Where to Eat in Washington
Merrill, Jill
Where to Eat in Washington by Jill Merrill Most of our readers don’t live in Washington but come here often because their work is connected with the government. For their benefit, we offer this...
...Although the namesake of this distinguished restaurant is now owner-chef of Le Lion d’Or, the food remains superb...
...It's good as well...
...No reservations...
...Right near the Washington Hilton...
...Good Spanish food at modest prices...
...Upstairs food is served, but the one tUne we ate there it was truly terrible...
...Simple, home-style cooking in the middle of downtown Washington...
...A comfortable family cafeteria, clean and reasonable...
...Good if not exceptional American cooking in the most spacious non-hotel dining room in Washington...
...Sea-Fair, 2655 Connecticut Ave., 667-5 11 5. No reservations...
...President Adams Room in the Hay-Adams Hotel, 8bO 16th St., 638-2260...
...Just off K St., this wellknown restaurant specializes in 1;'eldng duck and Hunan (spicy) dishes...
...Tea, Sandwiches, and good sweets are served as a violinist strolls through this old-world hotel...
...Located right next to the Mayflower Hotel, the food is probably better at lunch than at dinner...
...Roma, 3419 Connecticut Ave., 363-661 1. A fiuge, Italianate garden complete with music and gurgling, grapeinfested plaster putti...
...Harvey’s is a Washington institution...
...Moderate...
...Altogether a good bargain in simple surroundings...
...Located right next to the Mayflower Hotel, the food is probably better at lunch than at dinner...
...Expensive...
...EI Dorado, 1832 Columbia Rd., 232-0333...
...No reservations...
...Near the Washington Hilton Hotel, this is a neighborhood bar/restaurant in a primarily Spanish-speaking community...
...Inexpensive...
...Expensive...
...Excellent value...
...Peking duck can ,be ordered with no advance notice...
...Greek Village, 1712 Connecticut Ave., 232-4768...
...In winter there are two fireplaces to keep you warm inside...
...EI Dorado, 1832 Columbia Rd., 232-0333...
...The portions are huge and the terrific pickles are gratis...
...Inexpensive...
...Sheraton-Carlton, 16th and K Sts., 638-2626...
...Inexpensive...
...Tiberio, 1915 K St., 452-1915...
...Inexpensive...
...Better to take out than to stay...
...Greenery, 1144 18th St., 872-1658...
...Once a wonderful "little" restaurant, Camille moved to its present location and is now a "big" restaurant but, sad to say, only in size and price...
...businessmen...
...Crowded and noisy but the cuisirie-AmericanIewish-is excellent and the jocks and lobbyists love it...
...An escellent Italian restaurant...
...Golden Temple of Censcious Cookery , 1 5 2 1 Connecticut Ave., 234-6134...
...Harold’s Rogue and Jar, 1814 N St., 296-3192...
...Delicious onion rolls and an excellent wine list that, des ite recent price increases, still offers some gargains...
...Cold dishes such as the pate platter or tongue are particularly good...
...The freshly made pastas are excellent and rich...
...Although it’s noisy and crowded (especially at lunch), the Astor has maintained a loyal clientelefor goodreason...
...We've heard, however, that the Irish Stew is good...
...The Middle Eastern dishes are a good value, the American only fair...
...The first is close to the WsiShington Hilton, the second near the White Hodse...
...The reviews are mixed...
...Excellent value...
...Unpretentious on the outside (one has to walk downstairs into a black hole), but the food is superb most of the time...
...Right near the Washington Hilton...
...Known as a jazz club, the Rogue is also a good place for simple lunch or dinner...
...A delightful restaurant in a charming hotel...
...Duke Zeibert's, 1722 L St., 296-5030...
...Just off K St., this wellknown restaurant specializes in 1;'eldng duck and Hunan (spicy) dishes...
...Jockey Club, 2100 Massachusetts Ave., 659-8000...
...Harvey’s, 1001 18th St.3 833-1858...
...The carafe wine is good and inexpensive...
...Very crowded at lunch...
...Apart from the Crab Imperial, however, there seems to be little here to justify the celestial prices...
...Moderate...
...and 1621 H St., 483-2816...
...EI Palacio, 1827 M St., 785-8228., One of five El Palacios in tlie Washington area, serving undistinguished Tex .. Mex food...
...In the Safari Lounge there is a more limited lunch menu and Heineken on draft, at moderate prices...
