New Foodie Posted February 27, 2010 Share Posted February 27, 2010 After a long saga Capital City Diner finally opened this past Tuesday. Their website doesn't have much up yet, but you can find a menu here. It's located at 1050 Bladensburg Rd, NE near the intersection with L. Although it just opened Tuesday the +1 and I went to try it tonight for dinner (we figured it would be slammed for brunch on its first open weekend so didn't want to wait for Saturday or Sunday morning). We got there around 7:15 or so and every booth was taken (there are 5-6 four-person booths) and 4 people were sitting at the counter, leaving 6-8 empty stools. We were going to just stay at the counter, but a booth opened up before we ordered so we moved over to spread out a bit. It's certainly 1940's size (a little smaller than we'd make them today), but I really like the old school feel. We didn't try them, but they do have Mexican Coca-Cola and Cheerwine in bottles along with some Boylen sodas. Even though we were both getting breakfast we started with an order of Loaded Waffle Fries (w/ cheese sauce and bacon $6.75). They were pretty basic, but definitely gooey and comforting with pieces of real, crispy bacon (no bacon bits here) crumbled on top. The +1 had the Pigs In a Blanket (3 sausage links nestled in pancakes $6.75) and although he thought the sausage links were on the small side, he ate every bit and loved the pancakes. I went all out and got the Super Happy Fat Boy Breakfast (juice or coffee, 1 pancake, 2 eggs, bacon or sausage, hash browns, toast or biscuit $8.75). It was all delicious. The eggs were basic eggs (over easy and cooked properly) and the bacon was a good level of crispy. The hash browns weren't as crispy as I would maybe prefer, but they are of the shredded variety cooked on the flat top. Instead of being toasted, the toast is cooked on the flat top as well, and although certainly unhealthier, it made it so good. Usually toast is a part of my breakfast I overlook with everything else on the plate but this was really good. The pancake, however, was awesome. Definitely the highlight of my meal. Little crispy on the edges and a nice level of sweetness. It'll be hard not to order pancakes on every visit. Biscuits aren't served after 11am, so I'll have to go back earlier to try those. We were quite full but decided to split a Chocolate Milkshake ($3.50) to end it. Nice and thick but not too heavy or overwhelming with a good swirl of whipped cream on top. They also have a choice of pies (available a la mode). All in all I'm excited to have the diner on the Hill. It's open Tuesday to Thursday 6am-10pm and then 24 hours from Friday at 6am - Sunday at 5pm (closed Sunday night and Monday). Looking forward to going again soon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waitman Posted February 27, 2010 Share Posted February 27, 2010 All in all I'm excited to have the diner on the Hill. It's open Tuesday to Thursday 6am-10pm and then 24 hours from Friday at 6am - Sunday at 5pm (closed Sunday night and Monday). Looking forward to going again soon! You have an expansive definition of the Hill. You must be a real estate agent. I think it's actually in Trinidad. At any rate, dropped in with the daughter about 6AM yesterday and was unable to fall in love. Should be regarded as a work in progress at this point. Lovely bones; fingers crossed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Foodie Posted February 27, 2010 Author Share Posted February 27, 2010 You have an expansive definition of the Hill. You must be a real estate agent. Fair point Just thinking that it's a lot easier for me to get there quickly from where I live (near the Senate buildings) than to get across town or even anywhere downtown for that matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithstg Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 You have an expansive definition of the Hill. You must be a real estate agent. I think it's actually in Trinidad. At any rate, dropped in with the daughter about 6AM yesterday and was unable to fall in love. Should be regarded as a work in progress at this point. Lovely bones; fingers crossed. Absolutely in Trinidad. We stopped in around 7AM on Sunday for an early bunch. We agree - totally a work in progress. Given time, I think they'll be able to work with the space constraints to turn out some good food in such a small space. Right now I think they are completely overwhelmed with the rush of patrons.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sthitch Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 Right now I think they are completely overwhelmed with the rush of patrons.... With such an under the radar opening, who would have thought that would have happened... I kind of find it bizarre that given the PR machine working to let everyone know about this new dinner they couldn't at least put a link to a map on their website, let alone a simple menu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngfood Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 We stopped in around 7AM on Sunday for an early bunch. We agree - totally a work in progress. Given time, I think they'll be able to work with the space constraints to turn out some good food in such a small space. Right