Best New Restaurant

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1. Pascual

Lutèce chefs Matt Conroy and Isabel Coss make even more magic at their plant-filled upscale Mexican spot.

 

2. Moon Rabbit

Kevin Tien’s modern Vietnamese restaurant moved from the Wharf to a new (and improved) Penn Quarter space early this year.

 

3. Cucina Morini

Sicilian-style seafood comes in the form of lovely pastas, crudos, and stews. (Bonus: $7 martinis in the lounge.)

 

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Best Restaurant Service

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1. Rose’s Luxury

The warm, personable servers have a habit of gifting treats like a free lychee salad now and then.

 

2. Albi

This waitstaff’s knowledge of Levantine ingredients and dishes runs deep.

 

3. Reveler’s Hour

Want to learn about esoteric wine? There are few better places than this cozy spot.

 

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Best Restaurant in DC

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1. Albi

Chef/owner Michael Rafidi’s artful Levantine cooking keeps raking in accolades—including this year’s James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef.

 

2. Maydan

If you can’t get a table at this Middle Eastern place, pick up owner Rose Previte’s Maydan cookbook, released last year.

 

3. Rose’s Luxury

The shareable four-course menus at this 11-year-old dining room always have a sense of fun.

 

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Best Restaurant in Maryland

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1. Aventino

The latest restaurant from the Red Hen/All-Purpose crew opened earlier this year and is still Bethesda’s hottest reservation.

 

2. Cielo Rojo

The vegan-friendly Mexican cafe is turning out its moles and heirloom-corn tortillas in a new, bigger space.

 

3. Melina

This pretty Pike & Rose restaurant specializes in inventive Greek mezze.

 

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Best Restaurant in Virginia

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1. Thompson Italian

Housemade pastas and killer desserts keep both locations packed.

 

2. Ellie Bird

A $65 prix fixe is a nice way to try dishes like kimchi bouillabaisse and focaccia with miso butter.

 

3. Ruthie’s All Day

Show up in the morning for takeout biscuit sandwiches or at night for a leisurely Southern-accented meal.

 

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Coolest Decor

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1. El Presidente

Taxidermy atop the bar and a theatrical velvet curtain in the dining room are just a few eye-catchers at Stephen Starr’s ode to Mexico City.

 

2. Maydan

The Middle Eastern dining room is centered around a huge, high-drama copper hearth.

 

3. Residents

This buzzy cafe/cocktail bar features lush greenery that changes with the seasons.

 

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Favorite Cocktails

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1. Jane Jane

You could bring your date—or your mom—to this retro-cool cocktail den.

 

2. Green Zone

Sample drinks shaken and stirred with under-the-radar Middle Eastern spirits.

 

3. Silver Lyan

Even the Jell-O shots are swank at the Riggs hotel’s subterranean bar.

 

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Favorite Brunch

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1. Unconventional Diner

One of DC’s few weekday brunch spots serves up apple-pie French toast and shakshuka until 3:45 pm daily.

 

2. Ambar

Want bottomless drinks and food? Head to these dining rooms for unlimited rounds of Balkan dishes.

 

3. Ruthie’s All Day

The strapping weekend plates show off the kitchen’s way with barbecue.

 

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Favorite Japanese Restaurant

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1. Perry’s

You know it for sushi, but have you tried chef Masako Morishita’s delicious udon carbonara?

 

2. Izakaya Seki

Look to Cizuka Seki’s hand-drawn specials menu for finds like grilled whole squid.

 

3. Sushi Taro

Go all out with omakase in the back room or line up for the 25-percent-off sushi happy hour.

 

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Favorite Chinese Restaurant

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1. Chang Chang

Peter Chang’s sole location in the District satisfies our cravings for Peking duck, dim sum, and numbingly spicy stir-fries.

 

2. Tiger Fork

This chic Blagden Alley hideaway offers cocktails inspired by Chinese medicine and upscale versions of fried rice and chow fun.

 

3. Astoria

Pass around plates with a Szechuan bent at this cool cocktail bar.

 

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Favorite Italian Restaurant

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1. Caruso’s Grocery

The pastas at these Italian American dining rooms taste familiar—but somehow always better than other versions we’ve had.

 

2. The Red Hen

One of the coziest date-night spaces in DC.

 

3. L’Ardente

At this glam hot spot, you can go big with, say, a $90 grilled lobster or hang out over a simple $18 pizza.

 

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Favorite Bakery

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1. Rose Ave

This airy cafe’s can’t-miss pastry: a flaky tart laden with butternut-squash curry.

 

2. Yellow

Head to the new (and bigger) Union Market location for Palestinian olive-oil cake and orange-blossom croissants.

 

3. Bread Furst

The godfather of DC’s bread scene, Mark Furstenberg, founded this always-packed market/bakery/cafe.

 

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Favorite Thai Restaurant

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1. Siam House

Three generations of women from the Siri family run this gracious, homey restaurant.

 

2. Beau Thai

Our go-to for takeout pad see ew and drunken noodles.

 

3. Baan Siam

Chili-heads should run to this dining room, which serves fiery curries, soups, and salads from all over Thailand.

 

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Favorite Pizza Restaurant

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1. Andy’s Pizza

Big New York–style pies (and slices) with crusts worth savoring on their own.

 

2. 2 Amys

We love the blistery Neapolitan-style pies, but the menu’s sleeper hit is the plate of deviled eggs.

 

3. Pupatella

What started as a Neapolitan-pizza food cart in 2007 now has ten locations—and one in Columbia on the way.

 

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Favorite Burger Restaurant

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1. Lucky Buns

Juicy double Creekstone beef patties get toppings such as green-chili relish, Gouda, and cotija crema.

 

2. Duke’s Counter

This Brit gastropub will soon bring its hefty “proper burgers” to Potomac.

 

3. Le Diplomate

Imagine a fast-food burger gone luxe, with special sauce, American cheese, pickles, and double smash patties.

 

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Favorite Local Beer Restaurant

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1. Aslin

Cold-weather releases include a pecan-pie-inspired IPA and a rich porter.

 

2. Atlas

Grab a six-pack at Whole Foods or swing by one of the taprooms to taste the latest seasonal brews.

 

3. Right Proper Brewing Company

Its Senate beer is a recreation of a DC-made corn lager that dates to 1890.

This article appears in the December 2024 issue of Washingtonian.