Where to eat in DC?

[oznerol]

The girlfriend and I are going to DC this weekend. We're doing all the touristy sightseeing crap, but we'd like to avoid the touristy restaurants.

Any locals know of good spots? We're staying here, by the national mall, so directions from there would be nice if possible - either walking or subway - no car.

Generally casual places are good - type of food doesn't matter, we aren't picky.

Edit for failing at linking.

 

[purbeast0]

La Royale Plaza (i think that is the name) is a really REALLY good restaurant that has nice spanish food, granted I haven't been there in a few years.

I ate at Filomenas italian restaurant in Georgetown that was excellent.

My friends cousin just opened a 2nd restaurant that is in DC near the nationals stadium, it's called Cava and is greek food. I've been to the one in Rockville, MD and holy crap the food is amazing, SSSSOOOO good! it's tapas style though.

 

[krylon]

:camera: of girlfriend?

 

[Linflas]

It's been a long time since we've gone into DC to a restaurant and my favorite places have all closed down. This might help you out if you don't get any decent tips. Washingtonian Restaurant Guide

 

[mchammer187]

I went to a place called Urbana somewhere on the redline. American cuisine good selection of wines. It is a little pricy but well worth it. I recommend the prawn or shrimp salad and the duck if you go there. They have a good selection of wine there as well.

If you want something real cheap I recommend Ray's Hellburger it is about half a mile from the court house on the orange line. Best burger ever (~$9). They are grilled not fried and huge and delicious. It is in Virginia, not D.C. but the food is definitely worth the trip. If you decide to go there there is no sign in front of it except the address and they are not open for lunch. It is kinda a hole in the wall joint so if you want something classy look elsewhere. However, you won't find a better burger in town.

 

[MustISO]

Haven't been to Filomenas in a very long time but it was very good the last time I was there.

 

[oznerol]

Originally posted by: mchammer187
I went to a place called Urbana somewhere on the redline. American cuisine good selection of wines. It is a little pricy but well worth it. I recommend the prawn or shrimp salad and the duck if you go there. They have a good selection of wine there as well.

If you want something real cheap I recommend Ray's Hellburger it is about half a mile from the court house on the orange line. Best burger ever (~$9). They are grilled not fried and huge and delicious. It is in Virginia, not D.C. but the trip is definitely worth the trip. If you decide to go there there is no sign in front of it except the address and they are not open for lunch. It is kinda a hole in the wall joint so if you want something classy look elsewhere though. You won't find a better burger anywhere else though.

We're big fans of the hole in the wall joints. That burger place sounds good, thanks. Ray's the Steaks also looks good, too, actually.

That place led me to find: this site which is just what I was looking for. Thanks again.

 

[shortylickens]

My favorite is still Union Station. I go into DC at least once a month and I never get tired of it.
They have fancy places up above if you like, or you can just hit the greasy, tasty joints in the lower level.

 

[Darkstar757]

BLT Steak

 

[Babbles]

There is a cool Tapas place north of the National Mall, but I do not remember the name. Also we recently went to Zed's in Georgetown that does a good Ethiopian dinner.

 

[mryellow2]

http://www.matchboxdc.com/

http://www.zaytinya.com/

http://www.rasikarestaurant.com/

http://www.jaleo.com/


All are easy to metro or taxi from the mall

Rasika is my favorite indian joint. I love Jaleo at any time. Zaytinia's is pretty tasty as well and Matchbox has a good/great beer selection on tap.

 

[biggestmuff]

Beers at The Brickskeller.

 

[mchammer187]

Originally posted by: mryellow2
http://www.matchboxdc.com/

http://www.zaytinya.com/

http://www.rasikarestaurant.com/

http://www.jaleo.com/


All are easy to metro or taxi from the mall

Could have been what I ordered but the Jaleo (Crystal City) I went to was pretty terrible. I ordered the skirt steak and it so salty it was inedible. Ordered a few different things from the tapas modernas and clasicas but I don't remember off the top of my head. Those were ok but nothing special.

I have heard their sangria is good but since it was lunch on a workday I wasn't able to try that out.

 

[sjwaste]

Originally posted by: ducci

Originally posted by: mchammer187
I went to a place called Urbana somewhere on the redline. American cuisine good selection of wines. It is a little pricy but well worth it. I recommend the prawn or shrimp salad and the duck if you go there. They have a good selection of wine there as well.

