Brien’s DC Dining Reviews
(Don’t take this too serious. These are just my own humble opinions. I do this for fun.)
Please write if you have suggestions!
Reviewed:
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1401 K St. NW, at 14th St.
Washington
Contemporary Cuisine
Average Price : Over $18
CC : AE|D|DC|MC|V
Reservations essential
202-2165988
This is an upscale restaurant, located in the Tower Building. It is refreshing to visit an upscale restaurant that maintains a lively and relaxing atmosphere as opposed to a stuffy atmosphere. The dress is business casual. There is a quiet seating area located upstairs, but we enjoyed sitting in the main dining area near the bar. I would describe the menu as American seafood with an Asian accent. We had smoked salmon as an appetizer, served with a sauce of dill and garlic, and served with crisp wedges of bagel. There is an excellent selection of wine, we opted for a bottle of Veuve Clicquot yellow label champagne. For the main course, I had mushroom-crusted halibut with a porcini broth, and truffled potatos over portabello mushroom. My only complaint about the restaurant is that the waiters were far too anxious to take away our plates, and attempting to set the pace of our evening. For dessert we had a tart, baked peach served with crème brulee, which I would describe as a little slice of heaven.
8.5 out of 10
(September 11, 2003)
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480 7th St. NW
Washington
Spanish Cuisine
Average Price : $10 to $25
CC : AE|D|DC|MC|V
202-6287949
Take the Chinatown/Gallery metro stop. The restaurant is about two blocks away from the metro station.
This Spanish tapas bar is a great find! I owe thanks to Debbie P. for suggesting it. The atmosphere is fun and the bar is noisy. They had live Flamenco dancing on the night I went (Wednesday). Despite being trendy, the food is quite authentic. There are very few dinner entrees on the menu and most people make their meal from a variety of tapas. It is best to go with a group of friends so that you can sample many dishes. I ordered three tapas dishes. The first was grilled salmon with minced olives and onions and capers. The second consisted of a tomato, olive and onion salad with a vinagrette dressing. The third dish was sweet peppers stuffed with garlic and cheese and other delicious ingredients. The sangria was great. The dessert menu contained many interesting items that I suspect are common in Spain. However, I had a less authentic dessert of white chocolate with hazelnuts and fresh strawberries. The paea looked fantastic and I hope to try it during my next visit.
8.5 out of 10
(September 10, 2003)
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2000 Pennsylvania Ave., NW (I Street and 21st)
Washington DC
Seafood
Average Price: $25 - 50
202-296-7700
Take the Foggy Bottom exit. When you exit the station, walk straight ahead up I Street. Just beyond 21st is a mall on the right.
The restaurant is inside of the mall.
Most people were dressed business casual and I decided to dine in the bar since I was dressed a bit more casual. The atmosphere is nice despite being in a mall. The bar is busy yet not noisy and the crowd consisted mostly of 30-something professionals. This is a terrific seafood restaurant and I am very happy my friend Amy told me about it. The prices are a little expensive but not excessive for seafood of this quality. I started with a bowl of clam chowder, and it was chock full of delicious clams, though it was a little salty due to the addition of bacon. I was served a basket of French bread and something akin to Irish soda bread. For the main entrée I ordered pepita-crusted salmon with shrimp, crab and corn ragout. It reminded me of a similar dish I had a Nola in New Orleans, and I enjoyed it very much.
8 out of 10.
(September 8, 2003)
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3128 M St. NW, between 31st St. and Wisconsin Ave.
Washington
French Cuisine
Average Price: $10 to $25
CC : AE|DC|MC|V
202-3383830
Take the Foggy Bottom exit. When you exit the station, you'll be facing 23rd Street. Turn left and go 1/2 block to Washington Circle (the hospital will be on your left). Turn left at Washington Circle and walk a block to 24th Street, turn right. Turn left on Pennsylvania Ave, which eventually turns into M street. It's around 6 blocks, near M Street and 30th, in the heart of Georgetown.
Brien's review: semi-casual atmosphere, reasonably priced for the type of cuisine and quality of the food. I began with a cold gazpacho, which had a nice flavor and texture. The wine list is rather short, but they have some nice wines. I had a dinner special and was only able to specify a house red or white. I had the house red, which turned out to be a Bordeaux. I enjoyed the wine. For the main course, I had grilled tuna steak with a dill and lemon sauce. It was served with a salad with balsamic vinaigrette dressing. The quality of the fish was excellent, as was the preparation. The sauce was very flavorful. For dessert, I had a Napoleon (layers of filo dough filled with a lemon flavored cream, sprinkled with powdered sugar). The dessert was nice.
