The Best Eats in Washington, DC in One Weekend!

We recently went to Washington DC to go watch a concert by Joe Hisaishi! While there we decided to try some of the best food the city has to offer! Read on for more!

Here is the map

Thip Khao

Thip Khao is arguably one of the best meals I've ever had in my life. Prior to Thip Khao I thought maybe I wasn't into Lao food. Thip Khao has won multiple rewards in DC and is known to have the best Lao cusine. If you've never had Lao food, it's really similar to Thai food but i feel like it has more acidity. We made reservations and when our flight was delayed, I ran to my reservation.

The food here was phenomenal. We ordered the Naem Khao Huu Muu (Crispy Coconut Rice Salad, Peanut, SourPork, Pig Ears, Lime, Scallion, Cilantro, GreenLettuce Wraps), the Piing (Pork Shoulder or Chicken Skewers Marinated and Grilled with Lemongrass, Ginger,Fermented Fish, Spicy Toasted Rice Sauce), Duck Laab (Minced Salad, Toasted Rice, Chili, Lemongrass, Galangal, Cilantro, mint), Sai Oua (Spicy Herbal Pork Sausage, Charred GreenChili Sauce, Cucumber), and the Khao Niew Met Nga (Black Sesame Coconut Sticky Rice, White Rabbit Candy Gelato, Sesame Seeds).

The crispy rice was insane, I think i'll dream about the crispy coconut rice with the crispy pig ears. The Piing was tasty and flavored so well. The Duck Laab was the best Laab I've ever had and I was obsessed with the crispy duck chunks. The only dish I may not get again is the Lao sausage as it was kinda falling apart. The total for 2 was around 120 dollars but i think it's a good price for the quality of food we got!

Here is their website

Address: 3462 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20010

Zaytinya

Jose Andres has a bunch of cool spots in DC, and Zaytinya serves Eastern Mediterranean small plates and regional wines. Locking in a reservation was a breeze – we did it the day before and even shifted things around the morning of. Now, here's the magic: they serve up these tapas-style dishes, and you score endless fresh bread. Yeah, you heard right, endless.

We went all out, diving into the Kebab platter, HALLOUMI PIDE, and the HOMMUS MA LAHM (that's hummus with spiced ground lamb). If you're a bit hangry, aim for 4-5 tapas or just rock the kebab platter – like we did. Food? Totally hit the spot, and I get why it's a crowd-pleaser. Now, value-wise, it's way cheaper than Austin's Mediterranean joints like ABA, but the flavor game is on a whole other level.

So yeah, I'd totally swing by Zaytinya again, though I won't claim it's the absolute best Mediterranean grub you'll ever eat.

Here is their website

Address: 701 9th St NW, Washington, DC 20001

Ben's Chili Bowl

Ben's Chili Bowl is an institution here in DC. There's multiple locations and they're open late night. We went to their original location during a police raid which apparently is common around this location. We walked in and order and waited about 15 minutes for our food. We got their half smoke without cheese and an order of their fries. I have to admit, the chili here was pretty bad and I found it drastically watered down compared to other chili i've had before. The bread tasted artificial and overall it wasn't a very good meal. I'd say come here if you want to go somewhere touristy or you're drunk and you don't mind the taste of the food.

Here is their Website

Address: 1213 U St NW, Washington, DC 20009

Rasika

So, everyone told me about Rasika online. I snagged a resy, and when we walked in, it was pretty chill since they'd just opened. We went all out with our picks: Palak Chaat (Crispy Baby Spinach with Sweet Yogurt, Tamarind, and Date Chutney), Lamb Biryani, Black Cod, Chicken Tikka Masala, Samosas, and a double dose of garlic and regular naan.

Now, let's talk about that Palak Chaat – blew my taste buds out of the water. Seriously, one of the best things I've had, and trust me, I don't throw that around. I'm seriously considering hopping back to DC just for a triple helping of those bowls. And the Black Cod? Oh yeah, it held its own like a champ.

As for the vibe, the other dishes were solid but didn't exactly blow my mind. Overall, a seriously memorable food adventure.

Here is their website

Address: 633 D St NW, Washington, DC 20004

Mangialardo's

So, thanks to a flight delay, we ended up hitting Mangialardos, a joint that had the internet buzzing about their authentic Italian Sub. I went for the Gman sub on a soft roll, but I asked for no mayo – just not my thing.

So, here's the deal. The sub? It was good, no doubt. But did it blow my mind? Nah, not really. What was kinda cool though, they wrapped it up in butcher paper. And those Mikes Hot Honey chips? They were the perfect combination.

Would I drop by again if I'm around? Yeah, sure. But am I gonna make a special trip? Probably not. It's a solid spot!

Here is the website

Address: 1317 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20003

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