Virginia, DC’s Most Expensive Restaurants Are Foodie Favorites

WASHINGTON, DC — If you want to impress your date or visitors with fine dining, there's only one place to go in Virginia, and likewise in Washington, D.C. The Daily Meal named the colonial Inn at Little Washington restaurant as the most expensive dining establishment in Virginia, while Minibar holds the title for priciest dining in the District. Both venues are staples of best dining lists nationwide and locally.

Here's what the food site says about the Inn at Little Washington: "Patrick O’Connell’s Michelin three-star Inn at Little Washington, located in the colonial village of Washington, Virginia, is about as good a restaurant as you’ll ever encounter. There are three different tasting menus (one for “gastronauts,” one seasonal, and one vegetarian) to choose from, but they all have the same price tag: $248 — $418 if you include wines — before tax and tip."

A sample menu includes: a tuna and foie gras confit in a black truffle vinaigrette, blackened heart of Wagyu ribeye with grilled romaine and bone Marrow custard, and chocolate-hazelnut mousse napoleon.

Earlier this year the James Beard Foundation gave its Lifetime Achievement Award to chef and owner O'Connell, a five-time James Beard Award winner. Last year, The Inn at Little Washington made history by becoming the first ever D.C.-area restaurant to earn three Michelin stars, the most coveted honor in the entire culinary industry. It is actually located a good ways outside of D.C., about an hour and a half drive west of the city.

And of DC's Minibar the editors said: "Chef José Andrés’ Michelin two-star masterpiece, minibar, is the crown jewel of the D.C. dining scene, and a must-visit for those interested in avant-garde cooking. A meal here, which consists of many small courses, costs $275 per person. You can add wine pairings for $195 or $500."

Chef Andres runs more than a dozen restaurants, and a nonprofit that has fed millions of natural disaster victims, including survivors of hurricanes in Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. Now the Bethesda resident has his own holiday. Montgomery County Maryland declared Oct. 28 as José Andrés Day.

The restaurant at 855 E. Street NW describes itself as "a study in avant-garde cooking where each bite is designed to thrill the senses by pushing the limits of what we have come to expect - and what is possible - from food. The creations combine art and science, as well as tradition and technique, to deliver an imaginative and progressive tasting menu, offered at a communal setting."

The report also listed Masa in New York City, which costs patrons $595 per person before drinks and tax for its world-famous sushi, and Urasawa in Los Angeles, which will set you back $450 per person for the Michelin-rated Japanese food.

The Daily Meal didn’t include big, high-end steakhouses on the list, with the interest of keeping it as local as possible.

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