Atrium Café

Mid-trek through the museum, my party wanted to grab a bite and take a little rest. It was just easiest to eat at this cafe, on the first floor of the museum.It kinda reminded me of an IKEA cafeteria where you're herded along, selecting food from an array of options, including desserts, alcoholic beverages, and soft drinks.I randomly found and wanted some rice and beans plus these chunky potatoes, and an apple. Sounds weird, but it was a surprisingly good meal. Plus I loved all the soda options and being able to DIY my beverage. I barely interacted with any staff but I'm sure they're lovely.

You have got to be kidding me! $125.00 for 5 people to eat undercooked, cold and soggy "food" from plastic trays? The website (at the time of this review) boasts "Butcher Craft Burgers, a seasonal Chef's Market Table, desserts, beverages, wine/beer, and coffee," but what they don't tell you is that calling the cook a "chef" is a bit of an exaggeration. My grilled chicken sandwich was cold and tough, my son's Macaroni and Cheese was bland and cold (no flavor at all), and the rest of my family all had similar complaints about their meals. Worse still, after you get your food your forced to eat it in a dining room that looks like something straight out of a prison movie! It was disgusting! I really had much higher hopes for an establishment allowed to be inside a Smithsonian museum!

Our advice: don't discount the chocolate cake in spite of the reviews! M'lady the chocolate connoisseur considers it one of the finest epic examples of chocolate culinary concoction she has ever eaten...and that's no joke!

Fairly typical for museum fare (and museum prices!) They had more choices than I was expecting and I wish I had waited to see everything before grabbing the pizza because the tacos looked really good. But the pizza wasn't bad and we grabbed some drinks and snacks as well. I was surprised to see alcohol but they had a wide array of beer, wine, and other beverages. All total though you're looking at like $44 worth of food in the pic I posted - and a great view of the megladon.

If you need some lunch while you're visiting the natural history museum, this is not a bad choice. I was not expecting the large selection of food available from hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken tenders to barbecue chicken, sausage and peppers, and many desserts. Some of the food is self-serve and priced by weight ($16 per pound) while the fast food like hot dogs, etc are priced by item. Fountain soda is available with unlimited refills. We tried various items including sausage and peppers, chicken tenders and fries, a hot dog, and some desserts. Overall impression - not bad. The chicken was hot, juicy, tender, and crispy. The sausage and peppers were flavorful and surprisingly tasty. The hot dog was fairly standard. The desserts were quite good as well. The chocolate cake was moist and fudge-y. Overall, surprisingly good food for a museum. Not inexpensive, though. Since the museum is free maybe they make it up with the food.

As others have stated, the prices here are atrociously high. Everything was overpriced and lackluster. The choices were few and far between, and that's more compounded by the absurd prices of some of their items which adds a barrier to buying those things, effectively limiting your choices even more. Their baked pasta had no flavor, and the chicken fingers with fries was standard, taste wise but THEY DON'T HAVE ANY SAUCES FOR THE FINGERS which made it all bland. Their drinks are heavily priced but at least it was free refills (just can't take those plastic cups into the museum, so drink your fill in the cafe. Overall, terrible place to eat. Would have went to another place but the weather that day was really bad. It poured outside the whole time so we were limited in our options. Pack some fruit or sandwiches in a backpack, as well as some refreshments. Do not plan on eating here because it's bland, expensive and short on options.

Ate here a few times when visiting the museum: a little overpriced for the so-so food. Also a staff member was not very friendly during my last visit.

Horrible food. Burger is just soggy bread and thin patty with nothing else. Chicken penne is dry. Price is offensively high.

HORRIBLE with a capital H! Have been to museum many times. Family has lived in DC METRO area for years. Favorite museum for 8yr old grandso. website said no outside food allowed. Ok, we'll splurge. Don't mind spending money if food is edible. At 16.00 a pound, I was expecting something better than Mcdonalds!! Food was cold, and chicken raw!! Bloody inside. Potatoes were cold, and hard. Green beans, same!! Even grandson remarked how horrible food tasted!! If it wasn't for the fact that it was a long walk to food trucks outsid, I would have returned food. my better judgement did not prevail. I ended up with a serious case of food poisoning. Thank you to the men working the information booth at both sub way stations allowing their employee' facilities!! $36.00 is a normal amount for food in DC, but this place would not be considered food for for a dog!!

The prices are honestly astonishing. $14 for tacos and a side of rice and beans. I would understand if they were fancy tacos or even good but these were the most basic, bland tacos. Literally just cheap meat with a bit of cheese and sauce on top. We were super thirsty and just wanted some water. The only water they had available was a $4 can of Dasani. They told us we couldn't just have a cup for a fountain drink and put some tap water in it. Overall extremely mediocre food for outrageous prices and apparently no water unless you wanna pay $4 for a little can. Never again.