Restaurant recommendations for DC

[Marcia (Mrs. Pete)]

Some friends of mine are traveling to DC this fall and are interested in finding a few good places to eat. They are looking for seafood or fun ethnic places, not horribly expensive but not totally on the cheap, either. I have already suggested Billy Martin's and Old Ebbott's (Pete and I always go there when we are in DC) but otherwise, I'm drawing a blank.

Any DC folks out there with recommendations?

[flip-flop]

Define Ethnic...

Rasika in Penn Quarter is GREAT indian food. Reservations needed...even on a wednesday night, but its not overly expensive.

Not in DC, but instead a little outside of town, Four Sisters is GREAT GREAT GREAT vietnamese http://www.foursistersrestaurant.com/

Jaleo if they like Spanish tapas and sangria (their white sangria is awesome) - also Penn Quarter

Coco Sala is a unique place http://www.cocosala.com/ - chocolate lounge and dessert place. Very cool decor, amazing mulitcourse chocolate desserts. I like to go there after dinner.

I'll keep thinking. Great food in DC!


Also not in DC but Ray's the Steaks is AMAZING for what else steaks. It is my birthday dinner ritual - ribeye with horseradish creme and a dark chocolate mousse.

[GotToGetAway]

As soon as I saw the topic I thought Old Ebbott's Grille. I always ate there to celebrate occasions when I lived in Maryland.

[ToonMann]

The classic, of course, is Ben's Chili Bowl on U Street. The half-smokes are legendary. Take the metro (Yellow or Green line).

For Tex-Mex, try El Paso Cafe on Pershing in the Buckingham section of Arlington.

For Asian, we like Saigon Bistro on P Street in Dupont Circle.

For French, give Bistro du Coin on Connecticut in Dupont Circle a try. Or Bistro LaBonne on U Street. Or Montmarte at Eastern Market.

For seafood, it would be Pesce on P Street in Dupont Circle (upscale) or Crisfield's on Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring (downscale).

For Jamaican, we suggest Negril in Silver Spring.

I hear that the restaurant under the relatively new Smithsonian Museum of Native Americans on the mall is really good.

For Greek food, best bet is Mourayo on Connecticut in Dupont Circle.

For American fare, we like Ris and West End Bistro, both in the same block, under the Ritz-Carlton in DC's West End.

Bon appetit!

TM

[JT]

I second ToonMann's suggestions for Ris, and Saigon Bistro. Crisfield's is a bit out the way from downtown but they have down to earth great seafood.