Sometimes DC really is a cliché of itself. Just look at its unending political- and presidential-themed restaurants.
We’ve got Lincoln Restaurant with its penny-dotted floor and Roosevelt-inspired Teddy and the Bully Bar with a monocle-made chandelier and Mount Rushmore wall. Farmers & Distillers pays homage to George Washington with artwork of Mount Vernon and America’s first president as a hipster with a man-bun. The latest? Founding Farmers, opening in Reston on April 11, tributes Thomas Jefferson. (Plume and Declaration likewise have strong Jefferson undercurrents—as “Founding Foodie,” the third President is quite popular dining room fodder.)
Really, it’s only a matter of time before someone decides to open a James Quincy Adams eatery. Or maybe a John F. Kennedy one? We asked: who should be next?
Polk’s Yolks for breakfast & brunch https://t.co/N7ZPJ8z3XV
— Carole Emberton (@CaroleEmberton) March 1, 2018
LBJBBQ https://t.co/xe5osToG3d
— Daniel Salas (@d_a_salas) March 1, 2018
Time for the Taft Draft House https://t.co/xmvTwLMZzP
— you should follow @AltHistoryToday (@ItsaMeMarios) March 1, 2018
William Howard Taft All-You-Can-Eat Country Buffet https://t.co/7Tumk1wf2D
— James Patterson (@McGillPatterson) March 1, 2018
Silent Cal’s Tavern. No alcohol and no talking. https://t.co/SDiPsjNBmU
— SamuelGoldman (@SWGoldman) March 1, 2018
A Grover Cleveland themed restaurant that’s open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
— Bob (@NebraskaBobert) March 1, 2018
Cleveland, and next door, Cleveland II https://t.co/UdjpQuaNN1
— Charles Louis Richter (@richterscale) March 1, 2018
A Nixon-themed “I Am Not a Cook” take-out joint.
— Kevin McNamee (@mcnamee_kevin) March 1, 2018
The Mutton Chop, for Van Buren. @VanBurenPapers https://t.co/GF7WksZEJg
— Mark Cheathem?️? (@markcheathem) March 1, 2018
A one-day-only popup for William Henry Harrison
— Beth Renaldi (@bethrenaldi) March 1, 2018
James A. Garfield’s Lasagna
— Alex Clearfield (@AlexClearfield) March 1, 2018
Donald Trump’s Russian Tea Room.
— VW Matt (@MatthewMeehan3) March 1, 2018
George W. Bush Olde Fashioned Pretzel Factory
— Claire-Manuel März (@marzclaire) March 1, 2018
A George W Bush restaurant where the food is bad but each bad dish is served alongside an unbelievably awful dish so it seems better by comparison in retrospect. https://t.co/0YAoeEd5Di
— Pronto Pup (@ProntoPup) March 1, 2018
James Madison’s Restaurant: Where your order is burned to a crisp, then replaced by British food. https://t.co/GdcVbSciQh
— Benjamin Freed (@brfreed) March 1, 2018
@BarackObama — Chicago/Hawaiian food mash up https://t.co/fUplJj8T26
— DC Foodie Girl (@DCfoodiegirl) March 1, 2018
Barry O’Bama’s Irish Pub? https://t.co/TyhSo6OjgP
— Wade Tandy (@wadetandy) March 1, 2018
Some restaurant themes:
William Henry Harrison: Very short wait times.
Richard Nixon: Tape recorders at every table.
Ulysses Grant: The unconditional surrender of small plates.
Calvin Coolidge: Amtrak quiet car, but with artisan food. https://t.co/6ODvyip4Fa— Helder Gil (@hgil) March 1, 2018
Got some other ideas? Leave them in the comments or tweet me at @jsidman and I’ll add the best ones here.
CORRECTION: This story initially stated that Farmers & Distillers has artwork of Monticello. It’s Mount Vernon.
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.