...Prices are higher ($4.50-$6.95, drinks $2) upstairs at night, when the belly dancer performs after 8:30 p.m...
...Mandarin restaurlmt with large portions...
...No reservations...
...Very crowded at lunch...
...Very expensive...
...The large Greek salad at $1.45 and the Moussaka for $2.25 at either lunch or dinner are quite good...
...The menu is extensive, ranging from squid (superior) to thany variations of chicken with rice...
...Cheap...
...Court of the Mandarins, 1824 M St., 223-6666...
...Those we recommend most highly are indicated by an asterisk...
...Sea Catch, 2100 Massachusetts Ave., 659-8000...
...After 9 p.m., excegt Mondays and Tuesdays, there is a country-rock band and a nominal cover charge...
...Moderate...
...O'Riley's Pub Rear 1122 18th St...
...This Italian restpant stands apart in one way: with ten dining iooms, it is bigger than the others...
...Prime Rib, 2020 K St., 466-8811...
...Rocky Racoon Saloon, 1243 20th St., 872-1643...
...For our money, this is the best-and most underrated-fast-food place around...
...Hot Shoppes, 1825 Connecticut Ave...
...Moderate...
...No credit cards, reservations, or alcohol...
...Vegetarian dishes also offered...
...Roy Rogers, 2021 I St...
...Go there te) drink, but not to eat...
...This restaurant, in the Fairfax Ifotel, has undergone a great many changes since its ascendancy during the Kennedy years...
...Italian haute cuisine with an extensive menu and consistently good pastas and desserts...
...872-1114...
...Gaylord’s, 1731 Connecticut Ave., 232-1 128...
...Very low prices-a full meal for $2-$3...
...Simple, unpretentious, French food...
...Some fluke of city planning left E.J...
...We've heard, however, that the Irish Stew is good...
...A fine Northern Italian restaurant right off Connecticut...
...beefburger for $2.65 to N.Y...
...It's good as well...
...The menu is extensive, ranging from squid (superior) to thany variations of chicken with rice...
...Burger Chef, 1216 18th St...
...Inexpensive...
...E.J...
...Moderate...
...In spite of its rather undistinguished decor, this is the ne plus ultra of Washington’s increasing number of fine French restaurants...
...Sans Souci, 726 17th., 298-7424...
...stable...
...Inexpensive and a good value...
...Moderately priced, this tasteful restaurant provides a relaxed respite from the noise of downtown life...
...Cantina d’Italia, 1214-A 18th St., 659-1830...
...Good Spanish food at modest prices...
...This restaurant, across Rock Creek Park from the Shoreham Hotel, is a good value...
...n the summer, the courtyard offers the most charming setting for outdoor dining in downtown Washington...
...E.J...
...Go there te) drink, but not to eat...
...We recommend fettuccine with clam sauce...
...Yenching Palace, 3524 Connecticut Ave., 362-8200...
...Peking duck is available without advance notice...
...The Black Beret, 1140 Connecticut Ave., 223-5542...
...Vegetarian dishes also offered...
...Romeo & Juliet, 2020 K St., 296-7112...
...They are all northwest of the White House...
...The decor is California Redwood and the atmosphere, like the food, light and healthful...
...Cold dishes such as the pate platter or tongue are particularly good...
...Moderate...
...O'Riley's Pub Rear 1122 18th St...
...Its popularity, which is partially responsible for the harried service, is well-deserved...
...Restaurants listed here are all located in the center of the city along-or near-the Connecticut Avenue comdor, beginning at Pennsylvania Avenue and ending above Rock Creek Park...
...Inexpensive...
...Very expensive...
...This is a two-part restaurant in the basement of a modem office building...
...Good, tangy Szechuan fare...
...A good Indo-Pakistani restaurant with a wide selection of curries...
...Moderate...
...Modest Greek fare at remarkably modest prices (particularly the specials...
...strip steak for $6.95...
...While the six kinds of wurst offered could be better, the condiments and frozen ice cream are very good...
...Tuscon Cantina, 2605 Connecticut Ave., 462-6410...
...Uneven in quality but worth taking a chance on if you’re up this way...
...No credit cards, no reservations...
...Iron Gate Inn, 1734 N St., 737-1370...
...Jean-Pierre, 1835 K St., 333-1066...
...Tabard Inn, 1739 N St., 785-1277...
...The place is done up in a Western way, and the food is strictly Tex-Mex...
