Food

Where Will Kanye West Eat While He is in DC?

The MAGA-hat-wearing rapper is coming to town to chat with Trump this Thursday.

Masa snacks at Pineapple and Pearls. Photograph by Scott Suchman

Kanye West will be in town this Thursday to visit with President Trump and discuss things like prison reform, gang violence, and crime in Chicago. We know he plans to lunch with the President and Jared Kushner at the White House, but where else might he grab a bite? Allow us to speculate.

Fact: Kanye loves ice cream. Guys, he loves it so much that he actually smiles when he eats it. He looks at it like Bradley Cooper looks at Gaga in the A Star is Born trailer. There’s a whole web site devoted to pics of Kanye, Kim, and their cones. Plus, Kim might come, and bring the kids.
So he might visit: Some of the city’s best ice cream can be found at Ice Cream Jubilee in Navy Yard and 14th Street, but that might be too out-of-range for West, who will likely be staying closer to downtown or Georgetown. So, for convenience sake, we’d put our bets on Thomas Sweet, Georgetown Scoops, or even Haagen Dazs or Ben and Jerry’s, since he’s cool with the chain stuff.

Fact: Kanye once wrote a poem about McDonald’s for Frank Ocean’s magazine. Excerpt: I know them French fries have a plan / I know them French fries have a plan / The cheeseburger and the shakes formed a band / To overthrow the French fries plan. He also tweeted that the fast-food mega-chain was his “favorite brand.”
So he might visit: The Golden Arches, obvi. Or maybe the White House will make Trump’s order—two Big Macs, two filet-o-fishes, and a chocolate shake—a double for the Trump/Kanye lunch.

Fact: Jared and Ivanka are regulars at RPM Italian, and Kim Kardashian West likes Jared and Ivanka.
So he might visit: The sleek downtown DC Italian spot is a front-runner, especially if Kanye and Kim dine with the Kushner-Trumps. Bonus: it is co-owned by Bill Rancic, who won the first season of The Apprentice. And Kourtney K has already tested it out.

Fact(ish): Kanye is OK with dining alone. He maybe, possibly did so in Berlin, although his team denies it.
So he might visit: Capitol Hill tasting-menu hotspot Pineapple and Pearls, where he could get a solo seat at the chef’s counter or bar and indulge his love of both candy and ice cream with their truffle/gummy bear sundae.

Fact (ish): Kanye is rumored to be scouting spaces for his own restaurant, which will focus on upscale comfort food inspired by his late mother’s home cooking.
So he might visit: Upscale Southern spot Georgia Brown’s, which is very convenient to the White House. Or, a celeb-friendly American spot like Blue Duck Tavern.

Fact: Kanye has rapped about croissants.
So he might visit: A French bakery like Patisserie Poupon, especially if he’s staying at the Georgetown Ritz or Four Seasons (and doesn’t feel like room service).

Fact: Kanye is from Chicago.
So he might visit: Pi pizza in Penn Quarter, for DC’s only deep-dish, or Shake Shack, for their Chicago-style hot dog. Long shots, but possible if he has kiddos with him.

Fact: Kanye is a celebrity.
So he might visit: Nobu. Womp.

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.