The Best Places to Eat in Washington

1. Eater The Best Bakeries Around D.C.

1. Time Out The 20 Best Coffee Shops and Cafés in Washington, DC

1. Eater The 15 Best Coffee Shops Around D.C.

1. Eater The 15 Best Coffee Shops Around D.C.

1. Time Out The 20 Best Coffee Shops and Cafés in Washington, DC

1. Time Out #19 · Best restaurants in Washington, D.C.

1. Eater The Best Bakeries Around D.C.

1. Eater The Best Bakeries Around D.C.

The omakase counter seats just two parties a night, each with a dedicated chef and a spread of peak-season seafood arranged in lacquered boxes you pick from yourself. It's a full Japanese restaurant in Dupont Circle that runs from handmade udon to grilled black cod, but the nigiri is the point, along with a specials list that turns up geoduck and cod milt when the season cooperates.

1. Washingtonian #24 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Eater The 15 Best Coffee Shops Around D.C.

1. Time Out The 20 Best Coffee Shops and Cafés in Washington, DC

The benne dosa here folds like a quesadilla rather than rolling into a cylinder, which tells you this is Bangalorean, not generic Indian. It's a casual dosa counter in a Herndon strip mall that somehow has the quiet confidence of a place that doesn't need to explain itself. The butter-lacquered exterior crisps up hard while the inside stays soft with masala potatoes and podi, a coarse spice mix that the Washingtonian named among its favorite dishes of the year.

1. Washingtonian Podi Masala Dosa · Our Favorite Dishes of the Year in the DC Area
2. Washingtonian #78 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian Best Coffee Shops in DC

1. Eater The Best Bakeries Around D.C.

1. Eater The 15 Best Coffee Shops Around D.C.

1. Washingtonian Best Coffee Shops in DC

1. Time Out The 20 Best Coffee Shops and Cafés in Washington, DC

1. Baltimore Magazine Best Restaurants
2. Baltimore Magazine 2025 · Destination Dining · Best of Baltimore
3. Baltimore Magazine The Shrimp and Grits Cocktail · Best Baltimore Bites

1. Washingtonian #52 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian #92 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

The long-fermented dough is the tell at this casual pizzeria: the crust has enough flavor that people actually finish it. Deck-oven pies share the menu with Italian-American standards like arancini, and the room draws the kind of crowd that orders feta ranch with chili oil on the side without needing to be told it exists. Two locations in Navy Yard and Shaw, with a counter-service slice shop in Bethesda if you're heading that direction.

1. Washingtonian #85 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

The counter-service offshoot of All-Purpose's DC locations, AP Pizza Shop runs a leaner menu than its siblings but holds two things they don't: pizza by the slice and a chicken-parm sandwich that reportedly requires planning around. The deck-oven pies use long-fermented dough, which makes the crust worth eating on its own. Order the feta ranch with chili oil for dipping and pretend it was your idea.

1. Washingtonian #85 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

The mollette, a pulled-oxtail sandwich with pickled vegetables and a sherry glaze, sits next to lobster and oysters on a menu that refuses to pick a lane, which is very much the point. Arrels is a modern Spanish restaurant where the cooking runs from rustic to refined without apology. The fideua, made with vermicelli, Manchego, jamón, and truffle cream, gives you a reason to linger well past the bread course.

1. Washingtonian #83 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian #84 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian #92 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian #75 · 100 Very Best Restaurants
2. Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. East

1. Washingtonian #100 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian #74 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian #80 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

1. Washingtonian 8 Exciting and Delicious Vegan Restaurants Around DC

1. Washingtonian 8 Exciting and Delicious Vegan Restaurants Around DC

1. Washingtonian #72 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

Spicy tuna on crispy rice is the opening argument at this Japanese restaurant tucked into a strip mall in Potomac, the hot, crackly squares doing more work than most entire menus. The kitchen runs through rolls and nigiri alongside small plates, with an Old Bay roll that leans fully into its Maryland zip code. The room skews industrial-chic, which is a fun choice for a shopping center, but the fish keeps the conversation going.