If you want something real cheap I recommend Ray's Hellburger it is about half a mile from the court house on the orange line. Best burger ever (~$9). They are grilled not fried and huge and delicious. It is in Virginia, not D.C. but the trip is definitely worth the trip. If you decide to go there there is no sign in front of it except the address and they are not open for lunch. It is kinda a hole in the wall joint so if you want something classy look elsewhere though. You won't find a better burger anywhere else though.

We're big fans of the hole in the wall joints. That burger place sounds good, thanks. Ray's the Steaks also looks good, too, actually.

That place led me to find: this site which is just what I was looking for. Thanks again.

I live in Arlington. PM me if you need recs, my fiancee and I probably (unfortunately) spend most of our leisure income at restaurants.

Ray's The Steaks is hands down the best steak joint for the money anywhere. Charlie Palmer is probably the best in DC if price isn't an object. But for me, a steakhouse isn't a hard concept to nail.

Citronelle if you want to spend a lot and get some dishes that you'll never forget. If you haven't been, I suggest springing for the tasting menu, but it'll set you back almost $300 a head when all is said and done (with a couple drinks each). I've only been once, but I want to return.

If you want a true hole in the wall experience, Moby Dick's Kebab in Georgetown fits the bill. Then head a couple blocks over to Cafe La Ruche for dessert.

If you want my top, absolutely should not miss experience, though, Central Michel Richard (sort of closer to where you're staying, on 10th and Pennsylvania) is the best thing going in the city for an "American Bistro".

Finally, Rasika is one of the best Indian restaurants in the country. The place is really nice, but very loud. They do an incredible job, considering its hard to convince people to come in for fine dining Indian around here. It's a hard reservation to get, but you can walk in and sit at the bar.

 

[Darkstar757]

Matchbox is the shit!

best pizza in DC!

 

[sjwaste]

Originally posted by: mchammer187

Could have been what I ordered but the Jaleo (Crystal City) I went to was pretty terrible. I ordered the skirt steak and it so salty it was inedible. Ordered a few different things from the tapas modernas and clasicas but I don't remember off the top of my head. Those were ok but nothing special.

I have heard their sangria is good but since it was lunch on a workday I wasn't able to try that out.

Jaleo in Crystal City is 2nd rate compared to the Bethesda location. Also, in VA the Sangria sucks because they can't mix wine with liquor. Better bet is the Bethesda location, or Cafe Atlantico (also by Chef Andres) downtown.

 

[AstroManLuca]

Pizzeria Paradiso. So good that I actually took a family road trip all the way from Minnesota to eat there again. We were planning a road trip anyway, and did many other things, but the existence of Pizzeria Paradiso did influence our decision to go back to Washington instead of another city.

 

[sjwaste]

Originally posted by: Babbles
There is a cool Tapas place north of the National Mall, but I do not remember the name. Also we recently went to Zed's in Georgetown that does a good Ethiopian dinner.

Zed's is ok. But my grandmother grew up in Eritrea, which has similar food, and the closest I can find to her cooking isn't at Zed's -- that place is just a tourist trap.

Dukem and Etete are decent, probably the better ones in the city.

 

[mchammer187]

Originally posted by: sjwaste

Originally posted by: ducci

Originally posted by: mchammer187
I went to a place called Urbana somewhere on the redline. American cuisine good selection of wines. It is a little pricy but well worth it. I recommend the prawn or shrimp salad and the duck if you go there. They have a good selection of wine there as well.

If you want something real cheap I recommend Ray's Hellburger it is about half a mile from the court house on the orange line. Best burger ever (~$9). They are grilled not fried and huge and delicious. It is in Virginia, not D.C. but the trip is definitely worth the trip. If you decide to go there there is no sign in front of it except the address and they are not open for lunch. It is kinda a hole in the wall joint so if you want something classy look elsewhere though. You won't find a better burger anywhere else though.

We're big fans of the hole in the wall joints. That burger place sounds good, thanks. Ray's the Steaks also looks good, too, actually.

That place led me to find: this site which is just what I was looking for. Thanks again.

I live in Arlington. PM me if you need recs, my fiancee and I probably (unfortunately) spend most of our leisure income at restaurants.

Ray's The Steaks is hands down the best steak joint for the money anywhere. Charlie Palmer is probably the best in DC if price isn't an object. But for me, a steakhouse isn't a hard concept to nail.

Citronelle if you want to spend a lot and get some dishes that you'll never forget. If you haven't been, I suggest springing for the tasting menu, but it'll set you back almost $300 a head when all is said and done (with a couple drinks each). I've only been once, but I want to return.

If you want a true hole in the wall experience, Moby Dick's Kebab in Georgetown fits the bill. Then head a couple blocks over to Cafe La Ruche for dessert.