...A special for $3.50 is served every night and Spare Rib night (Thursday) is very popular...
...One part is fancy and dark, with a round bar and an electronic stock ticker, catering to 58Chez Camille, 1737 De Sales St., 393-3330...
...There are three or four excellent specialties each day, and the food is not only well-prepared but entirely fresh and preservative-free...
...In the same neighborhood as Napoleon’s, but the cuisine is more American with, naturally, an emphasis on seafood...
...Columbia Station, 1836 Columbia Rd., 667~2900...
...Reservations essential at lunch...
...Columbia Station, 1836 Columbia Rd., 667~2900...
...Empress (Trudie Ball's), 1018 VeTmont Ave., 737-2324...
...Peking duck can ,be ordered with no advance notice...
...Mixed drinks are only 75 cents...
...Near the Washington Hilton Hotel, this is a neighborhood bar/restaurant in a primarily Spanish-speaking community...
...Sholl’s Cafeterias, 1032 Connecticut Ave...
...The Washington Monthly/February 1978 Roxie Munro *El Caribe, 1828 Cblumbia Rd., 234-6969...
...For those who are cholesterol-conscious, no butter is served...
...Washington’s only bookstore-cafe...
...Paul Young’s, 1 120 Connecticut Ave., 331-7000...
...Couscous and kifta are good...
...The all-beef meilU is surprisingly low-priced: 7 oz...
...Peking duck is available without advance notice...
...Duke Zeibert's, 1722 L St., 296-5030...
...Once a wonderful "little" restaurant, Camille moved to its present location and is now a "big" restaurant but, sad to say, only in size and price...
...however, there’s a carry-out window for those who are short on time...
...strip steak for $6.95...
...I Moderate...
...Expensive...
...Good service, good food, good value...
...Christopher's Steaks Unlimited, 1232 20th St., 785-2100...
...A self-service salad bar, but not much else, distinguishes it from the other fast-food places listed here...
...Moderate Paradise Cafe, 1900 M St., 833-1218...
...The food is entirely Middle Eastern and the most expensive item on the menu is $4.25...
...872-1114...
...Expensive...
...No credit cards, no reservations...
...Expensive...
...Expensive...
...Empress (David Lee's), 1875 Connecticut Ave., 462-8111...
...Belly dancer upstairs in the evenings...
...Kramerbooks’ Afterwords Cafe, 1517 Connecticut Ave., 387-1462...
...The quality of the food, like the prices, is modest...
...Since there is no real kitchen, the menu is limited (quiches, salads), but the browsing is good...
...Inexpensive...
...Some fluke of city planning left E.J...
...whole lamb stuffed with pine nuts is excellent but must be ordered two days in advance...
...Crowded and noisy but the cuisirie-AmericanIewish-is excellent and the jocks and lobbyists love it...
...The all-beef meilU is surprisingly low-priced: 7 oz...
...They also share attractive surroundings complemented by discreet but attentive service...
...We recommend the veal Francaise and the sole meuniere...
...The Best of the Wurst, 1900 M St., 223-01 79, and 1001 Connecticut Ave., 785-1003...
...But if the milieu isn't charming, the building itself is, and inside there's a warm, dark, friendly bar with a loyal clientele...
...O'Riley's building in the middle of a city block, surrounded by parking lots...
...Gusti’s, 1837 M St., 331-9444...
...excellent dumplings, we’re told...
...Good Middle Eastern (mostly Iraqi) food, spiced more interestingly than at most restaurants of this sort...
...Open for lunch until 5 p.m...
...A converted 19th-century...
...beefburger for $2.65 to N.Y...
...Szechuan East, 1805 H St., 296-3588...
...It has some good specialties, such as the agnolotti and cannelloni in cream sauce, but .the service is poor at dinner and even poorer at lunch...
...I Moderate...
...The food is as average as the atmosphere is wild...
...A special for $3.50 is served every night and Spare Rib night (Thursday) is very popular...
...the other part is a sit-down sandwich restaurant of no great distinction...
...There's delicious Latin-American food at this restaurant, which is north of the Washington Hilton in a Spanish-speaking community...
...Moderate...
...The specialty of the house is a quite good roast beef sandwich, and there’s also so-so fried chicken...
...Like the Jockey Club, the Sea Catch is in the Fairfax Hotel...
...yo credit cards or reservations...
...It is so dark and so noisy, however, that one wonders if one isn’t inside the cow’s stomach, rather than the other way around...