now I think they are completely overwhelmed with the rush of patrons.... I had a similar experience. My meal (the "fat boy breakfast" with eggs, sausage, pancake, and a very good biscuit) was actually quite good, but it is a very small spot and right now they are drawing enormous crowds and are rushing to keep the lines from gettting too long. I suspect once the opening rush and kinks are out their system, they'll be consistently good. Unfortunately for these guys, their soft opening was widely reported on the internet without their authorization, which meant they had to get up to speed under extreme conditions and without the benefit of the limited crowds you'd hope for with a soft opening. It's a neat space, a good development for an underserved and developing neighborhood, and a concept that the District itself doesn't seem to be otherwise offering, so I suspect they'll do very well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waitman Posted March 12, 2010 Share Posted March 12, 2010 I had a similar experience. My meal (the "fat boy breakfast" with eggs, sausage, pancake, and a very good biscuit) was actually quite good, but it is a very small spot and right now they are drawing enormous crowds and are rushing to keep the lines from gettting too long. I suspect once the opening rush and kinks are out their system, they'll be consistently good. Unfortunately for these guys, their soft opening was widely reported on the internet without their authorization, which meant they had to get up to speed under extreme conditions and without the benefit of the limited crowds you'd hope for with a soft opening. It's a neat space, a good development for an underserved and developing neighborhood, and a concept that the District itself doesn't seem to be otherwise offering, so I suspect they'll do very well. It's the Big Boy Breakfast I think, a little more savory sounding than "Fat Boy". My daughter and I usually show up at 6am (after a night of clubbing...I know, I'm too old, but who lets their daughter out all night without a chaperon?). This time we found the place much improved, the the quarters are a little cramped, designed for a shorter America, I guess. Not the diner of my dreams, food wise, but pretty good. Service has hit its stride, there's a free newspaper so you're not hunting up comics section before dawn, Miles Davis was on the stereo, the coffee cups are larger, the waitress is friendly and the food came quick. The food remains unrevelatory -- the hash browns a little bland, -- but decent. They have an odd toast problem. Only one slice, and that not actually toasted so much as warmed. All in all, though, a worth addition to the pre-dawn scene. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaRiv18 Posted March 12, 2010 Share Posted March 12, 2010 This is an important restaurant for the neighborhood. We visited this past Sunday afternoon, and the pace was much different than what Waitman describes. The place was getting absolutely crushed, to the point that the waitress wrote a sign "No Take Out Orders" and taped it to the front door. She had to: she didn't seem to be getting tipped on those orders she was processing. Meanwhile, the kitchen was swamped with take-out orders, to the point that her tables were getting impatient waiting for their food (ourselves included). Although this car is a cool space, it's so small that the bar counter is cluttered with kitchen gear such that 15-20% of their bar stools cannot be used for paying customers. Also, a POS system would go a long way here, our waitress spent too much time calculating separate checks for tables, doing the sort of quality math you'd expect from a handheld calculator under duress. But, there's always a place in my heart for a place that does an all-day breakfast. I had the Pigs in the Blanket, while my wife did the Fat/Big Boy. Service was very friendly, and most of the customers were very grateful that they had another neighborhood spot. While the Argonaught has the more interesting breakfast menu, CCD is a pretty cool spot to get into a random conversation with a DC local. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Shut UP! (Photo number 4) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs. B Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Shut UP! (Photo number 4) They are too cute I'm a little jealous of their father/daughter breakfast tradition. But not jealous enough to get out of bed before 6am Nice piece on the area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillvalley Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 Awwwwwwwwwwww Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Posted January 27, 2012 Share Posted January 27, 2012 Closing after this weekend "to reformat and improve our concept." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goodeats Posted April 6, 2012 Share Posted April 6, 2012 Tim Carman reports a sad update. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kev29 Posted April 6, 2012 Share Posted April 6, 2012 Tim Carman reports a sad update. The story has gone a bit haywire... Vanished Craigslist Post Sends Rumors Flying About Future of Capital City Diner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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