We're thinking of doing a quick 4 day trip to Washington DC this summer with sons ages 10 and 12 to do the typical tourist stuff. We'll have a car. Any suggestions for restaurants? Price is not a concern and we would prefer not the usual chain type places. Thank you!

One of our favorite places for lunch is the food court at the Smithsonian's American Indian museum. It is arranged in regions and features the AI food of that region. The food is well prepared, tasty and educational all at the same time. It really is an enjoyable place to eat.

Washington has a Chinatown with a good variety of restaurants there.

Annapolis is a doable and worthwhile drive and has a number of good places to eat that the youngsters and adults could enjoy. We particularly like the Cafe Normandie and have seen youngsters enjoying the entree crepes. There is also an all you can eat seafood place at the beginning of Main Street that the kids seem to like. I can't think of the name, but it is one flight up.

Washington has lots of good restaurants, so I imagine about any of them could be good, depending on what kind of cuisine you want. They have lots of good reviews and sections by location and cuisine in www.washingtonian.com

If you like Greek or Middle Eastern cuisine, I think Zaytinya in the Penn Quarter area would be a good bet. http://www.zaytinya.com/ It's been reviewed as one of the best new restaurants in the upscale casual mode. I think they would also like Jaleo, in the same general area, which is Spanish, but there is a lot of choice because they have the small dish, tapa menu. It's a real fun restaurant, I think. There are lots of good Italian restaurants that should be suitable.

You shouldn't be using a car within the city, no need to and it clogs up the traffic.

I don't know where you are coming from, so I don't know if you are familiar with Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament Show. There is one located in Arundel Mills Mall about 45 minutes from D.C. We took our kids (who were 17 and 14 at the time) and they loved it, so I imagine your sons would too. Also, you get one free child's admission (age 12 and under) with each paying adult until July 6th. Check their website for details and more specials for later in the summer as well. (Note: On the website, this location is given as Baltimore.)

What kind of food do you like? DC has so many good/great restaurants....

Pizzeria Paradiso in Dupont Circle has good specialty pizzas and is a quintessential DC experience (yum!). As recommended, I love Jaleo and Zaytinya for tapas and mezzes. Rosa Mexicana has great, upscale mexican food. Old Ebbitt Grill has an oyster bar. Loriol Plaza also has good mexican food and a big outdoor seating area if it is not too hot.

Search through www.washingtonian.com or the Washington Post for reviews of area restaurants, or give us some idea of what kind of food you are looking for.

We took our kids (12 and 14) to an Ethiopian restaurant while we were in DC. They'd never been to a place where you were required to eat with your hands, using the bread as a utensil. It was great fun, and the serving staff was more than willing to help us make choices.

The kids ate the bread, and the rice, and dabbled with the variety offered on the tray.

You can eat a burger any where.

Thanks everyone. We leave tomorrow and we look forward to trying out these dining suggestions.