The Capital Grille, Washington DC

My husband and I's overall experience at Capital Grille was overall 8/10. It's been about a year since we last went (for my husband's birthday) but the overall experience was something we'd love to experience again.

It starts with optional valet, but my husband and I chose to find parking in a nearby parking garage since it's in the heart of DC. There are workers to assist you in opening the doors, and service was fairly fast in terms of the hostess checking you in and being shown to your table. It's worth noting we made a reservation, so I wouldn't be able to speak on what walk-in patrons would be like.

The space is on the smaller end but decorated with class and has a quiet, "old money" ambience. It is understood many US politicians (senators, congressmen/women) dine here. No one party ever got too loud throughout the night. The maître d' visited our table one time while we were dining to ask how our experience was.

The customer service was pretty incredible if I do say so myself. They go above and beyond to make sure your requests come to fruition. As it was a birthday celebration for us, they brought out a complimentary dessert at the end of the night and complimentary flutes of champagne for each of us.

Alright, the crux of the review: the food. The food was incredible-that is all. I don't have any particular dishes to recommend, but their menu seems to have something for everyone, and I'm not sure you'll go wrong with anything you order on there. However, with it being a pretty high-end restaurant, their specialty fares are choice cuts of meat, alcoholic drinks, and various Italian pasta dishes.

The price is 4x dollar signs for a reason ($$$$). It's certainly not cheap. We spent total, about $260+ (without tips) for an alcoholic drink each, two appetizers, two entrees (one being a steak), and another dessert. With that being said, all the food and drinks we ordered were divine and certainly something we'd be happy to have again. Could it a bit more affordable? Absolutely. But is that the clientele they're serving? Absolutely not. Just understand when you go, you're choosing to participate in a more exclusive experience-good or bad-you'll pay a decent amount for your dinner, and the food and service you'll get in return is pretty damn great.

The place had a great atmosphere, our server lacked energy and the food was not quite to my tastes compared to other steakhouses. I personally expected more from a restaurant of this caliber.

Took my girlfriend to The Capital Grille for her birthday. Had a reservation for seating in the bar and indicated that it was for a birthday. When we arrived, the lovely young lady inquired as to who's birthday it was and immediately changed our seating to a very nice table in the restaurant. Most definitely an upgrade!
Our waiter, Oscar was exceptional. He offered recommendations to our inquiries. He was knowledgeable about the wine list.and his overall demeanor was perfect for the occasion.
We took our time as we wanted the experience to last and ordered each course separately. My girlfriend made mention of this to Oscar and his response was to take all the time we wanted and he was happy to accommodate us.
Had their famous calamari and it did not disappoint. We split a Burrata and Heirloom salad and it was excellent.
To digress, when I told my girl where we were going for dinner, she made mention about the best steak she had ever had, and it was a Filet Oscar, and how long it had been (years) since she had seen that anywhere. Well, low and behold, one of the specials was Filet Oscar. So that made her evening.
While she was in the ladies' room, I asked Oscar for a dessert menu. Instead of the menu, her brought her a sampler of their wonderful deserts on a plate embossed with Happy Birthday in chocolate powder. Perfect!
All in all, this was an absolutely amazing experience and exactly why I chose The Capital Grille in DC as our destination for this dinner.
I wanted it to be perfect for her birthday. And thank to the entire staff, it was!
Well done Oscar and the entire team at The Capital Grille!

The Capital Grille is hands down THE BEST FOOD AND SERVICE I've had in the entire DC area over the past 30+ years. Pricey dishes but so worth the money that the memory of your meal will stay with you long after your culinary experience - and absolutely not in a bad way. (Filet mignon around $45, chicken with mushrooms $30 - out-of-body experience delicious - etc.) Located just down the street from the Capitol Building - dark red/brown building facade with two large bronze (?) lions standing guard outside, you can't miss it. And, don't miss glimpsing into the meat locker glass window to the left of the host/-ess desk.a sight to behold and hoping not filled with tourists who hadn't expected such high restaurant bills { ;-) ? }.

Typical area museum and Capitol Hill tourists will generally bypass this fine-dining, upscale restaurant - not the right venue for noisy, cranky kids (young or old) or the fast food crowd - as it caters to a more discerning, respectful clientele who want a quiet, calm, dark but comfortable interior and atmosphere and who aren't reticent to spend some real money on truly exceptional cuisine and stellar service by seasoned service professionals in suits. Cannot recommend highly enough.

