Food

Where to Get Labor Day Brunch Around DC

Let's raise a mimosa to the three-day weekend.

Brunch dishes at Navy Yard's Osteria Morini. Photo courtesy of Osteria Morini.

All brunches are on Monday, September 2

Le Diplomate

1601 14th St., NW

The warm shrimp salad is a brunch menu favorite at Le Diplomate. Photo by Scott Suchman

French brasserie Le Diplomate puts on one of DC’s better known brunches, with seafood towers, French toast with lime-rose chantilly cream, duck confit, and more. It starts early, running from 9:30 AM to 3 PM. Sister restaurants Pastis (French), St. Anselm (American), and  El Presidente (Mexican)—all in the Union Market District—are serving Monday brunch menus, too.

 

Hank’s Oyster Bar

818 N. Asaph St., Alexandria 

The seafood boil at Hank’s Oyster Bar. Photo courtesy of Hank’s Oyster Bar.

The Old Town outpost of this New England-inspired oyster bar is hosting an all-you-can-eat rooftop seafood boil ($85 per person) from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. Feast on crab, shrimp, clams, mussels, sausage, potatoes, corn, and more. Iced tea and lemonade are included, but alcohol is extra.

 

Boundary Stone

116 Rhode Island Ave., NW

Head to this laidback Bloomingdale tavern for housemade cinnamon rolls, quiche, and the kitchen’s famous hangover burger topped with pork belly. One weekend special that won’t carry over to Labor Day: bottomless drinks.

 

A&J Restaurant

1319 Rockville Pike #C, Rockville; 4316 Markham St., Unit B, Annandale

Both locations of A&J, our favorite dim sum joint in the region, are open 11:30 AM to 9 PM, serving delicious noodles, pastries, soups, and dumplings. Don’t miss the beef tendon soup and thousand-layer pancakes.

 

Unconventional Diner

1207 Ninth St., NW

Unconventional Diner deluxe pancakes. Photograph by Lia Manfredi
Unconventional Diner deluxe pancakes. Photograph by Lia Manfredi

This Shaw dining room serves brunch every day of the week, until 3:45 PM. The eclectic menu includes a fried chicken sandwich, Lebanese fried rice, sweet potato shakshuka, and buttermilk pancakes in blueberry-lavender sauce.

 

Pearl Dive

1612 14th St., NW

This Louisiana-inspired seafood spot serves punchy drinks and a wide-ranging brunch menu, with salmon and latkes, huevos rancheros, ricotta beignets, and plenty of hot or cold oysters.

 

All Purpose Capitol Riverfront

79 Potomac Ave., SE

The risotto carbonara, on the brunch menu at All Purpose. Photo courtesy of All Purpose.

At the Navy Yard location of this popular pizzeria, you can start the week with bottomless cocktails ($19), risotto carbonara, egg-topped pizzas, and brown butter coffee cake.

 

Surreal

2117 Crystal Dr., Arlington 

Enrique Limardo’s plant-filled National Landing diner lets you build your own omelet with fillings like lemony asparagus, goat cheese, and marinated tomatoes. The vast menu also offers chorizo shakshuka, a Vietnamese-accented beef sandwich, pancakes with marmalade, and more.

 

Ala

1320 19th St., NW; 4948 Fairmont Ave., Bethesda 

This Dupont Levantine restaurant and its newer Bethesda sibling will serve a three-course prix fixe brunch ($48 per person), which includes bottomless mimosas, Bloody Marys, juices, and coffee.

 

El Techo

606 Florida Ave., NW 

For a more hype brunch experience with Mexican eats, check out this rooftop “jungle” in Shaw. Brunch is $49 per person and includes bottomless margaritas, Bloody Marys, mimosas, frozen cocktails and Tecates plus any entree—breakfast burritos, huevos rancheros, buttered crepes with fried eggs, and more.

 

Osteria Morini

301 Water St., SE 

This waterfront Italian dining room in Navy Yard focuses on the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Graze on ricotta pancakes with blueberry-orange jam and maple mascarpone; a panini with sweet Italian sausage; or eggs in a nest with smoked salmon and brioche toast. To wash it down: mimosa carafes and Aperol crushes.

Helen Huiskes
Editorial Fellow