100 Very Best Restaurants: #48 – Obelisk

Cost:

Burrata Cheese. Photo by Scott Suchman

About Obelisk

Cost:

cuisines
Italian
Location(s)
2029 P St NW
Washington, DC 20036

It’s easy to get distracted by the city’s onslaught of restaurant openings, but this rowhouse continues to stand out after more than three decades. The rustic Italian prix fixe menu starts with a flurry of antipasti, which may include arancini and veal with tuna-and-caper sauce and always features burrata dressed in olive oil. From there, diners choose a pasta (ravioli are always marvelous) and secondi (we’ve had the best luck with the meat platters for two) from an ever-changing handwritten menu. A cheese plate and a choice of desserts finish off the feast. If there’s apple pie, get it. Expensive.


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.