😍
Best tuna I’ve ever tasted
A great venue.
You got 3 things as an amuse bouche - the tuna was divine.
You then chose from menu your starter main and dessert.
It was really terrifically presented and tasted great.
The staff were also very pleasant.
I liked the open kitchen so you could see the chefs cooking.
😍
Great food, great experience.
Reservations need to be made far in advance but you can try your luck at snagging a spot at the bar right when they open. Added bonus is that you can order off an a la carte menu (or traditional pre fix) while at the bar!
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Glad I finally ventured out to The Dabney! Had a table on
Glad I finally ventured out to The Dabney! Had a table on the "patio" which is mostly enclosed anyway.The staff were all excellent - super helpful, very attentive.The small bites to start with their amuse bouche course were all good, nothing to write home about. First course hen of the woods mushrooms was my favorite dish. Second course I had the fluke, and it was fine. Hard to really impress with a white fish but that's not their fault. Liked the sticky pudding for dessert, but it's hard not to make me happy with a sticky pudding cake!Overall, had a great meal, but not sure I'd go back until there's a very different menu to try new things.
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I thought I had raved about the Dabney previously but looks
I thought I had raved about the Dabney previously but looks like I forgot to review in the past. Pre-COVID, I would have given 5 stars as I frequented often. Went back in January and although the service and cocktails were on point, the food fell disappointingly flat. Too many other options to replace with, particularly at that price point.
I thought I had raved about the Dabney previously but looks like I forgot to review in the past. Pre-COVID, I would have given 5 stars as I frequented often. Went back in January and although the service and cocktails were on point, the food fell disappointingly flat. Too many other options to replace with, particularly at that price point.
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I finally made it back to the dabney for the first time
I finally made it back to the dabney for the first time since Covid and things seem to have changed a bit....Don't get me wrong, the food and is delicious and if possible the staff has gotten even better, but woof have the prices changed! They are now doing a $95pp prefixed menu that gets you 3 little tasters to start, a small plate, meat course and dessert. While it was all delicious, I just don't feel like it was worth what we paid... $70 even $80? Maybe. I also noticed in my last review there were a ton of decently priced wines (which is always awesome to find). Unfortunately this time around the least expensive bottle of red was $65. In fact, of their list of maybe 20-25 red wines, only 5 we're under $100 per bottle. Maybe this is just the cost of becoming popular but I'm not going to lie I was a little disappointed. The Dabney was this great DC gem and now I feel like we'll look at other options before returning. Fingers crossed the prefixed menu isn't here to stay.
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Casual Michelin restaurant in DC.
Exquisite cuisine. Flavors are on point, execution and plating are exceptional.
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Feels like I got ROBBED.
Went for the Valentine's Day special with my boyfriend. The first course was good, but then it went downhill from there. Service was nice as expected, but the food just tasted BAD. THEN THE NEXT DAY WE ENDED UP GETTING FOOD Poisoning.
(They might have been good pre-covid, but they clearly had gone downhill from our visit)
I tried to call them to explain my experience and see about a partial refund and they refused. Do yourself a favor and go to Cranes in Penn Quarter.
Food and overall experience is WAY better, and you won't feel bad for leaving your pet at home.
We made a reservation for Valentine’s Day weekend. There was a special 6-course prefix menu so we could enjoy the atmosphere instead of staring at the menu. The wine pairing with each course was unique and fantastic. we were seated right in front of the hearth, the flames were blazing and the occasional breeze of hot air felt comforting for a night in February. The service was impeccable. I would definitely recommend The Dabney to anyone looking for high quality dining experience in a comfortable atmosphere.
