1322 U Street NW

Washington, D.C. 20009-4445

202-234-1884 

We arrived at Crème Café in anticipation of deliciously, yummy brunch food. Sadly, there was a line out the door and a 20-minute wait. A miscommunication with the hostess left us waiting for our table longer than she’d promised, but once it was discovered, we were seated right away.

The restaurant was totally packed and incredibly loud to the point where we had to shout at our own table. It sort of ruined the atmosphere, having to yell at the person sitting across from you, but people seemed generally happy. The overall atmosphere of the café is nice. It features a full bar with seating and TV for you sports fanatics. Bench seating lines the tables along one side. There’s nice lighting in the restaurant and little flower filled bottles of Voss water line the benches. We did notice one disturbing thing though; it smelled a bit like fish in the front, but like syrup in the back of the restaurant.

The menu is extensive for brunch, which is available from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays. We especially enjoyed the bottomless Bloody Mary’s and Mimosas for $16. That’s quite a steal if you ask us. The following is the rundown of what our table ordered:

• The Traditional. It lacked Hollandaise sauce, but held true to the standard. It is served with greens.

• French toast with berries. Overall, it’s very good. The berries are fresh. It’s a large portion, perfect for splitting.

• Build your own omelet. It was ordered with sausage, bacon and tomatoes. Much to this customer’s dismay, the restaurant does not carry avocados. The omelet came with dry greens and was rated with a mild OK. It was really big and our friend couldn’t finish it. He said it was “too much food for even a big guy.” Also, he had to order taters on the side, which were interesting and came served with basil and onions and were really good. Though, this friend of ours wouldn’t order the omelet again.

• Lox and Bagels. They were overpowered by the saltiness of the capers. Our friend who ordered this dish said he was, “Jealous of the quiche at our neighbor’s table.”

• Cheesy grits. Would you like grits with your cheese? That was our initial and overall reaction to this goodness in a bowl. It’s definitely not for the faint of heart and if you’re lactose intolerant, we suggest you skip the cheese.

Our server, who shall not be named, was less than stellar. He forgot our drinks. The bad service made the food seem not as good as it could’ve been. Half of our table said they wouldn’t come back again.

As for the parking situation, you’re lucky to find some on U St., especially on a Saturday morning. But make sure you have lots of quarters to feed the meters. You only get 7.5 minutes for 25 cents.

Rating: La, leaning toward blah. 

523 8^th St SE

Washington, DC 20003

202-543-6401

What is it that you’re craving? Steak, pasta, sushi? They have it all at Jordan’s 8. We were pleasantly surprised at the modern decor and super friendly staff. Jordan’s 8 was our restaurant of choice on a beautiful Sunday evening. Located at the new hot spot, 8th street SE (Eastern Market), Jordan’s 8 is a two-story restaurant and lounge with an awesome, covered outdoor patio.  

The first floor was super inviting with a full-length bar and posh seating; perfect for any date. The second floor looked comfy, cozy with lounge seating, sushi bar and topped off with a hookah. How awesome is that?! Of course both bars, upstairs and down, have flat screen TVs for those of you who must keep up with your reality television, sports and such. But one cannot get bored here. We took our dining outside to enjoy the perfect weather and noticed it’s great for those of you who enjoy quiet romantic dinners.

Drinks and food. There is always some kind of special, so whether it’s ladies’ night or drinks out with the boys, you’re going to get a deal. Make sure you visit before the big bachelor party rolls through, otherwise your selection will be limited (as was the case when we visited. A large bachelor party had been at the restaurant the night before and cleaned the bar out.) But, other than that the “Luau” drink hit the spot. It was strong, but very tasty.

The food was OK. We wouldn’t jump through hoops for it, but it was well prepared and the presentation was beautiful. The lamb chops, served with mashed potatoes and spinach, were good but not very flavorful. The lamb could have been a little more tender. The burger was good, but nothing to rave about. You can tell the meat is good but there isn’t much flavor. Fries were substituted with a salad because of said bachelor party, but it did have great dressing. The bow tie pasta with chipotle chicken, was spicy but in a good way. The sauce is like an Alfredo-chipotle sauce. MamaLa gave it an 8 out of 10. She said it was, “A little boring because the flavor is just the spice.”

So, overall, the food was missing that “kick,” but that won’t hold us back from hanging out there again. We’d like to see this place on a Saturday night. Stay tuned!

Rating: La, for now.

1025 First St SE

Washington, DC  20003

(202) 652-1009

Justin’s Café is finally open for business everyone! Sip ‘N’ Tell has waited six long months for this moment to arrive. They opened about a week ago and have been booming ever since. The café is located at the bottom of the Velocity, a condo building that’s pretty much empty and still trying to sell, and just a few short blocks from the Navy Yard metro on the green line. Super easy to access and there’s tons of parking… when there isn’t a Nats game.

It’s a cute, cozy café and has the potential to turn into a sports bar very quickly despite only having one television located at the bar. We know it can be everything you want it to be; a date spot, a place to watch the game with the boys or the café across the street to grab a bite to eat when you’re too lazy to make dinner yourself. With reasonable prices, it’s definitely a place where regulars can hang out.

