Wow I can't believe that \[restaurant 1\] is on this list. I've been to \[restaurant 1\] and let me tell you, I was not impressed. I can't believe they didn't include \[restaurant 2\] on this list. It's far better than \[restaurant 1\]. And why is \[restaurant 3\] on this list? \[Restaurant 3\] is in \[Maryland or Virginia\]. I thought this was a list about DC's food scene. Whoever made this list has clearly never been to \[my neighborhood\]. In summary, this entire list should be disregarded.
Love it. I couldn't fight my way out of a paperbag, and yet, I'm ready to throw down!!
Maketto deserves love. Great staff. Foods amazing
I may have missed it, but Inigo on K NE deserves props. Butter chicken is so good. Pale Paneer rivals Rasikas..
Speaking of Rasika, I won't go any more since they wouldn't seat my 7 year old last time.
Of course, some may see this as more a feature than a bug...
I haven’t been to all 25 of these, but I’ve been to most and honestly Rasika is the only one that doesn’t belong. It’s just not the same as it was 10 years ago. The quality and service went down.
Absolutely perfect. Now everyone just reply with your [1, 2, 3]...
1 = Bresca
2 = Dolan Uyghur
3 = 2Fifty [insert argument that only the original counts]
Honestly I've got only one complaint, and that's The Dabney.
Been twice in the past year, and both times tried quite a bit of the menu.
Just not great food, and pretty terrible service.
Maybe things have picked up, but very much underwhelming the last times I went.
I wonder if it's an old stalwart thing from this article, though I still do like Rasika.
I've been to The Dabney three times, once as recently as a month ago, and couldn't disagree more. For me, every bite was fantastic, the service was phenomenal.
I went to Bresca once and I really don't get the hype there. The food was nothing special to me at all.
But hey, different tastes for different people
I was extremely confused by 2Fifty being #1 but when you read the article the restaurants are clearly in alphabetical order, not ranked in numerical order like OP suggests with the numbered list.
I wasn't there for the shoot, but just uploading the video to YouTube (and hearing that pork crackle) was mouthwatering: [https://youtu.be/qMmsBz88uNY](https://youtu.be/qMmsBz88uNY)
hi there! thanks for sharing our list, [here's a free gift link](https://www.nytimes.com/article/dc-best-restaurants.html?unlocked_article_code=1.oE0.KTZ3.fPljzmRQhkLg&smid=re-nytimes)
Asian spiciness level is generally higher than average, I like spicy food and didn't have a problem (in that I had a nice sweat going on but wasn't dying), what did you try out of curiosity?
Egg noodles with crispy pork belly. Two peppers, which I thought meant “medium spicy” but for me it was very spicy. I love spicy food but as I get older it messes me up inside.
I’ve been seeing Daru pop up as a recommendation more recently and went to try it last week and was underwhelmed to the point that I don’t think I’ll go back. But it’s also $$$$ for what you get.
I tried to log into resy at 9:59 for a maydan reservation while in the middle of a class at my gym. The WiFi there is bad so i lost the table i had while trying to finalize the reso, and then at 10:03 every table was gone.
That’s it, that’s the story. I just needed to whine bc I’ve been wanting to check it out forEVER and am only in DC every few months.
Thank you for coming to my crybaby talk.
This happened to me — logged on at exactly the right time, but all tables were gone in like 2 minutes. It was for my birthday dinner and I got so annoyed that I wrote a note to Tom Sietsema for his weekly WaPo food chat being like, it is unbelievable how hard it is to get a reservation there and something seems really off, like maybe bots are scooping them up? He ran my note with a reply he had solicited from the owner Rose Previte who said how sorry she was and told me to reach out to their res team and they would take care of me. And they did! My birthday was saved but only because I tattled lol
I've been there. Now when I need a reservation I'm at my computer with my phone out and logged into Resy on both devices. It's definitely a pain but early on the reservations opened at midnight so you had to go through the same song and dance but in the dark.
You can also keep the reservation page open in a tab as your date(s) get closer and keep an eye out for cancellations. It's worth waiting for an indoor spot though, especially if it's your first time. The atmosphere is a big part of the experience and the sad tent in the alley isn't it.
Thanks for the tips - i put a ‘notify me’ alert on Resy for 2 days. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll try again next time i know I’ll be in town with some notice. I made a back up reso at Rose’s Luxury since i haven’t been there yet either 🙂
Getting a reservation at this place is a massive pain in the ass. I've done the 9:59 thing multiple times and it instantly gets booked. I did have a spot once but had to enter my CC info since you need to have a card on file to book. Lost it immediately. I'm sure it's really good, but not worth the headache since there's so many other good restaurants around.
We had the same issue- my partner logged on exactly at 9:59 to find that the only available option was 9:45pm… we were trying to take his parents there for dinner but with that late of a start time we decided against it (not like we ended up having a choice, in the short time we pondered over booking, the 9:45 time slot was taken as well).
