Toughest reservations in DC?

[BackwardsHat]

What restaurants in DC are the hardest to get into? How difficult are they relative to others in the US? Abroad?

Thanks!

[bilrus]

The Inn at Little Washington fills up pretty quickly - pretty much the same day reservations come open - 30 days in advance (if I remember correctly).

That's pretty comparable to the hardest places around the country.

After that, I don't know that there are any places that fill up most nights right away, although I would venture a guess that places like Citronelle, Laboratorio and Maestro fill up pretty quickly for weekends and big events.

[Joe H]

The Inn at Little Washington is nowhere near as difficult to make a reservation at, even on Saturdays. Ten years ago this was perhaps in league with The French Laundry but not any more. I would suggest that you could get in on Saturday even at the last minute. As their prices have risen (prix fixe is now $150 for friday and Sautrday with a $300 suppliment for the chef's table-all for four courses plus two amuse) the quality of other restaurants in the Washington area have dramatically risen. I believe Maestro, Citronelle and Laboratorio all to be superior to The Inn today. While they lack the sumptuous luxury their cuisine is more imaginative and, for Maestro and Citronelle, innovatively presented. My main criticism about The Inn is that it has not grown over the past ten years. Excellence is unquestionably there but Patrick O'Connell has stood still. Hopefully Tom Sietsema's statement that it had three stars-NOT four-inspired him to return to the level he was once on.

Laboratorio is probably D.C.'s toughest reservation along with Maestro on Friday and Saturday night. Obelisk and L'Auberge Chez Francois also compete for popularity. But the overall most difficult reservation, even among the most difficult in America, is Patowmack Farm in Lovettsville which books up in early July for weekends well into October. This is D. C.'s version of Eiginsinn Farm and it is extraordinary.

[Mark Sommelier]

I'm lucky to work in a great restaurant that is a busy place. Prime time reservations for weekends fill up 5 weeks ahead. The restaurant is full every night. Off prime time reservations are always easier to get anywhere.

[BackwardsHat]

Are you talking about Maestro in the Galleria at the Ritz Carlton?

If so, I am surprised... I have eaten there, literally, at least 50 times... I never really stopped to think about it as being one of the best in DC, but I guess it really is a pretty amazing place... I just don't really give too much thought since it's a local place and I routinely eat lunch and dinner at both ritzs (pentagon and tysons) and 4 seasons here in DC... I guess I just thought of them as "hotel restaurants"... How blase of me!

My first dining experience at maestro was christmas of 2001... and I've been back quite often since then... I have had nothing but great treatment and meals every time... The various chefs have even brought me gifts from the kitchen at the end of the meal...

Ya, you know, now that I start to think about it, the maestro really is a great place to eat...

Edited March 12, 2004 by backwardshat (log)

[SWoodyWhite]

I'm lucky to work in a great restaurant that is a busy place. Prime time reservations for weekends fill up 5 weeks ahead. The restaurant is full every night. Off prime time reservations are always easier to get anywhere.

All right, Mark, you've got my curiosity going.

How much flexibility should a diner expect to put in to get a decent table at a top restaurant? What times are best to aim for, for say a four-top, at say Citronelle (just as an example; if you want to change the example, by all means do)? Is it easier to get in prior to prime dining hours, or later? And what could I expect from the kitchen and staff that might be different at those hours? (And be honest here! I've given you an out; use it!)

[BackwardsHat]

Thanks for the reply Joe H!

Patowmack Farm sounds fabulous! I will have to try it... Any particular month during the year the best time to go? Any particular day during the week? Any strategy you'd like to share for securing a reservation?

I have to agree with you that the inn has stagnated... I haven't been in a few years, but when I last went, I would have expected it to have progressed beyond where it was...

I have been to Gallelio, but never in the back room (which I'm guessing is Laboratorio), I'll have to check it out... I have always gone there on business so I never made the reservation and so I never really gave the back room a second thought...

Thanks again for the response!

[babka]

My roommate's girfriend is visiting from Nebraska. Last night, once she'd left the room, I asked where he was taking her for her birthday.

Oh! he was proud of himself, and said, with a grin on his face, "That place you told me about! The one with all the courses and the cool menu!"

