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Another D.C. Restaurant Week is upon us. Three course lunches and dinners are on offer for $20.09 and $35.09, respectively. It’s an event that’s either loved or loathed by dining out enthusiasts. Restaurants cling to the promotion as way to get butts in seats during the peak of the slow season. Some diners are grateful for the bargains and excuse to try somewhere new, while RW haters out there feel rather strongly about their amateur hour complaints.
The dinner deal dropped significantly in value last year when the price point went up by $5; after tax and tip, you’re hovering around $50 a head, drinks not included. But that price jump only further highlighted the steal that can be a Restaurant Week lunch. I wrote this past winter about a string of in and out lunches around town. Don't worry about reservations. A solo or small party can almost always at least find space at the bar, and if you pick a nearby spot and grab dessert to go, you can be in, out, and back at your desk in an hour flat.
We've selected four downtown lunch picks for the week. Go ahead: embrace your inner-power luncher. Just get back to the office before your boss starts wondering where you've gone.
TenPenh
The Passion Food restaurants (which also include Acadiana, Ceiba, and DC Coast) are known for offering their full menu during RW, save for a crab cake or lobster upcharge. The relaxing, smart bar at TenPenh is my favorite of the four. A whole crispy catfish, fried with the head on, preceded by a spicy tuna roll and a slice of lemon marscapone cheesecake would be a $39 lunch any other time. Right now it’s $20.
Rasika
I was always one of the skeptics who couldn’t bring myself to pay fine dining prices for Indian no matter how good I heard it was. I can stuff myself at a good Indian buffet for $7.95! But that makes a meal here perfect for Restaurant Week. Menu selections are limited, but include their “infamous” palak chat, a crispy spinach dish with sweet yogurt, tamarind, and date chutney. None of their desserts - mostly ice creams and sorbets - are of the to go variety.
Poste
The menu might be very limited, but I could see myself really enjoying an heirloom tomato gazpacho with Dijon mustard ice cream and basil, softshell crab BLT, and blueberry sorbet in their courtyard.
PS 7’s
The Restaurant Week menu looks a whole lot like their regular menu. Well done! But that’s partly because PS 7's standard menu is fairly inexpensive to begin with. Get a market chopped salad and “Hot Brown” and basically all you’re getting for Restaurant Week is a free blueberry brown betty. But if you set your sights on the tomato and saffron-steamed PEI mussels as a starter followed by short ribs, you've hit on a $27 value before you even hit dessert. Bingo!
DC Summer Restaurant Week runs through August 30, though you can find several restaurants extending the deal through September 6 or longer.
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I would add 2941 and Vidalia to the list, though the former seems booked all week (though they're extending).
Vidalia also has a pretty good $20 three-course tasting lunch every day.
You will not go wrong at the Caucus Room.
Seriously? The Caucus Room blows.
Rasika is good, but for the same price, you can have a sprawling Indian vegetarian buffet at Woodlands. Every. Damn. Day. When did Restaurant Week go from hit-or-miss to miss-or-near-miss?
And who doesn't want a nice "Hot Brown" for lunch, or indeed any old time?
Good call on Poste and PS7's. Though Rasika is totally worth it, I'd worry about smelling like curry for the rest of the day. Willow in Arlington and Vermilion in Alexandria are also solid options for non-downtown RW lunch.
I would add Zola to the list, as well - I just lunched there today, and they're offering the full menu with no upcharges. So you can get the lobster mac & cheese for your entree, and at $21, you've already gotten your money's worth before adding appetizer and dessert. And it's delicious!
went to Kinkead's for RW lunch today. Pretty decent for 20 bucks.
The Prime Rib is charging a $4 upcharge for, of all things, the prime rib. You might as well just go for dinner (no upcharges at dinner) and avoid the lunch rush.
Upcharges are ruining restaurant week!
went to poste today, really yummy. the salad starter is whatever (although that sea salted bread is great!) but my friend got the french onion soup which looked fantastic and was huge! major points for the crab BLT and the blueberry sorbet, which is served this this awesome almond ice cream.
I did Kinkead's last year and their lunch was delicious! Also major points for offering a cheese course in the dessert options for my sugar-averse companion. Hope that pans out again this year.
This is a link that to a street view that points directly at the sign. I've taken pictures of it before because I found the verbiage utterly baffling.
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&q=16th+St+NW+%26+U+St+NW,+Washington,+District+of+Columbia,+20009&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=43.307813,79.013672&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=FX_TUQIdJIRo-w&split=0&ll=38.916682,-77.036819&spn=0.010435,0.01929&z=16&layer=c&cbll=38.916763,-77.03674&panoid=B1-mwGhUPkdWbjUJeZMfDQ&cbp=12,262.46,,0,2.83