Good day!
All of this Election coverage reminded me that I have not blogged about some good eats in our Nations Capitol. It doesn't matter if you're Blue, Red or Independent as you are sure to find a melting pot of good food in this city.
My one recommendation is not to drive in this city. Fly in and take a taxi ride to your hotel or ride the subway to get around. None of the streets run in a N, W, S, E direction for long and the street names change depending on what section of the city you are in. My very first time my wife and I visited we ended up wasting a lot of time trying to navigate those roads. Yikes!
The second time I went I took a taxi to the hotel and then used it's shuttle to get to different locations of interest. So much less stress.
If you are going to drive, however, just get to the Union Station as quick as you can and get on one of those double-decker tour buses that will take you all over. I highly recommend it!
Now onto the food.
There were two places that stand out to me from my visits there as all of my other meals I stayed pretty pedestrian i.e. Hard Rock Cafe DC to get my souvenir cup, Quiznos for lunch, breakfast at the hotel etc.
Sequoia: http://www.arkrestaurants.com/sequoia_dc.html
This awesome restaurant was referred to me by multiple people at my hotel and others at a conference I was at. The view from the Potomac river made it extra special. The appetizers were awesome and of course I got full on them quickly. I recommend the Seafood Bisque and the Crab & Artichoke Dip with the crispy flat bread. Awesome! For my entree I went with the Smoked Chili Grilled Salmon only because I had my choices narrowed down to "5" and that is the one our server recommended (which is always the way to go when you can't decide what to get at a new restaurant). It was fantastic and the sides were very delicious as well.
While in DC I would lean towards places that include a lot of seafood dishes as you can get a good taste of what the Atlantic has to offer and the preparations are done differently than on the Pacific side.
Acropolis: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g28970-d538370-Reviews-Acropolis-Washington_DC_District_of_Columbia.html
On my first trip my wife and I felt fortunate enough to get ourselves to the Union Station to pick up on one of the bus tours of the city and it was lunch time and we were HUNGRY! so we asked around at what was a good place to eat nearby and we were referred to this Greek restaurant at their food court. I know what you're thinking! FOOD COURT! and that is what I thought but the people there raved about their huge meaty Gyros. They weren't kidding. There must have been about a 2 lbs. of meat on that thing and it was cooked to perfection. Some Gyro meat can be over/under cooked so its a statement to have that much meat on it and it was all perfect. My wife went with the Chicken Slouvaki pita sandwich and her meat was perfectly tender as well. After chasing all of that down with some Greek seasoned fries it was all we could do to get on that bus and climb to the top. We sort of waddled like a duck. Always a sign of a good meal!
Now you have a few spots to hit on your next visit and a valuable recommendation not to drive...seriously!
Until we eat again!
