Before I forget the amazing restaurants and food I had whilst over visiting President Trumpland, I thought I best write them down y’all.
If you ever find yourself taking a trip to DC, these restaurants are a must, particularly the donuts. Never underestimate the american donuts…
Le Diplomate (1601 14th St. NW)
Mon restaurant préféré from the DC trip. Une bistro francaise with outdoor seating. We sat in the sun and devoured the most delicious onion soup here, even partaking in a bit of snails – mon dieu! (They had little puff pastry bits on top and were actually really nice!)
Yep, those are the snails at the back with the puff-pastry lids. Don’t be put off, they were snailicious.
The wine was expensive, so the boyf had a beer and I had a glass of white wine (still quite expensive). Anyway, I ended up ordering a second glass… It was that good. And, what the hell, it just felt right – the sun was out, I was eating great food, I was on holiday…
And what.
Wine: 2015 Christian Lauverjat Sancerre Moulin des Vrillères SAUVIGNON BLANC
And because it was just so grate. Here’s the bubbling, brie-lliant cheesy onion soup again, in close-up (obvs). Try not to salivate:
Holy Cheezus.
Astro Donuts (1308 G Street NW)
A donut establishment that also serves fried chicken. Why not, huh? This is only a small place and not really a restaurant, but there are a few tables to sit at. We grabbed our donuts and ate them whilst walking down to The White House. As you do. When in America. I had the PB&J donut. I was actually quite upset that we didn’t have time to go back to this place. I was desperate to sample another one of their delicacies or just have the PB&J all up in my face again…
I here ya, Billy boy.
The Dabney (122 Blagden Alley NW)
Highly recommend this restaurant! I felt very special and trendy walking into this place – like a true DC-er. It was tucked away, which added that extra charm, a bit like we were part of this unique foodie DC club. Anyway, luckily we got an Uber there that evening, otherwise I’m not sure we’d have found it! With lovely, flattering, low-lighting, you walk in, see the open kitchen, and instantly feel a real buzz in the air.
It’s noisy, but this is because every table is filled (nicely-spaced tables as well!). The open kitchen adds that lively yet elegant charm to the entire setting. The chefs here strive to use locally-sourced, seasonal ingredients, giving their dishes an almost rustic feel to them. The menu changes often because of this, but everything we had, you could tell, was fresh and delicious. Of course, it is all beautifully handcrafted – it’s clear the chefs take pride in the making and presentation of their food, from start to finish.
Also had a lovely rosé here with my food, which I recommend!
Wine: MY ESSENTIAL Rosé (grenache/cinsault/syrah) 2016 — Méditerranée, France
Takoda (715 Florida Ave NW)
Now here is where I had my first foodgasm. Three words. Deep Fried Oreos.
Oreo-Mahhh-Gahhhd
The thought of anything deep-fried normally makes me gag. This however, was something else entirely. Just look at it….
Come to mummy…
I can’t explain how happy this made me. I wanted more, more, more I tell ya! The buttercream frosting to dip into was just, ‘scuse the appropriate pun, the icing on this incredibly mouth-dribbling American food delicacy.
Anyway, we came here for a late night drink and ended up indulging in, not only their cocktails and extensive whisky list (that was enjoyed by the boys), but in their quirky-flavoured ribs (PB&J being one of the flavours – actually very nice!) and their moan-inducing, Meg Ryan-whack-the-table, deep fried oreos. You’ve been warned.
The Red Hen (1822 1st St NW)
An Italian-inspired American restaurant. This place is relaxed, but not so relaxed that it’s an all-you-can-eat American diner. It’s a lovely, sit-down, Italian with a bit of a tapas flair going on. It’s open kitchen so you can watch the chefs in action. Stand-out starters for me here: the liver mousse and truffle ricotta were delicious!
Ben’s Chili Bowl (1213 U Street NW – the original, but have other DC locations)
Just because I was told to go, I also went to this place for lunch. In a nutshell: Hot dogs with chilli con carne. I wasn’t blown away by the food, but it’s a novelty, and if you have time, I would definitely go to say you’ve been and to experience a bit of DC food history.
My Next Washington To-Dine List:
Here is a list of places I didn’t get to visit on my trip, but will hopefully ‘hit up’ next time.
Dinner:
Hazel (808 V St NW)
Rose’s Luxury (717 8th Street SE)
Lunch:
Rito Loco (606 Florida Ave NW)
Smoked & Stacked (1239 9th St NW)
Naughty Treats:
Baked & Wired (1052 Thomas Jefferson NW) – this is in Georgetown, which is a beautiful area and a must-visit while in DC. The uni there is so historic and makes you want to be an american student!