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Prompted partly by @KeithA, we visited Muchas Gracias last weekend while visiting DC. Really glad we did - had never been in person and head a really nice first outdoor meal of the season. We got two appetizers to share - the aguachile special and the avocado crab salad. The former is a saucier shrimp ceviche with a bit of jalapeno kick. The crab avocado dish was a real delight for someone who has been out of Maryland for a while. Huge chunks of blue crab with avocado and a nice slaw underneath. Not the most beautiful presentation, but all the right flavors and textures together. Would order this again in a heartbeat. For mains, we ordered fish tacos (which came with a smoking hot habanero salsa), enchilada con mole, and a couple orders of quesabirria. The first and last were very good - I might have liked a bit more flavor on the taco other than the salsa. Quesabirria is just a flavor bomb - adored by both that ordered it. The only real disappointment of the meal was the enchiladas - specifically the mole. Mole should have deep, soulful flavors - this one just fell a little flat. Drinks were tasty and overall a very nice experience. Can't wait to return when I move back.

Holy crap that looks good.

This, but I'd add that the food is generally quite good - particularly given the price point. A few have even received Michelin stars. Singaporeans take their food very seriously but the whole country eats at the hawker centers - rich poor and in between. Cool experience. If you've seen Crazy Rich Asians, one of the most touristy ones is featured there. Think Tony Bourdain did an episode featuring a couple others.

Would totally agree with this take. We definitely stopped going when it got to be $20 for a small thing of mussels.

We make wings far more often now that we have an air fryer. I had to be dragged, kicking and screaming into the purchase, but am glad I was forced into it. Also much better for chicken breasts than firing up the whole oven.

Out of the blue I had a need for the mushroom fricassee from Grapeseed. Seeing as how they’ve been closed for some time and I live 3,000 miles away, my only option was to replicate the recipe from Washingtonian. Oh man - this hit the spot. What a great winter dish. Not as good as Jeff could make it, but still oh so good. Thanks Jeff - if you see this know how much we appreciate you!

This was next door to my office for several years. Corned Beef King was pretty good, but how often can one clog one's arteries to that extent? Glad to hear they've got a new place serving good food.

Thanks! Love this group!

Hi everyone, I'm coming back to DC in August for a convention to be held in the convention center. I'm going to be tasked with organizing a few dinners with anywhere from 5-30 participants. Any great suggestions for places close to the convention center that would cater to most tastes and still feature what DC has to offer? Off the top of my head, I think I'd like to do a larger one at Zaytinya and have L'ardente in the back of my mind, although I haven't been, so have no idea if it's good for dinner events. Convivial and Corduroy are nearby as well. Any suggestions from the gallery? I've not done many dinner events for work in DC before, so not much to go on.

With all due respect @DonRocks, yeah you do. You said why. Also, not carding anyone before 2 am helped.

And that's right when they open. I've been to a couple locations in NY - it's falls significantly short of other fast casual burrito places.

DCist leading with some actual analysis and journalism on the Initiative 82 issue.

For takeout, I usually tip 10%. You didn't ask, but I try to avoid third-party apps when ordering, although I will gladly use a restaurant's own website/low cost app. The big apps take a huge chunk of revenue on each order. Initiative 82 is going to require some serious recalibration within the industry. I hear your point about putting customers in the middle, which is what the service fees do, and would likely do the same at higher-end restaurants where I know the servers are making well over the minimum wage (after including tips). My issue with the Initiative is that it still leaves the back of the house earning far, far less than the front of the house and even exacerbates the discrepancy.

For the Reserve or one of the other Sapphire cards?

How does a restaurant serve four meals a week and make a profit?