News & Politics

20 Fascinating Things We Overheard During Lunch at BLT Steak

The DC steakhouse is suddenly a prime spot for Trump-team eavesdropping. A special Washingtonian investigation.

Don't talk too loud at this table. Photo by Rob Brunner.

BLT Steak was the site of some epic eavesdropping last week when a New York Times reporter overheard White House attorneys loudly talking at a nearby table about how the President should respond to the Russia investigation. Their careless public quips all ended up being major news.

And here we were, blocks away from the so-called power restaurant, missing out on the big scoops! So this morning, we quickly booked our own lunchtime res at the same BLT Steak in search of some loose lips. What government gossip would we hear? Which corporate secrets would be revealed? Would Javanka be there?

Here’s a random, totally out-of-context sampling of the conversations we overheard between bites of our $28 dry-aged burger and $21 Niçoise salad:

“She tested her hormones almost weekly.”

“I was like, eff this.”

“He was an angel at PetSmart training.”

“Genetic disorder, yada yada yada.”

“Everyone goes to Cantler’s for crabs.”

“My husband is like, ‘I’m not done.'”

“My mom’s first born stole a car to get drugs. My mother has a really weird family.”

“Have you ever seen Jiro Dreams of Sushi? That’s exactly what it’s like. They don’t let you do the cool stuff until you’ve spent years doing the crappy stuff.”

“I played the lottery for a while. Statistically the odds are against me.”

“You can’t just sneak up on a dog with another dog!”

“She said, this isn’t even really a hill. I said, yeah, actually it is.”

“I love comedy. I’ve seen a lot of comedy shows.”

“My mother in law is a tiny woman. She’s a warrior.”

“You can go to Chick and Ruth’s Delly [in Annapolis]. That’s where all the Maryland legislature eats. Everything is named after somebody. It’s been on Food Network.”

“We need a very simple CRM of all member interests. So at any given moment institutional knowledge is tracked.”

“Print it out, put it in a folder and give it to the Senator…”

“My entire career is structured around convincing people.”

“I even have to get permission to send out an email to Mark.”

“Have you been to Chicago? It’s New York.”

“Well, we should probably get back to it. Good luck to you. I’m sorry we weren’t able to deliver.”

 

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.

Politics and Culture Editor

Rob Brunner grew up in DC and moved back in 2017 to join Washingtonian. Previously, he was an editor and writer at Fast Company and other publications. He lives with his family in Chevy Chase DC.