Having only opened a short week ago, the servers are still a little nervous and do make mistakes, but don’t be fooled, they’re super friendly and eager to please. Our server, Hunter, even made some conversation with us and gave us a bit of his background. We ordered lots of food and enjoyed the hell out of it. The rundown is as follows:

Moultrie salad is awesome. Wentworth pizza is finger-lickin good. Both the Rutledge and Radcliffe sandwiches were served with over-cooked, dry chicken but the concept for the sandwiches makes you want to try them again. Overall, the food is definitely worth trying out and delicious and we’d like to categorize it as, healthy drunk food, which means you can really eat it anytime, day or night.

We love that when you’re not sure about a beer, the servers are more than willing to give you a taste test to make sure you’re getting the right drink. We’re sad about the small liquor selection (there was no Malibu rum). The bartenders still need a little help mixing drinks, but we’re going to give you guys a pass anyway because of how new you are. We know that with those baseball crowds pouring in, you’ll get the hang of it in no time. For those of you that like to get cash back from your credit cards, don’t count on using your Discover here; they don’t accept it yet. But, if you’re looking for a sweet spot to write that paper or catch up on your online reading, Justin provides you with free wi-fi.

And this brings us to Justin, the owner. Justin is super cool. Right off the bat you can tell he’s down-to-earth and just wants to get to know his customers and keep them happy. This is his first restaurant, but he’s had lots of experience prior to this. The guy knows what he’s doing. Stay tuned for new things to come to Justin’s Café, like next week with their new happy hour from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Rating: La, with the potential for Oooh-la-la

@Midtown

1219 Connecticut Avenue NW

Washington, DC 20036

(202) 466-7529

Last night the ladies of Sip ‘N’ Tell decided to go check out the “Ladies’ Night” at Midtown in Dupont Circle. We were headed out for a night of drinks and dancing, in a more casual fashion though. We threw on our dancing shoes, but kept the outfits low key.

We arrived to discover a 5-7 minute-long line, which we were ok with as last night the temperatures hadn’t dropped too drastically. There were some unsavory characters standing in line that provided for good conversation, but that didn’t stop us from wanting to check out the place. Once we were allowed inside, sans cover as it was Ladies’ Night, we discovered a ridiculously long stair case that was lined with bright white lights (making it hard to see). We made it to the second level only to discover, we had to continue on up to the third level. You definitely burn off some calories for those tequila shots to come.

We made it to the “Loft,” which is what they call the third floor, only to discover there was almost no one inside. Now why did they have us wait in line outside? We went up to the bar to order said tequila shots and discovered a nice little surprise. From 10 p.m. to just before 11 p.m., on Thursday nights, ladies drink free! Now we know why they call it Ladies’ Night. No cover, free drinks, how much better can it get?

Well, let us tell you. The DJ was actually on point. He was spinning records that kept us singing and had there been more of a crowd, people would’ve been out on the dance floor. It doesn’t hurt that he was pretty good looking either, despite his tacky “Drink Till You Want Me” T-shirt.

The bit of crowd that was there consisted of mostly men. We assume it was because of the Ladies’ Night, they were excepting lots of ladies, thus coming out in the masses only to discover the ladies were nowhere to be found. Though, the ladies that were to be found must’ve lost their clothes on the way to the bar, as most of them were scantily clad and just barely pushing 21.

We didn’t stay long because the ladies of Sip ‘N’ Tell do have day jobs, but we enjoyed our time while we were there. We relaxed on some of the bench seats sipping on Tequila Sunrises and Dirty Shirley’s while people watching. We bobbed our heads to the music and enjoyed the fact that we didn’t spend a dime last night, not even on parking (which by the way, we found within minutes).

On our way out we checked out the second floor, which had opened up later. The party seemed to move from the upstairs “Loft” to this level and people were getting fired up. We noticed the dance floor boasted two stripper poles… so those of you that are feeling frisky, hop to.

Rating: La.

2121 14th Street Northwest

Washington, DC 20009
(202) 332-9672

Sip ‘N’ Tell made reservations for 5 and we showed up a bit late, but we were still seated in a prime booth in a very timely fashion. Right from the jump we had a good vibe about this place.

As most do, we ordered drinks upon being seated. We tested out the “Lavender lemonade,” which hits you straight in the jaw; it’s strong in a sour way. The “Grown and Sexy” martini is excellent, a bit like a cosmopolitan. The sweet tea is perfect. The non-alcoholic beverages come in quaint canning jars.

GabbyLa ordered the steak and our server, Keira (who was awesome by the way, very attentive) recommended red wines in an informative manner and helped her pick a good choice. The steak meal is cooked to order. We also tried out the muscles, which had sand in them, but were cooked perfectly. The garlic bread is a little overpowering, but if garlic is your thing, go for it. The corn bread is light and fluffy, but needs its own original butter. The fried chicken meal is good, standard. And their mac and cheese, well, its to die for. We were completely overwhelmed by it, happy and in absolute bliss. The shrimp creole is excellent. As you can tell, we were beyond pleased with everything we ordered. So good in fact that we wanted doggy bags, when this is typically not the case.

The food is very Louisiana, Creole, southern-style cooking, instead of the expected Florida vibe. The music was too loud making it difficult for Sip ‘N’ Tell to have a conversation in our booth. It’s not the ideal place to meet people for the first time because of the noise factor, but if you’re coming with a group of friends who have voices that can carry, this is your spot.

Our only real complaint, aside from the noise, is that their napkins are tacky. They look like kitchen towels, but you know that when we’re taking the time to complain about napkins, in fact, there wasn’t much to complain about at all.

The patrons are happy, the servers are nice. Even management stopped by our table to check on us. What more could we ask for?

Rating: Oooh-La-La