Welcome to Washingtonian’s Hot List! These are 10 restaurants our food team is particularly excited about right now. Every month, we’ll swap in and out new recommendations—old and new, fancy and casual—that we’ve visited recently and deserve your attention. While our 100 Very Best Restaurants ranking is still our ultimate guide to the DC area’s top dining destinations, this is a place where we’ll give you a real-time pulse check on the region’s eating and drinking scene.
French • Capitol Hill • 303 Seventh St., SE
You may have heard about the crazy-long lines at Maru San, but there’s another spot down the block that’s drawing quite the queue: this pretty, green-tiled French bakery. The place makes a seriously good croissant, and there’s a long case of gorgeous little tarts, eclairs, and cakes (go for the oversized raspberry macaron and the St. Honore, which tasted like a hybrid of a cream puff and a creme brûlée). Baguettes already sold out? Get one in sandwich form, stuffed with ham and cornichons.
Cantonese • Navy Yard • 1025 First St., SE
Open since February, this festive spot from chef Timothy Yu (formerly of Wheaton’s Hollywood East Cafe) is lit a moody red by neon Chinese zodiac signs hung on the wall. Yu’s Cantonese cooking is inventive yet familiar, from sticky yuzu-flavored honey/walnut shrimp and honey- glazed char siu pork to a crunchy julienne of celtuce, Asian pear, jicama, and carrots in a ginger vinaigrette. It’s all complemented by a drink menu from sommelier Brent Kroll.
Mexican • Dupont Circle • 2002 P St., NW
Amparo Fondita is already an excellent destination for modern Mexican food in Dupont Circle. But recently, chef Christian Irabién started a burrito pop-up during weekday lunch called El Gabacho. These aren’t overstuffed Chipotle-style burritos, but rather long and relatively skinny—although still very filling. Housemade tortillas are stuffed with proteins like tomatillo-stewed pork shoulder and guajillo-braised flank steak, but we particularly love the chile relleno burrito oozing with chihuahua cheese. While you can eat your burrito at the restaurant, you still have to order online, and the lunch operation seems mostly geared toward takeout and delivery. Stop by before the pop-up ends on August 14.
Mexican • Rockville • 12151 Rockville Pike
Chef Saul Zelaya was born in El Salvador, raised in Montgomery County, and trained in fine dining spots in Oaxaca. At his taco trailer wedged into a Shell station parking lot, he’s laser-focused on house-milled masa, using it to form tacos, tostadas, and distinctive triangular tetelas (a refried bean-filled tetetla pairs perfectly with a side of grilled steak and Zelaya’s zippy green salsa). The diminutive operation is a love letter to corn. Soon, Zelaya plans to expand it to a larger brick-and-mortar space nearby.
Japanese • Downtown DC • 1895 L St., NW
Former Sushi Nakazawa chef Masaaki “Uchi” Uchino built a following at the Square food hall in downtown DC for his $40 quick lunch omakase. Now his sushi counter, Kiyomi, has its own 16-seat home just a few blocks away. You’ll still find the great-value weekday lunch deal, which includes seven pieces of nigiri—from red snapper with lime zest to seared fatty tuna—plus your choice of handroll and miso sauce. Alternatively, opt for a $40 handroll-only set with fillings such as yuzu-garlic yellowtail or salmon aji amarillo. (A la carte is also available for the walk-in lunch.) For dinner, Uchino just launched a $135 omakase on Fridays only.
Japanese/Peruvian • Capitol Hill • 325 Seventh St., SE
Causa chef Carlos Delgado’s tiny handroll bar (25 seats, almost entirely for walk-ins), is worth the inevitable wait in line. His Nikkei-style handrolls—cones of crackly nori with koshihikari rice and a variety of fillings—are excellent. The $37 set of six is the way to go, and if the shrimp with huacatay aioli isn’t included, you should absolutely add it on. Don’t sleep on the ceviches and tiraditos, or small plates such as octopus in a creamy olive sauce or Wagyu tataki with grapefruit ponzu. One thing to note: this isn’t a place for lingering—once you tick off your order on a sheet of paper, the handrolls and other plates come at you fast.
Uyghur • Shaw • 1700 New Jersey Ave., NW
Occupying a picturesque corner space on a residential stretch of New Jersey Avenue, this new Uyghur noodle house was opened by the family who ran Manhattan’s Tenri Tagh Uyghur Cuisine for years. The menu of halal food from western China is centered around lagman noodles, hand pulled to order and piled high with diced peppers, slices of beef, and big chunks of garlic.
Puerto Rican • Park View • 3227 Georgia Ave., NW
This vibrant Puerto Rican spot found a new home in the fall, not long after the Passenger, the Shaw bar that formerly hosted it, was sold. The closure turned out to be a blessing: Qui Qui’s new space is more lively and open to the street, with more room for chef Ismael Mendez to dish out traditional dishes like pastelillos, ceviche, mofongo, and the huge fried pork chop called chuleta kan-kan— plus more space for a salsa band to play regularly.
Vietnamese • Falls Church • 7263 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church
This pho shop, founded in Hanoi in 1979, is one of the most legendary in Vietnam. Outposts have since opened in California, and recently, Falls Church, where it’s already drawing crowds and hype. The restaurant is famous for the garlicky wok-seared ribeye that fills its scallion-topped bowls. While many other pho broths in the DC area lean sweet with a distinct star anise flavor, this one is deeply savory with a hint of roasted garlic. And instead of thin, stringy rice noodles, the ones here are wide with just the right amount of chew. Don’t skip the sweet pickled raw garlic that comes as a table condiment.
Eclectic Comfort Food • Adams Morgan • 1827 Adams Mill Rd., NW
Tail Up Goal owners Jill Tyler and Jon Sybert have replaced their acclaimed Adams Morgan dining room with something a little more casual and cozy. Diners order at a counter—cocktails and wine are served in line if there’s a wait—but get a full-service experience at the table. The fancy-fun, seasonally focused comfort food menu is eclectic, from milk bread toasts with anchovy and blood-orange confit to peak-spring wild greens ravioli to an ultra-crackly fried chicken with chili jam and black-garlic puree. If the chocolate angel food cake is an option for dessert, get it.