"Atlantico minibar?"

"Yeah."

"Tomorrow?"

"Yeah!"

"Do you have a reservation?"

"No."

so, um, thanks Palena for having a table open after 9.30....

[bilrus]

The Inn at Little Washington is nowhere near as difficult to make a reservation at, even on Saturdays. Ten years ago this was perhaps in league with The French Laundry but not any more. I would suggest that you could get in on Saturday even at the last minute. As their prices have risen (prix fixe is now $150 for friday and Sautrday with a $300 suppliment for the chef's table-all for four courses plus two amuse) the quality of other restaurants in the Washington area have dramatically risen. I believe Maestro, Citronelle and Laboratorio all to be superior to The Inn today. While they lack the sumptuous luxury their cuisine is more imaginative and, for Maestro and Citronelle, innovatively presented. My main criticism about The Inn is that it has not grown over the past ten years. Excellence is unquestionably there but Patrick O'Connell has stood still. Hopefully Tom Sietsema's statement that it had three stars-NOT four-inspired him to return to the level he was once on.

Laboratorio is probably D.C.'s toughest reservation along with Maestro on Friday and Saturday night. Obelisk and L'Auberge Chez Francois also compete for popularity. But the overall most difficult reservation, even among the most difficult in America, is Patowmack Farm in Lovettsville which books up in early July for weekends well into October. This is D. C.'s version of Eiginsinn Farm and it is extraordinary.

Joe, we know your feelings about the Inn's quality and the fact that it has slipped over the years. And having been to both French Laundry and the Inn last year I would agree that what Keller is doing is on a little higher plane than what is going on at the Inn.

That said, the problem with stagnation is only a problem for the very small portion of the population who has the opportunity to go there more than once or twice in a lifetime. The food at the Inn is still very good for the first time or occasional diner(even if the decor is a little fussy for my taste).

And even at the French Laundry, you see dishes like the Salmon Coronet amuse and the Oysters and Pearls and other stand-bys on the menu nearly every time someone reports back on their meal. Both of these dishes were also on the opening menu at Per Se and will probably still be once it reopens.

That said, the point of this thread isn't the quality of the restaurants, but the difficulty in getting reservations. There are probably twenty or thirty restaurants in the area that are serving better food than a place like L'Auberge Chez Francois, but it is still harder to get a reservation there than at most places in town.

[BackwardsHat]

So what I hear so far, is, based SOLELY on how hard it is to get a reservation, the order is approx like so:

1) Patowmack Farm

2) L'Auberge Chez Francois

3) Inn at Little W.

4) Laboratorio

5) Citronelle

6) Maestro

Any missing from that list or are any of them clearly out of order?

[JennyUptown]

I have heard about one place you might like. Veeeeeerrrry exclusive. No reservations. Post-modern decor with lots of steel and light wood, somewhat industrial looking.

Small menu with only a handful of options. Everything is made to your exact specifications though. Once you order, it won't take long to get your food, but sometimes upon arrival...it's like "shoot, this might take awhile" the place is so packed. People don't go there for the wines - all they offer is beer actually, and one carefully selected cocktail.

The place is called....

I don't know...should I share this secret? Hmm....

OK, I'll tell you. It's Chipotle. You'll love it.

Edited March 12, 2004 by JennyUptown (log)

[BackwardsHat]

JennyUptown: hehe, cute! But sorry, I won't go to any restaurant owned by McDonald's...

[JennyUptown]

JennyUptown:  hehe, cute!  But sorry, I won't go to any restaurant owned by McDonald's... 

Of course you wouldn't!

PS LOVE your web site! It's so...subversive and original, as if you are your generation's Bret Easton Ellis. PM me when you get to the part about hookers.

Edited March 12, 2004 by JennyUptown (log)

[iamthestretch]

No offence, man, but if it took you several dozen meals to notice that Maestro is something special then you've either got a severely jaded palate, or you generally prefer restaurants for their scene rather than their cuisine. If the former, I'm sure Gaignaire/Taillevent/Savoy/L'Astrance et al may help. If the latter, I reckon Cafe Milano will be right up your alley.

