Restaurants & Bars

Foodie Favorites, Top Restaurants: Best DC, NoVA Dining Of 2019

Diners across the D.C., NoVA region had plenty to celebrate in 2019, as area eateries and chefs topped many best food and dining lists.

Michael O'Connell's profile picture
Michael O'Connell, Patch StaffVerified Patch Staff Badge

WASHINGTON, DC — The old adage used to be that Washington, D.C., was first in the nation and last in the National League. But, of course, the Washington Nationals changed all that by winning the World Series in 2019.

The capital city and its surrounding region garnered a first-place distinction in another area in 2019 — fine dining, as local restaurants and chefs appeared near the top of several "best of" lists.

The Northern Virginia/DC restaurant scene snagged quite a few accolades in 2019: several prestigious Open Table and Daily Meal lists included DC metro eateries as the most romantic or trendiest spots to go out. As 2019 winds down it's a good time to look back at some of the rankings that gave high marks to food and chefs in the region.

Find out what's happening in Washington DCfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Here are some of the top food stories for 2019:

This DC Eatery Is OpenTable's Most Reserved Restaurant In America

Find out what's happening in Washington DCfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Founding Farmers in D.C. was named America's most reserved restaurant, according to OpenTable.com. The popular restaurant, situated just blocks from the White House and focused on "scratch-made, responsibly sourced American cuisine," is 2019's most-booked restaurant on the website, OpenTable.com said in its annual report on dining trends. The most-reserved restaurant of the year was determined based on online seated reservations from Jan. 1 to Sept. 30.

Best Restaurants In Virginia, DC: Daily Meal's 2019 List

The Daily Meal unveiled its "Best Restaurants of 2019," and the online food and dining site included a handful of restaurants from Virginia and Washington, D.C. Diners in the area clearly value an exquisite meal prepared by talented, creative chefs. Roughly three restaurants are in the District of Columbia and Virginia, according to the National Restaurant Association.

DC Coffee Shop Makes Food And Wine's Best In U.S. List

After a process that took more than two years, Food & Wine Magazine has rounded up nearly 100 of the best cafes, coffee shops and espresso bars in the United States and only one of them is in the District of Columbia.

Esquire Critic Names DC Restaurant Among Best New Eateries In USA

Esquire critic Jeff Gordinier has released his list of the 22 best new restaurants in America for 2019, and a D.C. restaurant is on it. In fact, Seven Reasons — located at 2208 14th Street NW near the U Street Corridor — was the very first restaurant on the list.

1 DC Pizzeria Among 101 Best Pizza Joints In US: Daily Meal

The Daily Meal then reached out to a diverse list of pizza chefs, bloggers, critics and writers, and asked them to take a survey on the pizza shops where they actually had eaten.
At the end of the process, DC had one pizza joint that made the rankings. At No. 92 on the list is Timber Pizza Company, 809 Upshur Street NW in Washington, D.C.

José Andrés Named TIME For Kids' 2019 Person Of The Year

José Andrés, a celebrity chef from Bethesda whose nonprofit has fed millions of natural disasters victims, has been named TIME for Kids' 2019 Person of the Year. The publication says more than half a million votes were cast in the 2019 TIME for Kids Person of the Year poll.

Here are some of the other food and fine dining stories we covered in 2019:

And here are some restaurants that opened in 2019:

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

More from Washington DC