100 Very Best Restaurants 2017: Rappahannock Oyster Bar

Cost:

One of our favorite Union Market spots: the Rappahannock Oyster Bar. Photograph by Scott Suchman

About Rappahannock Oyster Bar

Cost:

cuisines
American, Seafood
Location(s)
1150 Maine Ave SW
Washington, District of Columbia 20024-2417

Is there anything better than a late lunch of oysters and a glass of Chablis on a lazy day? Well, yes—it’s that followed by fresh-shucked Chincoteague clams and small plates at this Union Market shellfish bar. Selections mostly center on local seafood and bivalves grown by the owners, often combined with ingredients from afar—za’atar-seared tuna with tabbouleh salad, baked clams with Thai sausage and coconut. Make sure to sample the caviar (the paddlefish is lovely and comes with house-made egg salad) and to snag a seat at the bar. Weekends, when the market is humming and the shuckers are in their zone, it’s the best spot to take in the action. Moderate.

Also great: Grilled oysters with smoked-jalapeño butter; citrus-cured salmon; “lambs and clams.”


Ann Limpert
Executive Food Editor/Critic

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.

Food Editor

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.

Jessica Sidman
Food Editor

Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.

Kristen Hinman
Articles Editor

Kristen Hinman has been editing Washingtonian’s features since 2014. She joined the magazine after editing politics & policy coverage for Bloomberg Businessweek and working as a staff writer for Voice Media Group/Riverfront Times.