...Moderate...
...on the other hand, it is quieter and more serene at dinner...
...Formerly Tippy’s Taco House, the Cantina has expanded its menu to include such items as beef and chicken enchiladas...
...The staff is accommodating and willing to explain the menu...
...Fresh, vegetarian food...
...the striped bass with a delicate sauce-either hot or cold-is another delight...
...The fare is all-American, with an emphasis on seafood...
...Expensive...
...Best of all, Roy has two excellent sauces you can’t find at other fast-food places-barbecue and horseradish...
...Moderately priced, this tasteful restaurant provides a relaxed respite from the noise of downtown life...
...Moderate...
...O'Riley's building in the middle of a city block, surrounded by parking lots...
...Right across from the White House, this is a splendid room in the grande dame of Washington hotels...
...Astor, 1813 M St., 331-7994...
...Jacqueline’s, 1990 M St., 785-8877...
...Moderate...
...JJ Giardino, 1110 21st., 223-4555...
...in fact, they share the same kitchen...
...The service is good and the setting attractive and quiet, but, by all accounts, the food is uneven...
...the bar is “intimate” and attractive and the drinks generous...
...Moderate...
...Crowded at lunch...
...Inexpensive...
...The atmosphere is lively, the food moderately priced...
...There's delicious Latin-American food at this restaurant, which is north of the Washington Hilton in a Spanish-speaking community...
...Great fun and good food for a slightly unusual and inexpensive repast...
...Don’t bother with the over-cooked peas and carrots, but try the carrot cake, liver and onions, pies, and spoon bread...
...Breakfast and lunch are particularly good times to spot luminaries...
...Moderate...
...and 1433 K St...
...El Caribe, 1828 Cblumbia Rd., 234-6969...
...Christopher's Steaks Unlimited, 1232 20th St., 785-2100...
...A wide range of good, well-prepared French food...
...Expensive...
...No reservatioqp...
...Several blocks off Connecticut, one of a spate of recently opened northern Italian restaurants in this area...
...La Brochette, 1825 M St., 296-1363...
...A $2.95 and a $4.50 sandwich-anddessert tea are offered...
...The hamburgers are fresh and hand-formed...
...The atmosphere is lively, the food moderately priced...
...Inexpensive...
...Empress (Trudie Ball's), 1018 VeTmont Ave., 737-2324...
...No credit cards...
...Mandarin restaurlmt with large portions...
...But if the milieu isn't charming, the building itself is, and inside there's a warm, dark, friendly bar with a loyal clientele...
...Reasonable...
...Expende...
...Empress (David Lee's), 1875 Connecticut Ave., 462-8111...
...If you’re already having dinner, there is no charge for tbe entertainment...
...Calved Cafe, 1967 Calvert St., 232-5431...
...Good service, good food, good value...
...Chez Camille, 1737 De Sales St., 393-3330...
...A handsome room with handsome beef at handsome prices...
...there are several other specialties fot those who want to sample various Chinese cuisines...
...Near the Shoreham and Sheraton-Park Hotels...
...Court of the Mandarins, 1824 M St., 223-6666...
...For their benefit, we offer this guide to where to eat, and in alternate months, where to stay...
...Moderate...
...If you like Indian food, you will not be disappointed...
...The menu is extensive: a bit overwhelming for the uninitiated, but never dull...
...Inexpensive...
...Lots of hanging plants and salads as the name implies...
...The portions are huge and the terrific pickles are gratis...
...one should not expect too much...
...Moderate...
...Try the home-made soups, the spe cialty sandwiches, and the carrot cake...
...If you want to star-gaze at lunch, this restaurant negr the White House is the place for you...
...A number of stars lunch here regularly (but nqt many from the Carter Administration), so if you are more interested in craning yqpr 62 neck than eating good food, you won’t be disappointed...
...At dinner it’s half-empty and not chic at all...
...Upstairs food is served, but the one tUne we ate there it was truly terrible...
...there are several other specialties fot those who want to sample various Chinese cuisines...
...Moderate...
...EI Palacio, 1827 M St., 785-8228., One of five El Palacios in tlie Washington area, serving undistinguished Tex .. Mex food...
...Monday-Fpday, 3 :30-5 : 30 p.m...
...Arabian Nights, 29 15 Connecticut Ave., 232-6684...
...Very expensive...
Vol. 9 • February 1978 • No. 12