If you want my top, absolutely should not miss experience, though, Central Michel Richard (sort of closer to where you're staying, on 10th and Pennsylvania) is the best thing going in the city for an "American Bistro".

Finally, Rasika is one of the best Indian restaurants in the country. The place is really nice, but very loud. They do an incredible job, considering its hard to convince people to come in for fine dining Indian around here. It's a hard reservation to get, but you can walk in and sit at the bar.

Just wondering if you have been to Kabob Palace on Eads St (next to 7-11 not the one 3 doors down next to CVS) if you live in Arlington. I really like it more than Moby Dick but it is an entirely different style of Kabob.

Chicken w/bone or Lamb chop if you end up going there they are fantastic.

 

[sjwaste]

Originally posted by: mchammer187

Just wondering if you have been to Kabob Palace on Eads St (next to 7-11 not the one 3 doors down next to CVS) if you live in Arlington. I really like it more than Moby Dick but it is an entirely different style of Kabob.

Chicken w/bone or Lamb chop if you end up going there they are fantastic.

I haven't been there yet, but this Egyptian dude that I work with keeps telling me how good it is. I guess I have to make a trip now.

I like Moby Dick (not a venereal disease) a lot. However, Ravi Kabob just north of 50 on glebe is pretty damn awesome too.

Since we're trading food shacks, have you been to Pho Vinh Loi in Bailey's Crossroads (same plaza as the Trader Joe's off Colombia Pike)?

 

[JS80]

i saw this place on Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations http://cafeatlantico.com/miniBar/miniBar.htm looked kind of awesome

 

[mchammer187]

Originally posted by: sjwaste

Originally posted by: mchammer187

Just wondering if you have been to Kabob Palace on Eads St (next to 7-11 not the one 3 doors down next to CVS) if you live in Arlington. I really like it more than Moby Dick but it is an entirely different style of Kabob.

Chicken w/bone or Lamb chop if you end up going there they are fantastic.

I haven't been there yet, but this Egyptian dude that I work with keeps telling me how good it is. I guess I have to make a trip now.

I like Moby Dick (not a venereal disease) a lot. However, Ravi Kabob just north of 50 on glebe is pretty damn awesome too.

Since we're trading food shacks, have you been to Pho Vinh Loi in Bailey's Crossroads (same plaza as the Trader Joe's off Colombia Pike)?

Haven't been there. I have been to Full Kee (Chinese food) in that shopping center but I wouldn't recommend it.

I stick to Pho 75 when I get Pho. I used to go to Pho Tay Ho on Route 7 between bailey's crossroads and eden center but ever since they changed owners it has been terrible so I just stick with Pho 75 now which is pretty good but not great.

Peking Gourmet Inn in the same shopping center as Pho Tay Ho makes a great Peking Duck if you havent tried it yet.

 

[DukeFan21]

I spent a summer in DC doing an internship and taking a couple of courses. I lived on the Tenleytown campus of American University and there was a place in Tenleytown called Armand's Pizzeria which had AWESOME deep dish pizza. Their website They have another location in the Capitol Hill area as well.

 

[Japanac033]

k... no i just gotta get to DC

 

[glutenberg]

Big list incoming:

If you like seafood, you should go to the open air fish market off of Maine Ave. and try Jimmy's. It's about 0.5 miles from where you're staying and is walkable.

Maine Ave. Fish Market

If you like burgers, go with the previous poster's suggestions of Ray's Hell Burger.

Ray's Hell Burger

If you want something that's a "staple" food of DC because of its fame (although I don't necessarily think the food is that great), you could try Ben's Chili Bowl off the yellow line metro at African American Civil War Memorial stop. It's on U Street which has alot of soul food style restaurants too.

Ben's Chili Bowl

Amsterdam Falafelshop has some great falafels and Belgian fries. It's a hole in the wall place in a bar district up in Adam's Morgan. It's near the Red Line stop at Dupont.

Amsterdam Falafelshop

Regarding a poster's listing of Armand's. It's decent pizza but it's more bread than pizza. It's nothing comparable to an actual Chicago deep dish. You'd probably be better off getting a New York slice at Vace's Italian Deli off the Red Line at Cleveland Park or going to 2 Amy's and getting yourself a fancy topping pizza.

Lastly, there's a pretty nice food court underneath the National Gallery of Art which is near where you're staying. Also, there's quite a few chain restaurants up at Verizon Center / Gallery Place Red Line metro stop if you want something more commercial.

There are alot more places out there and most of the ones I listed are in the mid-price range (so expect to pay in the range of $10). If you list a genre of food you'd like to eat, then I can post up some more places.