We were in DC just for fun from SC but didn’t really plan where we were going to eat. My husband made us reservations and we were blown away. Our server, Adam, took amazing care of us along with his server assistant that evening. Drinks were amazing. Entrees were even better. We had bone in dry aged New York strip and it was the best steak we’ve ever had. Adam even gave us key lime pie for dessert without even asking us. Do yourself a favor and visit The Capital Grille! We will be back whenever we are back in town!

Wonderful night out at The Capital Grille! Everything was wonderful, as always. A certain destination for a special occasion, or a high class date night. Definitely stop here for fantastic service, a great atmosphere, and a nicely varied menu.

The steak was perfect. Service was excellent. I appreciate the fact that the service was attentive to my signifivant other and I without fail. Glass was never empty, even though busy. Happy they triumphed over the pandemic.

We made reservations for the patio. Arrived 45 minutes early and mentioned to them we did not want to sit in the bar for dinner. As they sat us that's where we ended up which was a disaster. Having a cocktail waitress wait in three tables in addition to the entire bar was like being at a fast food diner. Spoke to the manager and nothing she could do. We always go to Capital Grill when traveling we will never go to this one again.

Never a bad visit to Capital Grille. Food is just out of this world. Service was fantastic and our location was perfect. Really enjoyed our time at Capital Grill

Try the calamari entree, it was amazing. Steak sandwich was also perfect. A bit more formal than we anticipated, when walking in with 2 kids. But they were very professional about it. They have a children’s menu even if it is not in the official menu.

Food wasn't bad. Honestly average to me. I ordered a 22oz ribeye, medium, though it definitely came out well done. My sister ordered the lamb chops medium well, but they came out rare. I feel like this restaurant is too expensive for those kind of mistakes. We sat outside on a nice day, so the atmosphere was perfect. I enjoy the fact that you can peak into the meat cooler. I did feel weird that the hostess kept trying to sit us in the very back of the restaurant, even though the place was almost empty. We spent over $500 at this place, but it seemed they wanted to rush us off the table.

The Capital Grille exceeded my expectations! I thought this would be another Maestro or Prime Rib steakhouse with mediocre food tailoring to what I believe is unrefined, American high end dining; however, they were much better - tender cuts of meat, perfect service, and delicious seasoning. The food was done right, and the personable service complimented an elegant dining experience. My server, Mora, did a phenomenal job! She frequently checked on me and offered great recommendations. I thoroughly enjoyed my crab cake, and especially the accompanying sauce. It was superb. Mora helped substitute my NY Strip for a ribeye when I ordered their au poivre steak. This was an incredible decision, and well worth the markup! I didn’t love the creamy spinach and their bread basket but that was a minor hiccup when compared to the amazing mains. I was too full to try their dessert but I’ll be back soon!

Oh My My My! What a wonderful time! We went to Capitol Grill to try out their wine tasting. Our waiter was Luis and he recommended pair the wine with different appetizers and main courses. The atmosphere was very relaxed, but if you’re an influencer be careful of the side eyes from the patrons. They give you 7 wine tasting. We had the tune tarte which was delicious! I had the chicken with the risotto. My friend had the grill lamb with the Brussels sprout! I would definitely recommend this if you’re looking for wine tasting with a chill vibe!

The coolest place I ate while in washington
Excellent wine list, delicious food and impeccable service in a very beautiful and pleasant environment

If you are a person of color, DO NOT attend this establishment. The entire restaurant was full of white customers, and my friends and I were walked through the restaurant and taken to a back room. When we got there, everyone in the room was Black, and the only Black people outside of this room were against the back wall of the restaurant closest to said room. It was very clear to everyone present that we were purposely put together solely because we were Black and weren’t “allowed” to patronize the restaurant with their white customers. On top of that, the food wasn’t that good and the wine tasting my friends paid for, they only received 3 out of the 7 wines they should’ve been given. The service was terrible and we were there for an hour before our order even got put in. DO NOT RECOMMEND!

High quality restaurant. The whole environment is excellent but with one huge flaw: the temperature was POLAR. Consider that we had to take turns and go outside to warm up a bit. The next day we all had colds. Unfortunately in these conditions you can't even enjoy dinner.

Food was incredible and made to perfection. The hostess was great and our server was excellent. Only complaint was the seating. I called an hour in advance to make sure if I needed a reservation and I didn't. When my mom and I arrived not many people were in the restaurant and we were sat near the bathroom.