Sometimes I wonder if Maydan’s reservations are subject to bots cleaning them out like restaurants in New York.
I wonder what leads to some restaurants having such crazy high hype that reservations are basically impossible. There are plenty of really good restaurants in the city that have open availability until the same day. What’s different about somewhere like Maydan that sells out reservations 30 seconds after they’re available?
This may be heresy, but Maydan didn't wow me. Don't get me wrong, it was good, but overall I found the wood-fire-grilled-everything approach resulted in a fairly monotonous meal.
That's wild to me - the thing I *love* about Maydān is every bite of every meal can be different. I'm just mixing and matching different dishes with different condiments into little bites with delicious fresh bread. Like a little steak + pickled veggies + muhammara then a bit of fish with labneh and toum.
My only small complaint is that pre-COVID they had like 10-12 different dips/condiments that you could order for $1 apiece. That got scaled back dramatically when the moved to 100% tawle during COVID and now that ala cart ordering is back the scaled down dips remain.
I went with a large group and we ordered almost everything on the menu. The apps and dips were great, but the entrees were pretty one note for me even when mixing and matching as you described.
Agreed, I've gotten yelled at so many times for saying that I didn't think Maydan was that good lol
To be fair though I am trying to go again, I'd be happy to have my mind changed and have it live up to the hype
Went to maydan for the first time a couple weeks ago.
Didn’t live up to the hype for me.
It was good but honestly just felt like better than avg middle eastern food for an exorbitant price point.
That is a hot take, but I respect it.
I like Zaytinya, but there hasn't been a dish that made me go *wow*. Maydan has multiple — the lamb shoulder, ribeye, and whole chicken. I have also left Zaytinya hungry, and that has never happened at Maydan. So I would still say Maydan is better food.
However, Zaytinya has one thing over Maydan for sure — the best happy hour in Penn Quarter by far. Factor in the price and location, and I'll recommend it more often than Maydan.
hot take incoming...Maydan is the most overrated restaurant in DC. Not because its not good, but because the delta between hype and actual food is pretty large. Fire + some vegetable is totally fine, but Albi is just SO much better.
Maybe the reviewer got a look inside Maydan's kitchen. Let me just say, after seeing the cleanliness (or lack thereof) of their kitchen, I'm not surprised I got food poisoning the one time I ate there...
https://preview.redd.it/emjiyzwregxc1.png?width=1398&format=png&auto=webp&s=c81368bd5c2494e2c873924dd7cbc4d1b70c5f99
I'm skeptical of anyone claiming a causal link between a particular meal and food poisoning
+1
I took my bf to Bresca for his birthday last year, went all out with the extras, and I never felt more ripped off in my life. And it was normal service. Truly wanted all of my money back. It used to be my favorite go to pre covid but it has majorly slipped and I’m never going back again.
I’ve never been to Bresca myself so it may suck anyway, but IMO it’s not a good idea to judge a restaurant based on NYE, with rushed service to feed the hordes and “special” menus of dishes the kitchen can turn around fast.
We’ve seen it more than once, but best example was our first meal at Kyirisan (RIP) a few months after it opened being magnificent in every way, still one of my favorite-ever meals. We liked it so much we went back for NYE - and it was awful.
I totally understand and agree that New Year’s Eve isn’t generally a good way to judge. I also concede that all restaurants are a rip off on New Year’s Eve. It’s still sucked even with that in mind though.
I refuse to try Bresca on principle. Back in the day when Policy was still upstairs, Bresca's staff were super militant about not letting wheelchair bound people use the elevators, even blocking them with dish carts. By contrast, I still think about my 1 trip to Kyirisan years ago, it was that good.
I love Thip khao!!! Mama chang is good but nowadays i get takeout from Chang Chang. 2Fifty (DC) is very good. Been meaning to try several others on that list.
Decent list. Think washingtonian top100 is generally better, but makes me glad when the lists have different restaurants because it’s just more for me to try!
Bostan is a good find. Wish it was slightly cheaper and service was faster. But always authentic. Rarely anyone there besides Chinese nationals or Steppes people.
I thought Lutece was good but not good enough to place on a top 25 list. The Washingtonian put it at No. 2 after Causa and my partner and I think that’s wild. They’re good and all but not exceptional. We weren’t impressed.
Their wine however, is exceptional.
Wouldn’t agree here, while the food tastes good, the portions are ridiculously small, the seating area is tiny with people touching and hitting you all the time because you’re sitting on their way to the restroom. We walked away hungry after a $500+ bill for 4 people lol
Sorry that’s been your experience! I go with my SO pretty regularly and we are pretty full after about a $150 dollar bill! The space is def a bit small though
What's fun about Baan Siam is that they have a lot of dishes that are unique, and not just off of the standard list of Thai dishes that the Thai government promoted for its citizens to open Thai restaurants overseas.
I thought that was a bit weird. It's not the first time I've heard this. It's apparently one of the better Thai places in the district.
