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Café Atlántico 
$-$$, Latin American, Downtown
Fodor's Review:
The menu is always exciting at this nuevo Latino restaurant with friendly service. Guacamole is made tableside, and scallops are served with coconut rice, ginger, squid, and squid-ink oil. On weekends, Atlántico offers "Latino dim sum," tapas-size portions of dishes such as duck confit with passion-fruit oil, pineapple shavings, and plantain powder. A la carte, the plates are $3 to $9, but for $35 you can get a deluxe tasting menu ($25 for a vegetarian tasting menu). The bar makes mean cocktails with cachaça, a liquor distilled from sugarcane juice. You are unlikely to find a more extensive selection of South American wines anywhere in the city. At Minibar, a six-stool bar on the second floor, you can explore an $95 tasting menu of about 30 creative morsels, such as a foie gras "lollipop" coated with cotton candy, conjured up before your eyes. Minibar is arguably the most adventurous dining experience in the city, which means you have to reserve at least a week in advance for this restaurant within a restaurant.
User Reviews & Ratings:
Lousy service, expensive mediocre food
Posted by foodieindc from Washington, D.C. on 8/17/07
I had a lousy experience here, so Im really not sure why this restaurant gets so much hype. I ordered the portabella mushroom dish, which was okay, but not worth the $20 price. My partner ordered the salmon, which was tasteless. You can get a much better salmon dish for less almost anywhere else in D.C. My main gripe is with the service though. Our waiter clearly did not want to wait on us (and seemed angry for some reason -- maybe just a bad night?), the bartender downstairs was rude, and the manager was outright mean. Also, the ambience is nothing to rave about here. The dining area is crowded and the décor is drab. The desserts were pretty good though I had the pina colada and my partner had the banana chocolate dish. Definitely not worth the price. My recoomendations are Zengo, Georgia Brown's, Thai Chef or even Lauriol Plaza.
INFO
- Address: 405 8th St. NW, Washington, DC, 20004
- Phone: 202/393-0812
- Keep in mind: Reservations essential.
- Credit Cards: AE, DC, MC, V
- Metro: Archives/Navy Memorial
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