1. Washingtonian #96 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

A tasting counter in Georgetown where the chef, a former flight attendant, runs eight to ten courses of Japanese home cooking that quietly refuses to stay in its lane. The room is spare and black-and-white, but the warmth comes from the chef herself, moving through dishes like fried Wagyu-pork meatballs and finishing the meal in a clay pot of salmon, ikura, and pickles. Dress neatly; the patio pours sake and rolls on a more casual register.

1. Washingtonian #61 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

Lentil samosas so popular they now ship frozen from this Columbia Heights Ethiopian cafe tell you something about how this place operates. The injera-lined platters arrive loaded with lamb wat that falls apart on contact, fiery red lentils, and earthy beets doing the cooling work. The vegetarian spread holds its own against anything on the menu with meat in it, which is saying something.

1. Washingtonian #70 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian 8 Exciting and Delicious Vegan Restaurants Around DC

A sliver of a room on Mt. Pleasant Street where the bar fills up fast and wood-oven pizzas share the menu with Greek-leaning small plates. The team came up through Tail Up Goat, and the cooking has that same instinct for herbs, brightness, and a little crunch. Pizzas run from a classic red-sauce cheese to halloumi-and-squash combinations that have no business being as compelling as they are. Bring an appetite for the whole menu.

1. Washingtonian #67 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

Moroccan tile and cozy alcoves set the mood at this upscale-casual Mediterranean and Persian restaurant in Adams Morgan. The kitchen draws from Greek, North African, Turkish, and Persian traditions without treating any of them as fixed texts, so gigante beans might arrive tossed in tahini and sumac instead of the expected tomato. Braised lamb shoulder and walnut-marinated kebabs anchor the menu, and the baked rice pudding with saffron syrup lands as a genuine closer.

1. Washingtonian #98 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

An Irish gastropub in Shirlington where the full Irish breakfast runs on weekdays too, not just weekends. The owner is from Tipperary, and it shows: rashers, puddings, beans, eggs, and a potato cake with homemade brown bread on the plate. The kind of place where a pint and a proper fry-up at noon on a Tuesday feels entirely reasonable, which is really the whole point of an Irish pub.

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

A strip mall in Fairfax with walls of actual greenery sets the scene for this casual Southeast Asian restaurant covering Thai, Malaysian, and Singaporean ground with real range. Chili crab comes with soft-shells in a red sauce and sweet buns for mopping, and a fried rice pyramid topped with lump crab closes the loop nicely. The pandan castella cake keeps dessert from being an afterthought.

1. Washingtonian #88 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

Tucked deep inside the Eden Center mall, this Vietnamese restaurant operates on the assumption that you came ready to work for it. The staff speaks limited English and menu descriptions don't give much away, but the rice-cake and tapioca-dumpling appetizers, some banana-leaf-wrapped, some chicharrón-crusted with tiny shell-on shrimp, make the ordering process forgiving. The spicy lemongrass noodle soup with rustic meatballs in a rich beef broth is what regulars are usually after.

1. Washingtonian #94 · 100 Very Best Restaurants

1. Eater Best New Bar · The 2025 Eater DC Award Winners
2. Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. East

1. Eater The Best Tasting Menus in D.C. Right Now
2. Eater Where to Find the Best Sushi Around D.C.

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurateur · Ashok Bajaj - Knightsbridge Restaurant Group

1. James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurateur · Ashok Bajaj - Knightsbridge Restaurant Group

1. The Washington Post The 8 best Ethiopian restaurants in and around D.C.

1. Washingtonian 8 Exciting and Delicious Vegan Restaurants Around DC

1. Washingtonian The vegetarian version · 7 Delicious French Onion Soups to Keep You Cozy All Day Long

1. Washingtonian The suburban find · 7 Delicious French Onion Soups to Keep You Cozy All Day Long

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. The Washington Post #2 · The Best Bagels in D.C.