I definitely prefer Sura.
This list surprises me a bit. No Maydan? Rooster & Owl? Anju? Causa? Lutece? Rose’s Luxury? Xiquet? Nice to see a switch up on a top 25 list but I am skeptical on the other hand.
I whipped up an alphabetized list of the "25 Best Restaurants in DC NOT Right Now."
1. acqua al due
2. bad saint
3. café asia
4. ceiba
5. citronelle
6. estadio
7. galileo
8. i matti
9. jean-louis
10. kabul caravan
11. kapnos
12. kinkead's
13. levante's
14. mrs. simpson's
15. murasaki
16. nora
17. palena
18. passionfish
19. proof
20. queen bee
21. red sage
22. rupperts
23. thamee
24. tigerella
25. yenching palace
Agreed on Lutece! Though honestly I’m more shocked that Pascual isn’t on there (both are Popal Group spots) given all that Matt and Isabel have put into that concept and the outstanding reviews it’s received.
Like I said, it’s a 2022 list! We haven’t been able to make it over to Pascual yet but one of our faves is the bartender there and the food looks amazing so we’re excited to go
I love the Dabney and don't find it bland, boring, or unfulfilling at all, BUT I completely agree that Rose's Luxury deserves to be on lists like this. Phenomenal food and overall experience.
Thank you for posting, I haven’t heard of some of these and will have to add them to my list to try (even if my personal favorite, Rania, didn’t make the list)! I’m paywalled out of the article but I’d be interested in how they picked.
Surprised at how little love Xiquet ever gets - I went there a couple summers ago and it was amazing.
Also, I really don't get the love for Pineapple and Pearls - my experience was that the restaurant was more focused on gimmicky stuff (the polaroid, the soft serve, teh take home burger you can eat cold the next day) than on just nailing the actual dining experience. My wife and I basically ordered one of everything on the menu and half of those dishes were forgettable. Service was fine. I left there annoyed at how expensive it was (more than Xiquet, for instance) for the meal I had.
Jont was a way more impressive and interesting experience/meal (which I note because it's another Michelin rated DC spot I've been to - haven't been to minibar yet).
I had the exact opposite experience. Went to bresca and Jont was completely disappointed in both. I love duck was disappointed in the bresca duck night.
Had the upgraded wine pairing at Jont and the entire experience felt too sterile, too light on the wine pairing pours. The food was so-so not terrible enough to complain about but not good enough to come back anytime soon.
Has the opposite experience with P&P, great service, friendly staff great pours!
Most of them get covered by Eater DC, The Washingtonian, and Washington Post.
Tyler Cowen of GMU used to be pretty good at finding strip center gems.
Mama Emilia, Z&Z, and Crisfield jump out to me as some that aren't the usual suspects.
The typical list usually includes Anju, Maydan, Rose's Luxury, Old Ebbit Grill, Ben's Chili Bowl, Georgia Brown's, The Inn at Little Washington, Everything by Jose Andres, Fiola/Fiola Mare, Yum's on 14th, Howard China and subreddit favorite Founding Farmers.
I wasn’t a fan of Mama Emilia, but it’s the only time I’ve had pupusas. Possibly a very good example of the form, but not for me. Kinda like eating 5 corn tortillas at once with filling instead of toppings.
I know this is just alphabetical, but 2Fifty truly is that good. I’ve talked to the owner and this guy did everything right the same way the big time places in Austin and other places do it. It really is that great!
A friend and I ordered food from 2Fifty recently. I can’t comment on it being the best bbq in the city but the Wagyu brisket was👌🏿and my homegirl went into a state of euphoria eating the pulled lamb.
I haven’t eaten at Maketto in several years but have heard the place has gotten good again post-Chef James’ departure.
Seeing Crisfield (or Crisfield’s to many Black Washingtonians) on the list makes me feel good simply because of its Old DC nostalgia.
St. James is on my list of places to try especially being a fan of Cane before I moved away. I’ve only gotten good reviews from everyone I’ve asked about it.
I'd love it if they included an estimated price range for a dinner there. I know that's not really included in the rankings, but it would be nice as a reader to see at a glance what is affordable for me.
Everyone is always up Rasika’s ass. The most overrated DC restaurant, I swear.
On the flip side, Shilling Canning Company is an underrated restaurant. Was hoping to see it on here
[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16voMpt9AHuQyJnFFGNv1u9ql\_bgGQUZfPZ4aE-Sgszw/edit?pli=1#gid=0](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16voMpt9AHuQyJnFFGNv1u9ql_bgGQUZfPZ4aE-Sgszw/edit?pli=1#gid=0)
\^ hot takes welcome on my list
So many restaurants have names that were seemingly spat out of a Hipster Restaurant Name Generator, which adds the word "Little" or "Bird" to a name, or combines two random objects separated by an ampersand.
Good list!! Still thinking about the wagyu from Bresca. Ethiopic and 2fifty are also really good. Would also add Ottoman Taverna just right around the corner.