I enjoyed the meal very much. The atmosphere is nice. The restaurant is located in a nice part of town and the atmosphere is generally nice.
It stays open until 3 AM Sunday through Thursday, 4 AM Friday and Saturday.
7.5 out of 10
(May of 2003)
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1858 Columbia Rd. NW
Washington
Brazilian Cuisine
Average Price : $10 to $25
CC : AE|D|DC|MC|V
www.thegrillfromipanema.com
202-9860757
Brien's comments: definitely off the beaten path. They recommend taking the metro to DuPont Circle.
From Pentagon City, take the yellow line to China Town, then take the red line to DuPont Circle. Then cross the circle and walk up Conneticut and bear right on Columbia, up the hill. The restaurant is on the right. Expect a half hour walk! I would suggest instead that you take one of the metro lines to downtown, say the blue line to Metro. Then take a taxi from there.
Brien's review: The stews are fantastic. Save some bread for dipping in the sauce. Not cheap (around $20), but well worth it.
8 out of 10
(October of 2002)
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1701 Connecticut Ave. NW, at R St.
Washington
Italian Cuisine
Average Price : $10 to $25
CC : AE|DC|MC|V
202-6675505
Directions: take the redline to Dupont Circle. When you exit the station, cross Dupon Circle and head up Conneticut. The restaurant is about 2 blocks on the right.
Brien's review: They have my favorite wine, the Barone Montepluciano D'abruzzo, and this put me in a good mood right away. The atmosphere is nice. It feels slightly upscale, but the prices are reasonable. The crowd is a mixture of young and old. There's a picture (upstairs near the restroom) of Regan, Carter, Ford and Nixon having a drink at the restaurant. I had the argula salad and it was good. I asked for it to be served last, but it was served right away, with red wine nonetheless! I had bowtie pasta with a mushroom creme sauce with presuitto (sp?). It was also good. I took half of my entree to my suite, and had tira misu for dessert. It was better than average. Overall, I would certainly return to this restaurant. I would describe it as a nice place to take a date. The neighborhood is nice and slightly trendy.
7.5 out of 10
(March 12, 2003)
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675 15th St NW
202-347-4801
Brien's comments: very old fashioned. Not too healthy, but good considering the type of fare. It's more interesting in terms of location than food.
Put your name in for a table, then go out the door and turn right. Walk to the corner and turn left on Penn. Ave. The White House is on the left. It's a good way to kill time while waiting for a table.
This restaurant is a good place to take people that haven't spent much time in DC.
7 out of 10.
(September, 2002)
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3033 M Street NW
Washington, DC 20007
(202) 337-4500
M-T 11AM-11PM
F-S 11AM-1AM
Georgetown
Take the Foggy Bottom exit. When you exit the station you'll be facing 23rd Street. Turn left and go 1/2 block to Washington Circle (the hospital will be on your left). Turn left at Washington Circle and walk a block to 24th Street, turn right. Turn left on Pennsylvania Ave, which eventually turns into M street. It's around 6 blocks, at M Street and 30th, in the heart of Georgetown.
Brien's review: okay atmosphere, mediocre food. If I happened to be in the Georgetown area, I might go there to listen to jazz and have a drink but not for dinner. I had linguini with clams and mussels.
However, there are some interesting looking restaurants in the area. On M at around 31st is Bistro Francais, and the Manhattan Seafood, which look good.
I'd give this place a 5.5 out of 10.
(November, 2002)
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1120 19th St. NW
Washington
Pan-Asian Cuisine
Average Price : Under $18
CC : AE|DC|MC|V
202-2933138
Metro: Bethesda. It's on 19th between L and M street. Farragut West will work too.
Brien's review (November 18, 2002): Had the Tom Yum soup with shrimp. The quality was very good. The nice hot soup took away the November chill. It's a bit like Noodle Planet in Westwood, but the food is more upscale and atmosphere is a little more subdued.
7.5 out of 10.
(November 2002)
Side note: there's a good Italian restaurant next door. It's American-style Italian food. I had pizza, which is probably not what I would have ordered if I'd been on my own. But I liked the place and return again for hearty (American-style) Italian food.
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Very upscale and expensive. A glass of 1999 BV Cabernet costs $14. You can buy a bottle of it at Trader Joes for $9! The decor is old fashioned (terrible carpet). I had the Texas Tenderloin, which is served with bernaise sauce, and complemented with aspargus, potatos, carrots and pearl onions. It was delicious, and it had better be at $36. I didn't order a salad. For dessert I had pecan rum pie with banana ice cream, which was good but not great.