1. The Washington Post #2 · The Best Bagels in D.C.

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Delicious Doughnut Shops Around DC

1. Washingtonian 9 Great Pubs for a Full Irish Breakfast Around DC

1. Washingtonian The soup-and-fire combo · 7 Delicious French Onion Soups to Keep You Cozy All Day Long

1. The Washington Post The 8 best Ethiopian restaurants in and around D.C.

1. James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurateur · Ashok Bajaj - Knightsbridge Restaurant Group

1. The Washington Post The 8 best Ethiopian restaurants in and around D.C.

1. Washingtonian The classic · 7 Delicious French Onion Soups to Keep You Cozy All Day Long

1. The Washington Post The 8 best Ethiopian restaurants in and around D.C.

1. Washingtonian Another great vegetarian version · 7 Delicious French Onion Soups to Keep You Cozy All Day Long

1. Washingtonian The French dip/French onion soup mashup · 7 Delicious French Onion Soups to Keep You Cozy All Day Long

1. The Washington Post The 8 best Ethiopian restaurants in and around D.C.

1. Washingtonian 8 Exciting and Delicious Vegan Restaurants Around DC

1. James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic · Keem Hughley

12 Stories is a rooftop cocktail bar on the twelfth floor at the Wharf, with a DJ, a dancehall and R&B soundtrack, and a view of the whole Potomac. The food is slider-and-truffle-fries territory, so eat beforehand and treat the menu as a courtesy. It's a place to debut a new outfit, with a gingery rum-pineapple Story Teller in hand and a dance floor that rewards commitment.

1. The Infatuation The Best Restaurants In The Wharf

1. Washingtonian Where to Eat Near the National Mall

A converted tourist kiosk steps from the Air and Space Museum that happens to be the only place on the National Mall where you can order a glass of wine with your pizza. The team behind Sonny's Pizza runs this casual counter, pouring natural wine, beer, and spritzes alongside grandma-style pan slices and focaccia sandwiches. Mornings lean espresso and pastries. The footnote writes itself: museum gift shops sell astronaut ice cream; this place sells Aperol spritzes.

1. Washingtonian Where to Eat Near the National Mall

This is the hotel lobby bar at the Pendry on the Wharf, all brass, espresso wood, and dim velvet, the sort of room where a Louis Vuitton-print jacket would blend right in. Hotel guests and the well-funded settle into the lounge with coffee-and-rum cocktails while complimentary nuts and olives arrive unprompted. Entrees exist, but most people stick to truffle fries and a charcuterie board. It's a nightcap spot.

1. The Infatuation The Best Restaurants In The Wharf

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

Cantina Bambina is a two-story bar on the Wharf where the main attraction is the sunset, which turns the whole room gold around 8pm in summer. Drinks run to beer, wine, and a vodka-strawberry lemonade, and the food is beef sticks, Moon Pies, and potato chips, so eat dinner first. It suits the stretch before a show at the Anthem across the street, or any sunny afternoon with nowhere to be.

1. The Infatuation The Best Restaurants In The Wharf

1. Washingtonian Where to Eat Near the National Mall

1. Washingtonian Where to Eat Near the National Mall

The noodles come from Sapporo, which tells you something about how seriously this ramen counter takes its business. Downstairs, bowls of springy, custom-made noodles arrive in a long-simmered broth, with a vegetarian version that holds its own against the pork. Upstairs flips into a Japanese tavern pouring sake and yuzu cocktails alongside a full menu of drinking snacks. Two moods, one address, zero bad options on either floor.

1. Washingtonian Where to Eat Near the National Mall

1. The Washington Post 9 of the best restaurants in Shaw

1. The Washington Post 9 of the best restaurants in Shaw

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

Ilili is a Lebanese dinner-and-brunch spot at the Wharf, where hanging vines, cages of light-up birds, and a trickling stone fountain make the dining room look like a very well-funded aviary. Hand-painted tiles cover the floor, and graduation parties and promotion dinners show up in their Sunday best. Skip the small plates for the mixed grill, a charred platter built for sharing.

1. The Infatuation The Best Restaurants In The Wharf

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

1. Eater Where to Eat and Drink on Capitol Hill

Officina is a multi-story Italian restaurant on the Wharf, and the second-floor dining room looks like a Campari ad, all art deco light fixtures and golden-green everything. The menu roams the whole country with a strong lean toward seafood, plus housemade pastas for when you want a linguine that stays on message. Upstairs, a plant-filled terrace gets a lovely view south and a less lovely one of the overpass north. Dress like you're in Milan.

1. The Infatuation The Best Restaurants In The Wharf