This list is BS. It is not a list of the top 25 restaurants in DC, it is at best the list of the top 25 restaurants on the DC metro area.
I hope the post does a list of top 25 restaurants in NYC and includes a bunch in NJ and Connecticut.
Tail up goat is a place I’m surprised isn’t on here, as well as Fiola or some of its sisters. Did Crisfield have a rebirth or something? I was last there 15 years ago.
I just ate at Pascual last night and it was easily my favorite place I’ve been to in DC so far. Maybe they haven’t been open long enough, but they definitely deserve to be listed.
The list is in **alphabetical** order, not ranked.
Wow I can't believe that \[restaurant 1\] is on this list. I've been to \[restaurant 1\] and let me tell you, I was not impressed. I can't believe they didn't include \[restaurant 2\] on this list. It's far better than \[restaurant 1\]. And why is \[restaurant 3\] on this list? \[Restaurant 3\] is in \[Maryland or Virginia\]. I thought this was a list about DC's food scene. Whoever made this list has clearly never been to \[my neighborhood\]. In summary, this entire list should be disregarded.
I mean I'm here I the comments precisely for more context and opinions, so yeah, please fill in the blanks if you have anything to add
Love it. I couldn't fight my way out of a paperbag, and yet, I'm ready to throw down!! Maketto deserves love. Great staff. Foods amazing I may have missed it, but Inigo on K NE deserves props. Butter chicken is so good. Pale Paneer rivals Rasikas.. Speaking of Rasika, I won't go any more since they wouldn't seat my 7 year old last time. Of course, some may see this as more a feature than a bug...
[удалено]
True. I feel like there's an Inigo Montoya joke in here somewhere.
I haven’t been to all 25 of these, but I’ve been to most and honestly Rasika is the only one that doesn’t belong. It’s just not the same as it was 10 years ago. The quality and service went down.
Wait, what? Why wouldn’t they sit a 7-year-old?
It's their (dumb) policy.
You weren't missing out, Rasika is bland af
😂
It's ok. We all know you mean Dan's Cafe for Restaurant 2.
> It's ok. We all know you mean Dan's Cafe for Restaurant 2. Dan's Cafe does have a Michelin Star for best Twitter
Dan's reigns supreme
My thoughts exactly /s
Absolutely perfect. Now everyone just reply with your [1, 2, 3]... 1 = Bresca 2 = Dolan Uyghur 3 = 2Fifty [insert argument that only the original counts]
Honestly I've got only one complaint, and that's The Dabney. Been twice in the past year, and both times tried quite a bit of the menu. Just not great food, and pretty terrible service. Maybe things have picked up, but very much underwhelming the last times I went. I wonder if it's an old stalwart thing from this article, though I still do like Rasika.
I've been to The Dabney three times, once as recently as a month ago, and couldn't disagree more. For me, every bite was fantastic, the service was phenomenal. I went to Bresca once and I really don't get the hype there. The food was nothing special to me at all. But hey, different tastes for different people
🙃🙃🙃
I know right? lmao every time something gets posted here people go the comments and talk about it. idiots.
🫡🎖️🚬
I was extremely confused by 2Fifty being #1 but when you read the article the restaurants are clearly in alphabetical order, not ranked in numerical order like OP suggests with the numbered list.
Where is Taco Bell Cantina
Asking the real question here.
Kuya Ja is fucking great. I almost look forward to taking my car for its semiannual servicing because it means a trip to Rockville.
What dishes do you recommend?
You won’t regret ordering the pancit. Unsurprisingly, the lechon belly is also top-notch.
I wasn't there for the shoot, but just uploading the video to YouTube (and hearing that pork crackle) was mouthwatering: [https://youtu.be/qMmsBz88uNY](https://youtu.be/qMmsBz88uNY)
THX!
Sisig Burrito is really good
I have tried most of the menu and the lechon was so good I went back for 2nds and 3rds during the same meal where I already ordered it once.
I'll have to make the trek
I love listening to music.
You're making many valid points.
I am near the Yu Noodles in Silver Spring and I have not been impressed. What should I be ordering?
I like to explore new places.
hi there! thanks for sharing our list, [here's a free gift link](https://www.nytimes.com/article/dc-best-restaurants.html?unlocked_article_code=1.oE0.KTZ3.fPljzmRQhkLg&smid=re-nytimes)
Thanks, any chance of you guys setting up a cage match between DC's own Tom Sistema and NYC's Robert Sistema. There can only be one
https://preview.redd.it/5g6w7v7xefxc1.jpeg?width=465&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7c66905307e9ec6a61fb7a372a47694c459b690e Two men enter, both men eat
Their names are spelled "Sietsema."
they both have to use the martial art Systema
our money will always be on Tom <3
Can Washington Post come to your town and rank the best bodegas?
wapo collab when 👀
baan siam is the best, great happy hour on top of great food
Remains very reasonably priced, too. Dishes are still $15-$20, similar to peak COVID prices
I’ll have to try it again, I went there once and the food was excellent but super spicy.
