indian. The single best Indian place in D.C., and yes, I am including the pricier places! Would recommend getting a paradise platter with curried chickpeas and lentil daal makhani, and would also recommend the onion prantha.

• Menya Hosaki, Petworth → Ramen. Anyone who loves D.C. knows this is the best ramen in the city. Menya Hosaki is only open for lunch on Tuesdays and 5-9pm on Wed Thurs Fri, but when you try the spicy tonkatsu it all feels worth it.

• Mama Ayesha’s Restaurant, Adams Morgan → Palestinian. This is an underrated gem in the city; the mujadarah is one of the best dishes I’ve had in DC, and my partner and I split it. $18 for a meal for two people.

• The Queen Vic, H Street → American. I used to go here all the time with my H Street friends; the impossible burger with egg here is to die for, and we love the cinnamon sugar donuts as well.

• Som Tam Thai, Union Market → Thai. This is the best pad thai in the city. Trust that I’ve tried several.

• DC Dosa, Union Market → Indian. My other favorite spot in Union Market. If you enjoy dosas, you need to go here.

• Red Light Bar & Pizza, Logan Circle → Pizza. This is one of the two best pizza places in DC; best for nice and thick pieces.

• Bacio’s, Bloomingdale → Pizza. The other best pizza in the city if you like flatbread.

My top two mid-range places to go for a good happy hour with friends:

• Takara 14, Logan Circle → Sushi. This place is not worth it outside of happy hour, but during its weekdays 5pm-7pm the sushi is incredible quality for what you pay. The service is wildly slow to make up for it, but still worth your time if you’re looking for inexpensive but good sushi. Mojitos are $7 during Happy Hour.

• Purple Patch, Columbia Heights → Filipino. You actually can’t do Happy Hours. I went here once for brunch and didn’t enjoy it at all, but the dinner food is excellent. The cocktails particularly are wonderful; we loved the Palawan and the Osiris.

The image above is from Tatte, but that’s not one of the real hidden gems. My six favorite coffee/cafe spots in DC:

• Doubles, Columbia Heights → This is my personal favorite coffee shop in the whole city. I drive just to go here. The lattes are fairly inexpensive and unbelievably good; the pastry selection is mediocre.

• Un je ne sais quoi…, Dupont Circle → French bakery spot; always has a crazy line on Sundays during the Dupont Farmer’s Market, so beware! The spot is quite good.

• YELLOW, Union Market → Palestinian-owned cafe with the city’s best savory pastries.

• Colada Shop (Chain) → Cuban coffee stop with lots of specialty lattes; my favorite chain in the city. Delightful food to eat with your coffee.

• Creative Grounds, Bloomingdale → A local spot; the owner lives above the building and hosts a lot of community events. I love the vibe very much. Great pastries.

• Sidamo Coffee & Tea, H Street → Very cute neighborhood spot with smoothies in addition to great coffee.

And for a bonus, my favorite brunch place in the city:

• Open City, Adams Morgan → Brunch. I just think this spot is beyond charming. The hash browns are incredible, and the golden milk latte is also quite excellent.

My favorite sit-down bars in DC:

• The Green Zone, Adams Morgan → Palestinian-owned bar and one of the more popular ones in DC… for a reason! The blended boozy mint lemonade for $12 is in fact just as good as everyone says.

• Left Door, Logan Circle → This is my favroite speakeasy in D.C.; the bartenders really know what they’re doing, so the trust fall drink I had here is one of the best drinks I’ve ever had.

• Jane Jane, Logan Circle → One of the prettier sit-down bars in the city (image above is from Jane Jane!), and the one I’d probably lean to for meeting a friend. Loud in the evenings. Love the cheezits. I’ve heard rumors they have a daily HH $8 punch.

• 600T, Shaw → Adorable basement bar, under the also-solid El Techo; they burn a lot of incense. But everything besides the HH menu is pretty crazy overpriced.

• Crimson Whiskey Bar, Penn Quarter → Great vibes on this bar in the basement.

And for a bonus, my favorite club in DC:

• A League of Her Own / Pitchers, Adams Morgan → This is the gay bar, and thus the only one worth going to. Kidding! In all honesty, fantastic.

That’s it for this DC eats wrapup! Hope everyone found some fun new places to try.

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