100 Very Best 2015Like the familiar bistro dishes it turns out—often flawlessly—Jeffrey Buben’s restaurant in Capitol Hill’s Hotel George has a classy, timeless feel. The cushy booths in the golden-lit dining room attract a tony crowd: Law-firm partners woo recruits with Châteauneuf-du-Pape and escargot forestière while prep-school kids in striped ties dig politely into steak frites and pots of mussels under the approving gaze of well-coifed parents. In the era of linenless tables and cocktails in Mason jars, Bis carries the torch for a spiffier dining era—without seeming stuffy or out of style.
Don’t miss: Frisée salad with lardons; onion soup; oysters gratin Florentine; salmon with Brussels sprouts, bacon, and cranberries; beef bourguignon; apple tart.
Open: Monday through Friday for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, Saturday and Sunday for breakfast, brunch, and dinner.
Very expensive.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