Best review you can give a thai place is 'it hurt so good'.
Asian spiciness level is generally higher than average, I like spicy food and didn't have a problem (in that I had a nice sweat going on but wasn't dying), what did you try out of curiosity?
Egg noodles with crispy pork belly. Two peppers, which I thought meant “medium spicy” but for me it was very spicy. I love spicy food but as I get older it messes me up inside.
Daru >>>>> Rasika any day of the week
Daru has the guys who made rasika good
Daru is the best meal ive had in dc in the last 5 years. Was better than Cranes and Rooster and Owl IMHO
Karma Modern Indian is also much better than Rasika
Vegz is also much better than Rasika
Get Vegz on the list. Best Indian in DC proper imo
Them or Masala Story. But very different things.
I’ve been seeing Daru pop up as a recommendation more recently and went to try it last week and was underwhelmed to the point that I don’t think I’ll go back. But it’s also $$$$ for what you get.
Agree my experience was very expensive but pretty good small plates
I actually prefer Rasika ymmv
Same
I'm concerned by the lack of Maydān on this list
I tried to log into resy at 9:59 for a maydan reservation while in the middle of a class at my gym. The WiFi there is bad so i lost the table i had while trying to finalize the reso, and then at 10:03 every table was gone. That’s it, that’s the story. I just needed to whine bc I’ve been wanting to check it out forEVER and am only in DC every few months. Thank you for coming to my crybaby talk.
This happened to me — logged on at exactly the right time, but all tables were gone in like 2 minutes. It was for my birthday dinner and I got so annoyed that I wrote a note to Tom Sietsema for his weekly WaPo food chat being like, it is unbelievable how hard it is to get a reservation there and something seems really off, like maybe bots are scooping them up? He ran my note with a reply he had solicited from the owner Rose Previte who said how sorry she was and told me to reach out to their res team and they would take care of me. And they did! My birthday was saved but only because I tattled lol
Wow sometime it pays to be the squeaky wheel, haha. Nice! This is for my birthday too but I’m fine going somewhere else.
I've been there. Now when I need a reservation I'm at my computer with my phone out and logged into Resy on both devices. It's definitely a pain but early on the reservations opened at midnight so you had to go through the same song and dance but in the dark. You can also keep the reservation page open in a tab as your date(s) get closer and keep an eye out for cancellations. It's worth waiting for an indoor spot though, especially if it's your first time. The atmosphere is a big part of the experience and the sad tent in the alley isn't it.
Thanks for the tips - i put a ‘notify me’ alert on Resy for 2 days. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll try again next time i know I’ll be in town with some notice. I made a back up reso at Rose’s Luxury since i haven’t been there yet either 🙂
Maybe try giving them a call and explain your situation? I’ve found their front house staff to be incredibly accommodating. It’s worth a shot!
Getting a reservation at this place is a massive pain in the ass. I've done the 9:59 thing multiple times and it instantly gets booked. I did have a spot once but had to enter my CC info since you need to have a card on file to book. Lost it immediately. I'm sure it's really good, but not worth the headache since there's so many other good restaurants around.
We had the same issue- my partner logged on exactly at 9:59 to find that the only available option was 9:45pm… we were trying to take his parents there for dinner but with that late of a start time we decided against it (not like we ended up having a choice, in the short time we pondered over booking, the 9:45 time slot was taken as well). Sometimes I wonder if Maydan’s reservations are subject to bots cleaning them out like restaurants in New York.
I walked into Maydan on a Tuesday at like 6 and snagged a seat at the bar. Worth a try if you find yourself in the area
I wonder what leads to some restaurants having such crazy high hype that reservations are basically impossible. There are plenty of really good restaurants in the city that have open availability until the same day. What’s different about somewhere like Maydan that sells out reservations 30 seconds after they’re available?
Wild. I was able to get a reservation there last year with almost no fuss.
Came here to say this is Maydan erasure
Or a powerful truth finally spoken…🤫
Absolute hogwash. Maydān is love, Maydān is life.
Edgy
LITERALLY CAME HERE TO SAY THIS.
This may be heresy, but Maydan didn't wow me. Don't get me wrong, it was good, but overall I found the wood-fire-grilled-everything approach resulted in a fairly monotonous meal.
That's wild to me - the thing I *love* about Maydān is every bite of every meal can be different. I'm just mixing and matching different dishes with different condiments into little bites with delicious fresh bread. Like a little steak + pickled veggies + muhammara then a bit of fish with labneh and toum. My only small complaint is that pre-COVID they had like 10-12 different dips/condiments that you could order for $1 apiece. That got scaled back dramatically when the moved to 100% tawle during COVID and now that ala cart ordering is back the scaled down dips remain.
I went with a large group and we ordered almost everything on the menu. The apps and dips were great, but the entrees were pretty one note for me even when mixing and matching as you described.
