Florida Avenue Grill - Washington, DC

Posted By Michael Stern on January 25, 2007 4:02 PM

Now that Sholl’s cafeteria is closed, there are just two restaurants we consider absolutely essential in Washington, DC: Ben’s Chili Bowl, of course, and the Florida Avenue Grill.

We’ve been fans of the latter for some twenty years now, although it opened about two decades before that. In all that time, it’s virtually never changed. The only things different about it are the celebrity photos and endorsements on the wall. A lot of retired senators, congressmen, and members of the White House cabinet have been supplanted by current office holders. Curiously, though, the big name sports stars never seem to go out of style and their images remain long past their success.

If by our preceding description of its famous clientele, you’ve gotten the notion that The Florida Avenue Grill is in any way hifalutin or high-priced, please reconsider. It is anything but. A humble diner with a counter and booths, it serves meals that generally cost well under $10, mostly under $5. And as for being fancy, you’ll see taxicab drivers and blue collar workmen here shoulder to shoulder with the capital’s power players. Delicious cooking such as this knows no bounds of class or status.

We remember stopping by for lunch several years back and asking the waitress what was good that day. "Pig feets," she answered. Yes, you can come for seriously soulful soul food such as feets or chitterlings, but unless you are a feets aficionado already, we suggest you begin with more familiar things to eat. Spare ribs, for example, glazed with breathless hot sauce, rugged and satisfying: these are not yuppie baby back ribs; they are food that make you work, and when you do, they deliver tidal waves of flavor. Pork chops are like that, too: highly seasoned, meaty, and substantial. For a tender meal, how about meat loaf? This meat loaf, particularly with a side of mashed potatoes and a heap of pungent collard greens, is one of the kitchen's unexpected triumphs, its coarse-textured meat shot through with brilliant spices. True to southern custom, there are lots of vegetables to accompany the entrees: candied sweet potatoes, rich macaroni and cheese, lavish potato salad, rice, beans, peas, and always sweet cornbread for mopping up a plate.

For many fans of the Florida Avenue Grill, the best meal of the day is breakfast. That's when you can have stacks of pancakes, onion-laced corned beef hash, cornmeal muffins, squares of scrapple, corned beef hash, crusty fried potatoes, stewed spiced apples, buttermilk biscuits, grits and gravy.

If you value honest eats, this humble restaurant with its sprung-spring booths, pink counter, and red plastic stools is choice. It is cheap, fast, and the motherly waitresses make even us pale-faced strangers feel right at home.

Overall Rating

biscuits

stewed apples

country ham

pork chops

meat loaf

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Posted By Tuere Toomer on November 9, 2007 12:58 PM

I read a review of the Florida Avenue Grill here on Roadfood.com, and decided to give it a whirl. A local told us that it wasn't the best spot but the food was good. He was wrong!

It is a great place and the food is WAY GOOD! It reminds me of eating at my grandmother's. The service is friendly and it just feels like home. The locals at the counter were very helpful and recommended the collard greens and the fried fish. Both are excellent! The lemonade is perfect; it reminds me of my bygone youth. We ordered Salisbury steak, fried fish, and spareribs, and we just laid it out and ate family-style. The portions are more than ample. The potato salad? Wonderful. And we all agreed that the collards are terrific.

I came from Philadelphia to go out for my birthday, and the lovely staff sang happy birthday to us. What a treat! Ms. Roxie served us and I just wanted to put her in my pocket and take her home. My only regret was that we didn't get there earlier (we got there about 8-9pm) and almost everything had sold out. It was Morgans homecoming and the word was out about the Florida Ave. Grill.

We've decided that from now on we must stop at the Florida Avenue Grill either before or after the club. Well done and keep up the good work!

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Posted By PJ on April 12, 2004 9:33 PM

I recently visited the Florida Avenue Grill on Saturday morning April 3, 2004. Let me just saym what a way to begin the day. Two male workers engaged in a fist fight in front of the grill behind the counter. People who were seated at the counter, had to jump back. After this little incident, all the patrons seemed to feel very uneasy. Finally, one of the female workers was able to gain control. Both workers were sent home immediately. Unfortunately, they let the two employees leave at the same time, were round 2 began directly outside the front door. What an ugly scene. All this aside, the food was just fine. I am not so sure how soon I would return or recommend this restaurant.

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