No plans yet for Father’s Day (Sunday, June 15)? Procrastinators, we’ve got you—especially if your dad is super into eating and/or drinking. A few ideas:
Take him to brunch.
Mother’s Day brunch gets way more attention on the brunch front, which means you can still grab a Father’s Day morning table at several great spots. Head to Duck and the Peach (300 Seventh St., SE) near Eastern Market for housemade pastries and tasty duck carnitas; Minetta Tavern (1287 Fourth St., NE) for the best onion soup in town and a setting with a ton of cool character; Republic Cantina (43 N St., NW) for breakfast tacos and micheladas; and Fiola Mare (3100 K St., NW) or L’Ardente (200 Massachusetts Ave., NW) for an extravagant Italian feast.
Check out a new restaurant.
If seafood is on the agenda, the spiffy new Fish Shop (610 Water St., SW) at the Wharf—a Scottish export—is a great place to start (get the crab-filled crumpets). Another worthy seafood-focused newcomer: the Mediterranean Casamara (1337 Connecticut Ave., NW) in Dupont. My Little Chamomile (3210 Cherry Hill Ln., NW) in Georgetown, from Green Almond Pantry chef Cagla Onal, puts out a homey Turkish Sunday lunch. Tapori (600 H St., NE) is the Daru team’s new Indian street food place. Or, get on the waitlist for two of Stephen Starr’s latest hotspots: the scene-y Osteria Mozza (3276 M St., NW) in Georgetown and the chic, old-school Occidental (1475 Pennsylvania Ave., NW) near the White House.
Attend a tuna-carving demonstration.
Is a visit to Tokyo’s Toyuso fish market on your dad’s bucket list? If so, he might enjoy the Sunday tuna-carving demo—this giant fish will come from Spain—at Spanish restaurant Arrels (333 G St., NW). The carvings will happen during an $88-per-person brunch with bottomless plates of bluefin tuna dishes, and a $138-per-person evening tasting menu with sake pairings.
Treat him to a seriously good burger.
Go for the cookout-style burger at outdoor beer spot Garden District (1801 14th St., NW); the decadent cheeseburger at Union Market’s Pastis (1323 Fourth St., NE); or a delicious double (or triple!) decker smash burger at Joia Burger, which now has a bigger location in Glover Park (2414 Wisconsin Ave., NW), along with the Mount Pleasant original (3213 Mount Pleasant St., NW). Or, just grab a few pounds of the terrific ground beef mix at Wagshal’s (4845 Massachusetts Ave., NW) and make your patties at home.
Give into the trope about dads and brown liquor.
Is your dad a whiskey guy? There is no better place to explore the spirit than Jack Rose (2007 18th St., NW) in Adams Morgan, which claims to have the largest whiskey collection in the Western hemisphere. Sample one-ounce pours and flights of Japanese single malts, single-barrel bourbons, and more. On Sunday, head there at 3 PM for a tasting of Smooth Ambler bourbon and rye ($79 per person). Over in the West End, Philly transplant A.Kitchen+Bar (1010 New Hampshire Ave., NW) is holding a Sunday afternoon bourbon class with four pours plus snacks and mini-cocktails ($50 per person).
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.
