We are driving up for a weekend at the Westin Embassy Row, and will have our 6 and 9 year old girls with us. Looking for some dinner ideas near the hotel. Last time we tried out 2Amys which was fantastic, and we thought we might try Cactus Cantina..is it as good as it is popular? We also went to Merkado--good, but it was a bit posh for the kids. We're pretty adventurous as far as food is concerned. I work at Trader Joe's so our kids are used to offbeat groceries. Thanks in advance.

Cactus Cantina is good, not great, but very kid friendly and great Margaritas. You probably won't be disappointed.

Near your hotel, kid friendly gets a little tougher. California Pizza Kitchen, Luna Grill, and Bertuccis comes to mind. There are all varations of Thai and Sushi nearby, especially on P Street which is a block from the Westin. Kramerbooks seems kid-friendly to me.

Your hotel is within 2 blocks to a number of excellent places.

Al Tiramisu, 21P, Mark & Orlandos, Mimi's American Bistro, Pizzaria Paradiso.

Still an easy walk but a little further is Tabard Inn - a personal favorite.

All of these (especially Pizzaria Paradiso) are kid friendly.

Famous Luigi's and (as mentioned) Luna Grlll are both a somewhat close walk and incredibly kid friendly. And, while very kid friendly, I cannot recommend Bertucci's or (especially) CPK.

Cactus Cantina, like Lauriol Plaza and the like, is more popular than it is good. Unfortunately, all the good Mexican cuisine is located in the close-in MD suburbs of PG county (of course I'm much pickier than most...)

On a side note, while I'm flattered to be called out by name, it is always better not to ask a particular Fodorite for advice. There are many, MANY here who have much great advice and you'll get more reponses and better advice if you leave names out of your subject headings.

Where is this?
Thanks.

Okay, it's in DC. Never mind.

I concur that Bertuccis and CPK are not great dining, but they are kid friendly. Sometimes quality has to take second place when finding places that will keep the kids happy.

As usual, your advice was spot-on. First night was Pizzeria Paradiso. Great food and a really well-run restaurant. Kids loved it. We got there just in time to catch the end of happy hour: $3.50 pints of Rogue Dead Guy Ale..yum. Dessert at Larry's Ice Cream on Connecticut. Next night was Luna Grill, also a good choice. We stopped at Kramerbooks afterwords for browsing, which would have been an awesome spot without the kids. Our last night was to Cactus Cantina. Much better than the typical gringoized Mexi-Cali place we have been to in the past. Plus I just love driving around Cleveland Park.

An aside to bardo1--thanks for the advice not to mention a particular member in a subject. It's just that your recommendations really stand out amongst the crowd for quality and amount of detail. I have to read the rest of your Italy trip report...we went to Venice and Lucca this past March. Great trip, LOVED Lucca and Venice was fantastic, especially the part where we stayed (Dorsoduro, specifically Campo Sta Margarita).

dan,

Thanks for reporting back.



Also, I'm glad to hear someone is reading my old trip reports (I always assume if it's not getting replies that no is reading - I forget that many readers don't top...)