The buzz hasn’t stopped since Stephen Starr’s French brasserie Le Diplomate debuted on 14th Street; in fact, it might be even louder since Sunday night, when Vice President Joe Biden dined there with wife Jill and their granddaughter. A tipster spotted the couple entering the restaurant—he in signature aviators, she in a floral sheath—on the balmy summer evening, with the restaurant at typical bustling capacity.
Le Diplomate’s team maintains a “no comment” policy when it comes to diners, but other sources confirm that the trio sat on the terrace. Joe Biden opted for the Obama administration-approved item: a burger, in this case the “burger Americain,” a riff on the fast food classic with pickles, American cheese, and a side stack of pommes frites. Fitting for the VP, the dish arrives with a diplomatic smattering of miniature French and American toothpick flags. According to the source, diners gave the Bidens a round of applause as they left the restaurant.
While the President and First Lady are known for their trips a deux to hotspots such as Komi and the Source, Joe Biden is more often spotted at low-key destinations like Liberty Tavern and regular trips to Pete’s New Haven for pasta pomodoro. (Another tipster mentions Georgetown’s swanky Cafe Milano is a regular stop for the vice presidential couple.) Perhaps President Obama will follow suit, making those 14th Street restaurant waits even longer.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