And Jenny's right, the website is pure brilliance. A savage, spot-on satire of the sort of clueless, nouveau riche brand-humpers who retreat from their own manifest personal inadequacies into the grossest forms of fuck-you hypermaterialism. Some very nice subtle touches, too -- the overpriced Ford Mondeo, the American Psycho grooming regimen -- but I do think that if you want to develop the comic persona further you will have to ratchet back the parody a little. People just aren't going to believe anyone could be that much of an tool in the real world.

[BackwardsHat]

No offence, man, but if it took you several dozen meals to notice that Maestro is something special then you've either got a severely jaded palate, or you generally prefer restaurants for their scene rather than their cuisine. If the former, I'm sure Gaignaire/Taillevent/Savoy/L'Astrance et al may help. If the latter, I reckon Cafe Milano will be right up your alley.

And Jenny's right, the website is pure brilliance. A savage, spot-on satire of the sort of clueless, nouveau riche brand-humpers who retreat from their own manifest personal inadequacies into the grossest forms of fuck-you hypermaterialism. Some very nice subtle touches, too -- the overpriced Ford Mondeo, the American Psycho grooming regimen -- but I do think that if you want to develop the comic persona further you will have to ratchet back the parody a little. People just aren't going to believe anyone could be that much of an tool in the real world.

Re maestro:

I dunno man, maybe I mistyped, I mean, I've always enjoyed Maestro, it's a great place, I've realized that since my first meal there... I guess I was more just surprised that a restaurant I've been to many times is one of the most difficult to get into in the DC area (remember, this thread was originally about difficulty of getting a res, not how good the food is)...

But since you mention it, I do enjoy restaurants for BOTH their scene and their cuisine... And I especially enjoy the restaurants that take either (or rarely both) to the extreme... But I will always prefer the restaurant that exels only in their cuisine over the one that excels only in their decor...

Re my website:

It's a fine and difficult line to maintain stretch...that is, the balance between parody and reality...

But you'd be surprised, it seems that about 5% of the responses I get are positive, from people who actually "get it", like you and Jenny... The rest are angry, hateful responses from everyone else (which leads me to believe they are taking the bait)... That 1:20 ratio is about what I am looking for... But thanks for the tip, I will take it into account and perhaps make some subtle revisions here and there... Glad you made the Am. Psy. connection with the grooming section

[DonRocks]

Re my website:  It's a fine and difficult line to maintain stretch...that is, the balance between parody and reality...

I just saw the website this morning, and it is indeed a train-wreck - especially the whole Lastname,Firstname thing i.e. Backward,Shat i.e. Shat Backward.

I assume that "backwardshat" on eGullet is someone who stumbled across this kid's parody website, decided to make up an eponymous screen name, and began posting here to jerk peoples chains?

Mildly amusing if true, though I could think of more fruitful endeavors.

Edited March 13, 2004 by DonRocks (log)

[clifford]

If so, I am surprised... I have eaten there, literally, at least 50 times...

You've eaten at Maestro FIFTY TIMES since it opened 2 1/2 yars ago and never found it a difficult reservation? Obviously you are very well-heeled and recognized by Emmanuel, Fabio, et al., because weekend reservation are often times full six weeks in advance.

[BackwardsHat]

If so, I am surprised... I have eaten there, literally, at least 50 times...

You've eaten at Maestro FIFTY TIMES since it opened 2 1/2 yars ago and never found it a difficult reservation? Obviously you are very well-heeled and recognized by Emmanuel, Fabio, et al., because weekend reservation are often times full six weeks in advance.

I've eaten there equally on weekdays and weekends... But yes, I almost always go with my dining partner who knows the staff there, so she takes care of getting us a table...

[mnebergall]

I'm inclined to agree with DonRocks.

[morela]

I've always found that the hardest place in the city to get resis is the place that don't take 'em. Equal Opportunity Table Turning

I'm bored again.

[DonRocks]

Welcome to ego-wallet dot com

[morela]

e-pullet

pul·let

French poulet, from Old French, diminutive of poul cock

I am an awful, awful person, by the way. More-hella

...and my 'toughtest reservation' is that I can't seem to stop posting.

Edited March 16, 2004 by morela (log)

[Mrs. P]

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[hjshorter]

Thanks for that, Mrs. P