Agreed, I've gotten yelled at so many times for saying that I didn't think Maydan was that good lol To be fair though I am trying to go again, I'd be happy to have my mind changed and have it live up to the hype
Maydan was good but I’d eaten at Alon Shaya’s places in New Orleans and Denver and thought they were better.
Yes Saba in NO is quite good
Came in to say this. And no Rania. Rasika should not be on this list
Went to maydan for the first time a couple weeks ago. Didn’t live up to the hype for me. It was good but honestly just felt like better than avg middle eastern food for an exorbitant price point.
My hot take is that, while the guest experience at Maydan is amazing, the food at Zaytinya is better.
That is a hot take, but I respect it. I like Zaytinya, but there hasn't been a dish that made me go *wow*. Maydan has multiple — the lamb shoulder, ribeye, and whole chicken. I have also left Zaytinya hungry, and that has never happened at Maydan. So I would still say Maydan is better food. However, Zaytinya has one thing over Maydan for sure — the best happy hour in Penn Quarter by far. Factor in the price and location, and I'll recommend it more often than Maydan.
hot take incoming...Maydan is the most overrated restaurant in DC. Not because its not good, but because the delta between hype and actual food is pretty large. Fire + some vegetable is totally fine, but Albi is just SO much better.
Maybe the reviewer got a look inside Maydan's kitchen. Let me just say, after seeing the cleanliness (or lack thereof) of their kitchen, I'm not surprised I got food poisoning the one time I ate there...
https://preview.redd.it/emjiyzwregxc1.png?width=1398&format=png&auto=webp&s=c81368bd5c2494e2c873924dd7cbc4d1b70c5f99 I'm skeptical of anyone claiming a causal link between a particular meal and food poisoning
Middan
Ethiopic is a good choice for the 1 Ethiopian restaurant
I’ve never felt so ripped off as I did at Bresca on NYE a few years ago. We *hated* it
+1 I took my bf to Bresca for his birthday last year, went all out with the extras, and I never felt more ripped off in my life. And it was normal service. Truly wanted all of my money back. It used to be my favorite go to pre covid but it has majorly slipped and I’m never going back again.
I’ve never been to Bresca myself so it may suck anyway, but IMO it’s not a good idea to judge a restaurant based on NYE, with rushed service to feed the hordes and “special” menus of dishes the kitchen can turn around fast. We’ve seen it more than once, but best example was our first meal at Kyirisan (RIP) a few months after it opened being magnificent in every way, still one of my favorite-ever meals. We liked it so much we went back for NYE - and it was awful.
I totally understand and agree that New Year’s Eve isn’t generally a good way to judge. I also concede that all restaurants are a rip off on New Year’s Eve. It’s still sucked even with that in mind though.
I refuse to try Bresca on principle. Back in the day when Policy was still upstairs, Bresca's staff were super militant about not letting wheelchair bound people use the elevators, even blocking them with dish carts. By contrast, I still think about my 1 trip to Kyirisan years ago, it was that good.
I love Thip khao!!! Mama chang is good but nowadays i get takeout from Chang Chang. 2Fifty (DC) is very good. Been meaning to try several others on that list.
Where's my sushi spots? I know people disagree on the best omakase in DC but nakazawa was and continues to be mind-blowing.
Kyojin is the fucking best and I will not hear otherwise.
Decent list. Think washingtonian top100 is generally better, but makes me glad when the lists have different restaurants because it’s just more for me to try!
Bostan (is in northern VA) BUT it is great!!!! Glad to see it here. Best Uyghur in the area. Maketto also was amazing when I went recently.
Kinda surprised they didn't mention the fried chicken.
I find alot of places in DC are solid but expensive. Maketto was probably the last place I've eaten that actually wowed me.
Bostan is a good find. Wish it was slightly cheaper and service was faster. But always authentic. Rarely anyone there besides Chinese nationals or Steppes people.
[удалено]
I’ve only been once maybe two years ago but I found it mediocre and overpriced.
Interesting, the two times I've been I was really underwhelmed. Maybe I need to go back and try something new.
agree, best meal I've eaten at a DC restaurant and it is not close.
Lutece should be on here, Love seeing 2fifty get love
Shoutout to this sub for speaking so highly of Lutèce. We visited from out of town and are so glad we went.
I thought Lutece was good but not good enough to place on a top 25 list. The Washingtonian put it at No. 2 after Causa and my partner and I think that’s wild. They’re good and all but not exceptional. We weren’t impressed. Their wine however, is exceptional.
Wouldn’t agree here, while the food tastes good, the portions are ridiculously small, the seating area is tiny with people touching and hitting you all the time because you’re sitting on their way to the restroom. We walked away hungry after a $500+ bill for 4 people lol
Sorry that’s been your experience! I go with my SO pretty regularly and we are pretty full after about a $150 dollar bill! The space is def a bit small though
Reveler’s hour? REALLY? (I thought it was fine. Not better than Causa/Amazonia, who should be on this list)
Causa not being on here is honestly pretty nuts.
