radical - gamey - end tasting menus , it seems , are taking over the District . Metierwill before long be bid a seven - course sample fare , as willThe Shaw Bijou , join the ranks of classics likeThe Inn at Little Washingtonand newcomers like Pineapple & Pearls . We ’re not tell that the solid food at these place , or any other extra - schmancy tasting menu joint , is n’t good . But we would contend that this rage for exorbitantly price menus sate with precious fiddling dish is n’t precisely the better means to get serious bang for your dining buck – specially in DC , a metropolis that is blessed with a phenomenal regalia of amazingly delicious , local , inexpensive dining options . So before you expend the equivalent of a railway car payment ( or two ) on a dinner party for one , look at instead the benefit of ordering freely from some of DC ’s tastiest – and least pretentious – menus . ( To keep things simple , we factored in tax and backsheesh for all of the following comparisons . )
The total cost forone personto experience the all - inclusive , 15 - course tasting menu atPineapple & Pearls is $ 250 . For that kind of money , you and your date can eat and drink like kings and queens at some of the metropolis ’s good local joints for five days square .
entire : $ 249.60
&Pizza
AtKomi , a dozen or so smack disheswill in the end run you $ 297 , based on the highly reasonable Assumption of Mary that you need the wine match ( why not ? ) . While these Greek - inspired , seafood - weighty dishes are sure to be lovely , $ 300 is an awfully hefty cost tag for one individual for dinner party . Plus , these guys do n’t even believe in cocktail …
Total : $ 296.20
Look , we bonk José Andrés . But his more - than-20 - course meal atMinibarnow scat $ 275 a head , with drinkable pairing available at three tiers ( $ 95 , $ 115 , and $ 195 ) , not including revenue enhancement or bakshish . So if we were to factor in all of this and go for the mid - range vino pair ( what are we , peasants ? ) , that time in at a whopping $ 514.80 . or else , you could …
Ben’s Chili Bowl
Total : $ 514.25
Tim Ebner is a food & travel author found in Washington , DC . For more crummy consume dining , follow him on Twitter@TimEbner .
District Doughnut
Courtesy of 2Amys