We Just Updated Our Washington, D.C. Dining Guide
I was born and raised in the D.M.V. — the D.C., Maryland and Virginia area — and I've always bristled when people talk about D.C.'s reputation as a 'steakhouses for senators' town. That characterization ignores the abundance of diverse, independent restaurants that are, and have always been, part of the city's dining scene. I can still remember my first bite of injera and tibs at an Ethiopian restaurant in Adams Morgan, or jerk chicken sandwiches at Negril in Silver Spring, or sweet-and-sour pork at a Chinese restaurant near the Gallery Place Metro station.
Those restaurants, among others, created fertile ground for the dynamic dining scene in D.C. today, which includes deeply personal cooking, like that at Pascual, where the chef Isabel Coss showcases her love for her native Mexico City in several dishes. But dining here is also fun, as evidenced by the playful baked Alaska at Providencia on the busy H Street corridor, or the Taylor Swift songs you'll hear blasting at Moon Rabbit, or the surprising Japanese American mash-ups you'll find at Perry's in Adams Morgan.
Here are three dining options worth considering on your next visit to the nation's capitol.
Sometime during your meal at Pascual, you will get the feeling that you're not only eating delicious and modern takes on Mexican cooking, but also that you're getting the chef Isabel Coss's most beloved and personal tastes of home. All of your senses are engaged here; snapper aguachile with tart lime and heady lemongrass accents snaps the room into focus, while the char on the lamb-neck barbacoa makes you acutely aware of the open wood-fire grill. Reservations can be hard to come by, but dropping in on the early side, around 5 p.m., is always a good bet.
732 Maryland Ave NE, Capitol Hill
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