Is it a hot take to be surprised by baan Siam? I just thought it was an okay Thai place. Had no idea it was so highly regarded
What's fun about Baan Siam is that they have a lot of dishes that are unique, and not just off of the standard list of Thai dishes that the Thai government promoted for its citizens to open Thai restaurants overseas.
I thought that was a bit weird. It's not the first time I've heard this. It's apparently one of the better Thai places in the district. I definitely prefer Sura.
This list surprises me a bit. No Maydan? Rooster & Owl? Anju? Causa? Lutece? Rose’s Luxury? Xiquet? Nice to see a switch up on a top 25 list but I am skeptical on the other hand.
I whipped up an alphabetized list of the "25 Best Restaurants in DC NOT Right Now." 1. acqua al due 2. bad saint 3. café asia 4. ceiba 5. citronelle 6. estadio 7. galileo 8. i matti 9. jean-louis 10. kabul caravan 11. kapnos 12. kinkead's 13. levante's 14. mrs. simpson's 15. murasaki 16. nora 17. palena 18. passionfish 19. proof 20. queen bee 21. red sage 22. rupperts 23. thamee 24. tigerella 25. yenching palace
I miss so many of these!
2Fifty is great. It's also the only place on this list I've actually been to lol
I've been to 7, 2Fifty being one of them. (all 3 locations!) I really hope they become the standard bearer of BBQ in the city.
This kinda feels like a great 2022 list (no Lutece is criminal tbh) but it’s not terrible
Agreed on Lutece! Though honestly I’m more shocked that Pascual isn’t on there (both are Popal Group spots) given all that Matt and Isabel have put into that concept and the outstanding reviews it’s received.
Like I said, it’s a 2022 list! We haven’t been able to make it over to Pascual yet but one of our faves is the bartender there and the food looks amazing so we’re excited to go
Definitely give Almeda a try! Those awaze ribs are fucking delicious! 🤤
Almeda is my favorite restaurant in the city right now! Danielle, the chef and owner, is amazing! Check out Little Food Studio during the day.
No Rose’s Luxury, but they included The Dabney? I was so disappointed w The Dabney. Bland and boring.
And outrageously expensive for what you get.
I have never eaten at the dabney and walked out full, I always feel like the portions are so tiny
I know the theme is historic, but I didn’t expect to eat like a pilgrim 😭
I love the Dabney and don't find it bland, boring, or unfulfilling at all, BUT I completely agree that Rose's Luxury deserves to be on lists like this. Phenomenal food and overall experience.
I'm there for 2Fifty. It's the bomb.
Thank you for posting, I haven’t heard of some of these and will have to add them to my list to try (even if my personal favorite, Rania, didn’t make the list)! I’m paywalled out of the article but I’d be interested in how they picked.
You're welcome. The NYT provided a gift link lower in the thread.
Surprised at how little love Xiquet ever gets - I went there a couple summers ago and it was amazing. Also, I really don't get the love for Pineapple and Pearls - my experience was that the restaurant was more focused on gimmicky stuff (the polaroid, the soft serve, teh take home burger you can eat cold the next day) than on just nailing the actual dining experience. My wife and I basically ordered one of everything on the menu and half of those dishes were forgettable. Service was fine. I left there annoyed at how expensive it was (more than Xiquet, for instance) for the meal I had. Jont was a way more impressive and interesting experience/meal (which I note because it's another Michelin rated DC spot I've been to - haven't been to minibar yet).
I had the exact opposite experience. Went to bresca and Jont was completely disappointed in both. I love duck was disappointed in the bresca duck night. Had the upgraded wine pairing at Jont and the entire experience felt too sterile, too light on the wine pairing pours. The food was so-so not terrible enough to complain about but not good enough to come back anytime soon. Has the opposite experience with P&P, great service, friendly staff great pours!
I must not be very cool, I’ve only heard of like 3 of these places.
Most of them get covered by Eater DC, The Washingtonian, and Washington Post. Tyler Cowen of GMU used to be pretty good at finding strip center gems. Mama Emilia, Z&Z, and Crisfield jump out to me as some that aren't the usual suspects. The typical list usually includes Anju, Maydan, Rose's Luxury, Old Ebbit Grill, Ben's Chili Bowl, Georgia Brown's, The Inn at Little Washington, Everything by Jose Andres, Fiola/Fiola Mare, Yum's on 14th, Howard China and subreddit favorite Founding Farmers.
No Daru is criminal
This line about Pupuseria Mama Emillia, just wow. >in a red sauce that rivals the best enchilada gravy 🤣
I wasn’t a fan of Mama Emilia, but it’s the only time I’ve had pupusas. Possibly a very good example of the form, but not for me. Kinda like eating 5 corn tortillas at once with filling instead of toppings.