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Dabney, Fallen from Grace?I've eaten at the Dabney at least
Dabney, Fallen from Grace?I've eaten at the Dabney at least 9 times from 2017-2019. During the pandemic, I ordered from them at least 3 times. I've spoken highly about the Dabney to everyone. I've recommended them many times. When my family is in town, the Dabney is the only place my family makes reservations at. At one point, it was my favorite restaurant. I ate at the Dabney just a few days ago, and I was utterly disappointed. Knowing the Dabney of the past and seeing where it is now shocked me. At some point in the past 2 years something happened, and I hope that Dabney sees this post so it can course correct.I'll start from the beginning, which was the moment we entered the restaurant (I was there with a friend). There was a couple in front of waiting to be seated. The host, in an effort to look for a server to seat them, had to turn her back to the couple to look for a server. It was enough time for me to notice that there was a delay. When it was our turn, the same thing happened. The host had to turn around to look for a server. Again, it was enough time for me to notice. Maybe this was just an off night? Nope. I messaged a friend who ate at the Dabney a few weeks before and he confirmed this happened to him. Dabney never had this issue before. Before, the process from entering the Dabney to being seated was seamless.After being seated, our waiter asked us what type of water we'd like. We said still water was fine. About 20 seconds after he left, another server comes by and asks us what water we'd like. Before we could even finish saying "still water is fine," the server turned away and walked off without directly acknowledging what we said. We got to "still water is" then he abruptly walked off to get the water. This was cold. This was the first time I experienced cold service at the Dabney. An off night? No. I messaged the same friend again and he confirmed that he also experienced cold service at the Dabney a few weeks back. Has this become the norm?Now the food. The small bites at the beginning were amazing. The grilled tuna was delicious, the black truffle custard was rich and decadent, and the surryano ham was surreal. At least 20 minutes elapsed between the small bites and our appetizers. That is a long period of time. My friend noticed it, I noticed it, and our waiter even came by to apologize for the wait! It appeared everyone else around us was being served. But where was our food? This was the first time I experienced a delay between courses at the Dabney.My friend ordered the woods mushroom appetizer, and I ordered the charred cabbage. Dabney can turn any vegetable into something magical; it's pretty much the only restaurant I'll go out of my way to order just a vegetable dish. The charred cabbage dish was a disappointment. The only saving grace was the foie gras hollandaise. The cabbage itself was completely uninspiring. I believe it was sweet potato crips on top of the foie gras? Well, they looked like Doritos. It did not look appealing at all. This was the first time I experienced Dabney missing with a vegetable dish.My friend ordered the farm pork, and I ordered the seven hills beef for our entrees. I had no qualms with the farm pork except for its plating which just looked off. There were 2 pieces of pork served in a circular round bowl, but the pork was pushed all the way across from each other to the edge of the bowl, and the other items were placed in the middle closer to the 2 other sides of the bowl. So you end up seeing a circular bowl with food organized like a square. The beef dish now. Everything on that dish was great except for the beef, which should be the star. The beef was tough. It was noticeably tough. The Dabney I knew never served beef like that.The cornbread, as usual, was amazing. The butter on top, pure bliss. And our desserts, the plum pudding and ola cheese, were great as well.The dessert bites at the end were amazing! Except again, the plating. They served us 6 bites in a small round bowl. The bites looked like packed sardines! Why not serve them on a small flat plate so each bite can have its moment to shine?Some may think I'm being too picky. But need I remind you that this is a Michelin star restaurant that never disappointed me before and had issues with service, wait time, and food all in one night. I've been to other Micheline restaurants and if they had some issue, it was only one of those, not all of them.Dabney, what happened to you? This was not the dinner I expected to have; furthermore, this is not what you'd expect from a Michelin star restaurant. That was the first time I left dinner at the Dabney more disappointed than satisfied. I wrote this review as objectively as possible and hope that you see it. I won't be recommending the Dabney to my friends and family anymore after our recent dinner there. I hope to come back after I hear things improve again. Please bring back the Dabney I once knew.
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Everything was delicious and the atmosphere is nice as
Everything was delicious and the atmosphere is nice as well- cozy and intimate. The staff were all very friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable about the menu. My favorites from the menu that night were the grilled mushrooms, duck confit, and plum pudding. The first bite of the plum pudding BLEW me away! So rich and moist, sweet but not overly so *chefs kiss* I believe the menu options change every day, but it seems that a few of the staple pieces seem to stay in the rotation. The only thing I didn't like was that it took a veeeery long time for each course to come out. The entire dining experience for 4 courses took 2.5-3 hours. Although I'm not the most well versed in coursed meals so maybe that's normal!
.. I just returned from my very expensive Valentine's dinner and I must say that I'm slightly disappointed. There were some big hits tonight but also some big misses. Things started off very well with the first several courses. My wife and I were in love with the special scallops dish that had some amazing flavors and really was exquisite. Things went sideways when I found a small fish bone, mid-bite that had somehow come to be at the bottom of my plated lamb shank dish. Our server politely apologized but didn't really take this situation serious, never mentioning it to the head chef or anyone else of significance. As our check came we expected a sincere apology from someone as the bone was quite sharp and if swallowed could have caused serious damage. The only thing we received, our $450 dollar bill. We came tonight based on the fact it was a 1-star Michelin restaurant. However tonight, they would not have earned that star. The staff on many occasions were very polite but a touch too casual and not as well trained as they could be. For example when I thanked a staff person for clearing the table between courses the response was "no problem" well it better not be a problem to clear the plates and straighten the table I'm paying for fine dining, this is not a casual setting. It may be a small slight but the lack of deference started to push our excellent experience towards the good level. Again, some hits and some misses. At the end of the day I don't feel as though I received what I had paid for it was very good but not great.
