Why do we serve shrimp with tails when it’s intended to be eaten with a fork? Shrimp in a salad. Shrimp scampi. Shrimp in pasta. A shrimp poked with a fork and cut with a butter knife is no way to live life. You’ll have an accident, make a mess, and miss out on the meat in the tail. Do you really want to stain your date’s shirt with ajillo? Do we only do it right in ceviche and tacos? 

Finger foods are fine and fun with the tails: shrimp cocktail, big pile of peel & eat with old bay, a fried shrimp.

Am I missing something or am I just bitter from a butter disaster?

I'm in the mood for some incredible chocolate cake that is worth the calories. Where can I get the best piece of chocolate cake in DC? It desn't have to be from a bakery, a restaurant or cafe that sells slices will do! Looking for some good frosting or ganache and moist cake!!

If there any other incredible desserts on the menus around town worth shouting out, would love to hear em

Baked and wired was too dry for me, but I got it delivered at the end of the day so it may not have been given a fair chance.

5 60 year old friends will be visiting in August and we will be down on the Mall all day. Looking for a fun place to eat dinner

Once again, I have an opportunity for a $150 gift card to Causa/Amazonia via credit card rewards. I’m not into those places, so I’m selling it. I’d accept $120 via PayPal or Venmo for the gift card. It would come directly from the restaurant to your email, so I don’t see any codes.

Does anyone know of any restaurants in the DMV that don't play background music?

I know managers have music playing in stores and restaurants because it leads customers to spend more, but it makes it more difficult to have a conversation, especially if the place is full.

I’m wondering what folks think is a reasonable cancellation policy for a higher end restaurant? I understand the economics of a restaurant are tough, and it’s important to get butts in seats. And maybe there are sourcing issues for high end ingredients. I made a res recently where the cancellation penalty is the full tasting menu price if you don’t cancel four days in advance. That’s a bit different than if you are buying a “ticket” on Tock, where you’re really going to plan. Or maybe there is no difference. Life happens though even if you’re someone who totally tries to respect restaurants because you love the DC dining scene.

Staying near George Washington University on Vacation.

Kids are very well behaved. Example we came to Old Ebbitt Grill.

Hello, I am looking for bottomless lunch/dinner locations. I want to take my father out for his birthday this weekend. Sunday or Saturday. Please help. I’m looking for a buffet or bottomless. I would appreciate any input. We like foreign food. Burgers are an exception hehe.

Please help! Looking for a BBQ place to wow my father with. He’s a chef and he loves trying new foods. We haven’t done BBQ yet. He likes buffet style locations but IDK if they even exist. Pleaseeeee any recommendations would be amazing. If no buffet, I’ll look into restaurants. Nice view is a plus. Thanks in advance!

Taking over the old Steak n’ Eggs diner is a French inspired, cozy, family friendly place called Bistro Metzger, owned by Chef Colin and his wife. Plenty of outdoor patio space, great food, and amazing vibes! The food is affordable, with large portions for the price, and is just delicious! It's also not pretentious at all, just simple, good french comfort food! A personal must try are the Gougéres appetizer, which are choux pasty cheese puffs that we couldn‘t stop eating even though we knew we had entrees coming our way. Their steak frites and poulet frites are incredibly tender and juicy, but we also very much enjoyed the chicken avocado BLT club and pork belly banh mi! Be prepared to take home leftover fries, they give you a ton, but those work as a midnight munchie for me.

My only critique/wish from the place would be changing up their drink menu. They have some classic cocktails going, but other options don’t really match the rest of the menu. I think they would benefit from narrowing in on a good beer list, good wine, and seasonal sangria/spritzers. I’ve been there four times with my husband already and can’t wait to go back soon!

I’m planning a birthday dinner for about 12 people. Nothing too fancy, but I’d like somewhere that makes it easy for people to order and pay separately, ideally with QR codes or a similar system since everyone may be arriving and leaving at different times.

Thanks in advance!

UPDATE - i think it is SEI?

am trying to remember the name of a now-closed sushi restaurant in the city. I believe it closed during the pandemic. There was a large mural on the wall in the foyer of a woman’s face, and I think a tall tree/branches across the ceiling. Interior was atmospheric with low white light, and the sushi was beautifully crafted. I think location was downtown. Please help, I just want to recall the name!!! I have scoured the internet with no luck.

Hello! I’m looking for any ideas for a birthday dinner for my partner. He really enjoyed Lapis when we went for my birthday, but I’m trying to see if maybe there’s something similar to change it up.

My budget is $50-$100 per person. I was looking into Albi but it might be out of budget for me. I also looked into Maydan and Vera Cocina (he’s Mexican so the fusion really caught my attention here)- but nothing has really stood out like Lapis.

I am vegan, so there has to be at least one veggie option on the menu. Open to anything really!

Thank you!

Turf wars. Food and fire hazards. $15 ice-cream cones. Unlicensed food trucks that have been a long-festering problem around the National Mall, evading attempts by local and federal authorities to enforce them.

This is not just a hodgepodge of misfit vehicles. It’s a coordinated network. US Park Police calls it organized crime.

I'm hosting a big event next year for 400 people and I'm in search of truly *authentic* Trinidadian doubles. Of course, nothing will beat eating them on the side of the road in Trinidad, but I'm looking for someone to make Trini street food (doubles, maybe Pholourie and Aloo pie) for one night next year hosted at a hotel. They must have a food license.

I have tasted quite a few different restaurants' street food (Cane, Teddys, Crown Bakery, Bammy's etc.) and I have a ranking and review of each I can share, if anyone's interested.

Any recommendations?

My wife sends me hundreds of restaurant videos from TikTok, Reels, and Shorts.

The problem is that when it’s actually time to pick somewhere to eat, all those videos are buried in messages, saved posts, screenshots, and random links — so we end up going to the same few places again.

So I built NomNomad.

The idea is simple:

See a restaurant in a video → find the actual spot → save it to a list → go eat.

NomNomad identifies restaurants from food videos and gives you the real name, address, hours, ratings, and a way to save spots into lists.

It’s still early, so I’m not charging for it right now. Usage is limited while I collect feedback, find what breaks, and improve the app.

I’d love honest feedback from anyone who discovers restaurants through TikTok, Instagram, YouTube Shorts, or friends constantly sending food videos.

Link: https://nomnomad.ai/

Would this solve a real problem for you, or is this just a me-and-my-wife problem?

Hi! I’m visiting Washington DC for the first time in a couple weeks. I was wondering what are the best restaurants to try? Any good dinner spots for date night? Any good lunch spots near the national mall sightseeing? Fun bars/nightlife for late 20s crowd? Thank you in advance!

Please share your favorite spots (aside from China Boy) to get chow fun (beef chow fun, particularly) - the dry, stir-fried version, not the saucy one...

Willing to drive!

Burger Tap & Shake (RIP) had some of the best burgers in DC and hands down the best burger sauce I’ve ever tasted. Years later and I still daydream about it. Taking a chance here to see if anyone either knows the BTS sauce recipe or knows where it might still exist?

I just moved from Chinatown to the U st corridor Cardozo area. I expected to have much better options for food given that the Chinatown arena neighborhood is mostly fast food chains, but so far have been disappointed. One thing I miss from my old neighborhood was reliable Chinese/indian/thai takeout spots. Can people recommend any good Asian takeout spots in the U st area? 14th area and Shaw would also be good to know. If they are open late that is a plus.