Cafe Atlantico’s Latin Dim Sum Brunch Paradise
Friday, July 31st, 2009
For my final brunch review, I headed to Cafe Atlantico for their Latin Dim Sum, on the recommendation of the venerable Mark Bittman. While certainly on the spendy side, Atlantico serves up inventive small dishes and excellent cocktails. MORE »



Everyone in DC loves Ben’s Chili Bowl, the U Street landmark known for its half-smokes, mediocre chili, long lines and politician sightings. This past year, Ben’s opened up Next Door next door, an upscale bar and restaurant that serves generally delicious southern food in an attractive setting, but with bad service.
The Tabard Inn is one of DC’s oldest and most historic hotels, with a simple yet elegantly decorated restaurant set to one side. (There is also an outdoor patio area). The Tabard Inn’s small dining area usually has a noisy crowd during brunch, the only real detraction from what is one of the best brunches in town.
Washington loves its Eastern Market, which finally
Complete with a French-accented waitstaff, a large menu of generally delicious Gallic brunch dishes, and a charming bistro atmosphere and decor (including an outdoor seating area), Napoleon Bistro in Adams Morgan is an excellent brunch choice.
The Florida Avenue Grill is an old-school Southern diner, serving classic fare since the 1940s. Go here for the history and the charm, but not for your health.
Adams Morgan has a big selection of brunch options, from the overcrowded and overrated Diner to the drag queen brunch at Perry’s. In this brunch reviewer’s opinion, the authentic French cafe La Fourchette has the best brunch on 18th Street.
With an aviation/travel motif, Cafe Saint-Ex is a bistro in the newly-cool 14th street corridor between U street and Logan Circle. While many people know of Saint-Ex because of its weekend tradition of sweaty, crowded and dude-tacular basement dance parties, it actually has a decent brunch.
Wonkabout has already examined the
Darlington House opened to high expectations last year when it replaced the popular Childe Harold on 20th and Connecticut, north of Dupont Circle. Unfortunately, Darlington, despite its pleasant outdoor seating, fails to live up to expectations.
As the weather warms up, many brunch seekers head to the Heights in Columbia Heights for its enjoyable outdoor setting and its extensive, and complicated, Bloody Mary menu. Unfortunately, the food is bad.
Creme Cafe serves in all likelihood the most popular brunch on U Street. Your brunch reviewer has observed an occasional hour-long wait to get in. What’s all the fuss about? Must be their all-you-can-drink bloody mary or mimosa deal combined with very good haute Southern cuisine.
Your brunch reviewer doesn’t get up to Petwork too often. But the Eastern European and Scandinavian brunch fare at Domku, which means “little house” in Polish, is worth the trip.
Everyone from the South keeps talking about this strange southern brunch phenomenon called “Fried Chicken and Waffles” — essentially crispy fried chicken on top of a Belgian waffle, with maple syrup. In D.C. this dish is perhaps best made at the Southern/Belgian bistro Marvin.