what is your favorite restaurant in downtown bethesda?

[Anonymous]

Persimmon is our favorite, but I wouldn't take children there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Persimmon is our favorite, but I wouldn't take children there.

Persimmon is NOT child friendly!

[Anonymous]

I don't think the food in Cafe Deluxe is good.

Don Pollo, Moby Dick's, Taylor Gourmet, BGR are good cheap and cheerful.

Persimmon is our favorite high-end place, not kid friendly though and full of very old people.

Mon Ami Gabi, pain quotidien and Jaleo are good and kid-friendly.

[Anonymous]

Grapeseed. Not child friendly.

Bacchus

[Anonymous]

The best thing about Cafe Deluxe is that when they first opened they tried to make it an upscale swanky place but was soon overrun by the current clientele. Watching the manager try to get rid of the families so the “night” crowd could get in there was funny to watch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the food at Cafe Deluxe is terrible. We went for mother's day brunch last year and it was a huge disappointment. I make much better food at home.

I could not agree more.

[Anonymous]

My new favorite restaurant is Penang (Malaysian). The service is great and my kids loved it. They also love Raku. My kids are not picky eaters though.

[Anonymous]

LOVE Bacchus; Passage to India on Cordell.

Have tried Nest a few times recently and it's very good too. DD (who is 9) loves it.

[Anonymous]

Baja Fresh

[Anonymous]

A vote for Foong Lin (near the Woodmont triangle Starbucks) - excellent Chinese food, booths which are good for kids, very friendly owner and staff.

[Anonymous]

Fave w/o kids -- Olazzo on Norfolk (food is kid friendly but small space)
Fave w/ kids -- Mia's on Cordell
Like Bacchus very much, too.

[Anonymous]

Has Nest actually gotten better? We went soon after it opened and liked it, then went back 3 times and were disappointed each time - really blah flavor, poorly-designed dishes. I think the last time we tried was summer 2010, and I'm hesitant to waste my money there again.

[Anonymous]

I recommend avoiding american tap room with kids. We tried to go at 5:30 last saturday. The hostess wouldn't seat us with our stroller. I told her we couldn't use a highchair because he isn't old enough (not sitting up independently, but ok in our maclaren). She then said, don't you have one of those seats that can go on a highchair if we turn it upside down? I told her that was unsafe, and we just wanted to keep DC in the stroller. Her response, "in that case, I don't know when I can seat you.". I was so annoyed that wr left and went next door to cafe deluxe, where wr were seated immediately (stroller too) and had a lovely dinner.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think the food in Cafe Deluxe is good.

Don Pollo, Moby Dick's, Taylor Gourmet, BGR are good cheap and cheerful.

Persimmon is our favorite high-end place, not kid friendly though and full of very old people.

Mon Ami Gabi, pain quotidien and Jaleo are good and kid-friendly.

I agree with all of the above, but am I the only one who thinks pain quotidien is insanely overpriced, and that they don't give enough food per order? I'm a very healthy eater, in good shape, not looking for cheesecake factory-size portions at all, but the few times I've eaten at pain quotidien I've left hungry. My kids do love it, though. They love the yogurt/granola parfait, and my son even loves the gazpacho when I order it. One time I was at work at met a friend at the dupont circle PQ, and was so hungry on my way back to the office that I stopped and got a 6 inch sub at subway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I recommend avoiding american tap room with kids. We tried to go at 5:30 last saturday. The hostess wouldn't seat us with our stroller. I told her we couldn't use a highchair because he isn't old enough (not sitting up independently, but ok in our maclaren). She then said, don't you have one of those seats that can go on a highchair if we turn it upside down? I told her that was unsafe, and we just wanted to keep DC in the stroller. Her response, "in that case, I don't know when I can seat you.". I was so annoyed that wr left and went next door to cafe deluxe, where wr were seated immediately (stroller too) and had a lovely dinner.

I don't think it's reasonable for you to expect every restuarant to be able to sit you at a table with a stroller. It's obtrusive.