6.5 out of 10
(March 13, 2003)
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1414 U St. NW, between 14th and 15th Sts.
Washington
Italian Cuisine
Average Price : Under $18
CC : AE|D|DC|MC|V
202-3197773
Metro: U St./Cardozo.
Cute restaurant but the food is mediocre at best and the neighborhood is out of the way and a bit run-down. Actually, it's called Coppi's "Organic" Restaurant. I was served 3 small cubes of bread, each a little larger than sugar cube, with some olive oil (good but very meager). I ordered Ebrette, which consists of sauteed spinach, goat cheese,
raisons and a vinegrette sauce. It tasted good, but the spinach was a little over cooked and the portion was very small. I had a proschueto and mushroom pizza. It was very bland. It was mostly dough, with very little sauce or ingredients on it.
To get there, take the green line to U St./Cardozo. Though I wouldn't recommend this place.
4.5 out of 10.
(March 15, 2003)
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Shirlington, VA
Shirlington has nice restaurants and is located near Arlington. Credit for this find goes to Mark and Laura. The fare is typical but quite good. I had new york steak with asparagus, and we split an opera cake for dessert (chocolate/hazelnut).
7.5 out of 10.
(January, 2005)
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19th between M & N
DC
I often dine here with John. It’s a great place to go if you’re in the mood for typical American style Italian food. I have enjoyed their pizza, spagetti & meatballs, and cesar salads.
6.5 out of 10
(Last dined there in January 2005)
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M Street
Georgetown
Had Maryland clam soup, and grilled swordfish with potatos and vegetables. Wonderfully fresh ingredients, total lack of care in preparation. Crab meat was nice and fresh, but broth was Campbells Minestrone. Swordfish was delectable, but someone in the kitchen had a frenzy with the salt. The ambience is nice and intimate. Could easily have achieved 7 out of 10 with just a little care!
6 out of 10.
(9 Jan 2005)
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2800 block of M Street
Georgetown
This French restaurant has a charming atmosphere. It looks and feels like Europe. I enjoyed clams, steak au poivre with fries, a lovely Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley (Oregon). For dessert I enjoyed one of my favorites, chocolate soufflé!
7.5 out of 10.
(7 April 2005)
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3715 Macomb (Macomb & )
Cathedral Heights
I learned about this place from Rick who works at NOAA. They serve Neapolitan style pizza. They serve pizza with a crispy, thin-crust. I think they are baked in a woodfire oven. The pizza's are one size only. One pizza and a salad are perfect for sharing. I was alone and only had pizza. My pizza had salami, tomato and cheese, and I had a Birra Morretti along with it. The atmosphere was lively. It's a small place, and crowded even on a Monday evening. The food was fantastic, some really great gourmet style pizza. (Note: I took the metro to Foggy Bottom and took a $10 taxi ride from there.)
8 out of 10.
(25 July 2005)
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http://www.lauriolplazarestaurant.com/
1835 18th St NW
My friend Danny told me about this place. I used to tell my friends that good Mexican food is hard to find in DC. I won’t be telling them that anymore! On a Tuesday night the line was out the door – always a good sign. It’s loud and lively inside, and they serve great margaritas. I had a typical tex mex combination of taco and enchilada. I was instantly transported to a tex mex restaurant along the river in San Antonio, can this really exist in DC? A very nice place when you’re in the mood for tex mex and a party atmosphere.
7.5 out of 10.
(27 Sept 2005)
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2250 B Crystal Drive
Crystal Street at 23rd
Crystal City, 703-413-2288
Credit for this find goes to my friend Jessie. I wasn’t really in the mood to try two Mexican restaurants only a couple of days apart (see review of Lauriol Plaza), but I was intrigued when she described it to me. It’s a trendy atmosphere, serving authentic Mexican cuisine, but in a modern style. The food is served in small portions, call them Mexican style tapas. They specialize in moles and have several kinds, all containing over 17 ingredients. I had four dishes: Oaxacan tamalie, carne asada tacos, mole enchilada, plantain fritters with cream sauce. Four dishes is too much food for one, three would be about right for a meal. However, this place is ideal for going with a group so you can sample many dishes. Much to my amazement, the prices are very reasonable. I’m going to frequent this place. When I went to leave, I noticed something that explained a lot. This place is owned and operated by the same people that own and operate Jaleo, one of my favorite places in DC.
8 out of 10.
(29 Sept 2005)