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I was looking forward to coming here for months.
The food was good but definitely geared for a gourmet palette. I wouldn't normally order lamb heart... but it's a fixed menu. Service is impeccable. My favorite parts were the drinks and dessert. Seemed a bit over rated to me
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We were here for a dinner (prix fixe) in November, and it
We were here for a dinner (prix fixe) in November, and it was somewhat disappointing versus expectations. I was really excited to finally make it here (didn't manage to get reservations on our last couple of trips), and honestly wanted to love the restaurant (especially in light of their focus on Mid-Atlantic cuisine), but we were ultimately left fairly lukewarm by the experience.Ambiance was probably the high point. It's an intimate (but not crowded) space with a beautiful open kitchen and wood-burning hearth, tucked away in a back alley away from too much hubbub (but which gave our Uber driver fits trying to find).As far as the food goes, nothing was actually bad (well, other than the chocolate/mint truffle that came with the check, which unfortunately was the last thing we ate and left a literal bad taste in our mouth at the end of the evening), but not very much really stood out either. The catfish sliders were probably the high point -- these were outstanding, and well worth the supplement to upgrade. The rockfish entree was also pretty good. On the negative side, pacing was uneven throughout the night, and getting cocktails from the bar was downright slow -- we took to ordering the next drink as soon as the prior one was delivered, and still had gaps without a drink. Perhaps they were having some staffing trouble with the pandemic, so I don't want to hit them too hard with this, but it was markedly worse than any place else we visited on our trip, which is unexpected at this tier of restaurant.I particularly wish they would focus more on their beverage program. Cider options were great, but beyond that the "by the glass" wine list left me flat. Since several courses didn't really lend themselves to any of the wines by the glass on offer, we decided to focus on cocktails instead. Unfortunately, the cocktails sounded better on the page than they tasted in execution (they were mostly out of balance to our palates, and not especially food friendly). We felt like they'd really benefit from a fixed set of wine pairings to go with the prix fixe menu, or at least a recommended wine by the glass for each course (no sommelier was in evidence for recommendations, and our waiter didn't have much to say about it). As it stands, if I went back, I'd probably just drink cider all night :-) Overall, I'd be willing to give them another try in the future, but with so many great restaurants in the city, and so little time that we spend there, it's likely going to be a while before we swing back around. Hopefully things are on point by then.
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The menu was very limited.
But the ambiance was quite nice and appealing. I did like the oysters but nothing else appealed to me.
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My birthday dinner at the Dabney was.
... fine. At a high level my big issues were that most of the dishes weren't special in terms of flavors and our meal timing was atrocious. Now for the details:Timing: We had a 530 reservation and got our complete order in as soon as we got our drinks. We weren't done until 730 - this wasn't because we were luxuriating, it's only 4 courses, we WAITED. Esp for the app and entree. The couple to our left, seated easily an hour after us got their entree probably 10 minutes after we did. Sure the restaurant was busy, but not until about an hour after we arrived so I'm not sure what the issue was here.Food: Snacks:Cauliflower soup: I really liked the flavors here - earthy and creamy. It would have been even better if it would have been a little frothy and I would have liked a slightly larger servingBeef tartar: The flavor of the chip this was served on completely overpowered the beef. It wasn't bad, it just tasted like a veggie chipLamb heart: This was my first time eating lamb heart so I can't compare it to much. The yogurt sauce was nice.Foie Gras: Meh. I don't know how well the cranberry played into the flavor profile and the fois gras itself wasn't as silky as other times I've had itMushroom app: If you're a fan of mushrooms this is a must. The flavors were so earthy and enjoyableHeritage chicken: Total snoozefest. I should have anticipated this given that it's chicken on top of mashed potatoes but I was hopeful there would be something special in the flavor profile and there wasn't. My chicken also had a small stabby bone left in it. I informed management and did receive a verbal apology.Pork: The sauce here was tasty, the dish presentation was really underwhelming one note in color and hubs was definitely still hungry at the end of it.Baked Virginia: This desert was quite good! I just had a bite of my husbands, but yum on the peanut and chocolateCheese dessert: This was just cheese and apple slices with some kind of caramel jam towards the bottom that didn't add much to it. I also got a piece of toast with a candle in it for my birthday.I know I can't compare a meal here to pineapple and pearls, for example, the cost point is very different (as is the M. star rating) but I just don't get how this restaurant got a star in the first place. I might have liked the Dabney better if I wasn't expecting a 'fine' meal. Regardless, I wouldn't come back because nothing I tried was compelling enough.