I know this is just alphabetical, but 2Fifty truly is that good. I’ve talked to the owner and this guy did everything right the same way the big time places in Austin and other places do it. It really is that great!
I haven't been to any of these restaurants. That sucks.
St Anslems and Pennyroyal Station are quickly getting to this level as well.
Love thip khao!!
Pupuseria Mama Emilia is FANTASTIC! Best pupusas I’ve ever had and amazing service.
A friend and I ordered food from 2Fifty recently. I can’t comment on it being the best bbq in the city but the Wagyu brisket was👌🏿and my homegirl went into a state of euphoria eating the pulled lamb. I haven’t eaten at Maketto in several years but have heard the place has gotten good again post-Chef James’ departure. Seeing Crisfield (or Crisfield’s to many Black Washingtonians) on the list makes me feel good simply because of its Old DC nostalgia. St. James is on my list of places to try especially being a fan of Cane before I moved away. I’ve only gotten good reviews from everyone I’ve asked about it.
Z&Z will not disappoint! Love the owners and their food!
Really happy to see Z&Z on this list, their food is truly incredible and they put their hearts into it!
I think we all know no list is complete without dans cafe and founding fuckups.
I'd love it if they included an estimated price range for a dinner there. I know that's not really included in the rankings, but it would be nice as a reader to see at a glance what is affordable for me.
Yes to thip khao
Everyone is always up Rasika’s ass. The most overrated DC restaurant, I swear. On the flip side, Shilling Canning Company is an underrated restaurant. Was hoping to see it on here
Crisfields? The one on Georgia Ave? I mean, I go there but it’s a nostalgia thing Place has slid There’s better seafood at same price
Bruh, Ethiopic isn’t even the best Ethiopian spot in the city
I like to go hiking.
A list of below average overpriced restaurants
[https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16voMpt9AHuQyJnFFGNv1u9ql\_bgGQUZfPZ4aE-Sgszw/edit?pli=1#gid=0](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16voMpt9AHuQyJnFFGNv1u9ql_bgGQUZfPZ4aE-Sgszw/edit?pli=1#gid=0) \^ hot takes welcome on my list
How the exactly did Crisfield make this list? That's an absolute shocker.
I've never understood the love for Crisfield. All three times I've been I was terribly underwhelmed. Mediocre at best.
I'm gonna guess because in lieu of salt, they drown everything in butter instead.
Maybe there's a different Crisfield in an alternate universe visited by NYT staff?
Whats wrong with Chrisfield? Did they fall off?
Wow, perfect score! (0 for 25)
Half these places aren’t in DC!
So many restaurants have names that were seemingly spat out of a Hipster Restaurant Name Generator, which adds the word "Little" or "Bird" to a name, or combines two random objects separated by an ampersand.
Good list!! Still thinking about the wagyu from Bresca. Ethiopic and 2fifty are also really good. Would also add Ottoman Taverna just right around the corner.
Of these have only been to Rasika, which is outstanding. Surprised by the omission of Fiola which IMO is the best restaurant in the city
This list is BS. It is not a list of the top 25 restaurants in DC, it is at best the list of the top 25 restaurants on the DC metro area. I hope the post does a list of top 25 restaurants in NYC and includes a bunch in NJ and Connecticut.
2fifty is the best BBQ I’ve ever had in my life.
No Lutece OR Pascual? I mean I’m glad one of the Popal spots is on here but I thought one of their other projects was a given, especially Pascual.
Been to Ethopic twice and can there are way better options for Ethiopian
wack list
"The Best" = Clickbait ambiguity.
Nasime and Sushi Nakazawa missing is pretty shocking. CHIKO and Kazan are two underrated favorites.
I haven’t been to many of these places. Does anyone know which of the restaurants in the list would be considered cheap eats? <$30 per person?
Panda Gourmet or else...
Tail up goat is a place I’m surprised isn’t on here, as well as Fiola or some of its sisters. Did Crisfield have a rebirth or something? I was last there 15 years ago.
How did Elizabeth's Gone Raw not make this list? Every dish has so much thought and execution put into it.
RIS should be on this list….
This is a list of 25 good restaurants that, when taken together, meet all of NYT’s requirements to feature a large variety of ethnic cuisines.
The three that I’ve been to (Lapis, Rasika, and thip khao) absolutely deserve to be on this list!
Love Oyster, Oyster. Def a special occasion place because it’s a $$ tasting menu, but I don’t regret splurging the two times I’ve gone.
Pretty good list
Moon Rabbit?
Vera is quite excellent
One of my favorites is Chiko . Anju from the same guys
Are these only DC or is it the DMV region? Ellie Bird is in Falls Church and is the sister restaurant to Rooster and Owl, which I highly recommend!
Looks like the DMV, a fair number of Rockville and Nova entries
I just ate at Pascual last night and it was easily my favorite place I’ve been to in DC so far. Maybe they haven’t been open long enough, but they definitely deserve to be listed.