Bresca

So 5 stars for Bresca and right off the jump the tasting menu is the way to go. It's the best bang for your buck. But a la carte looked super tasty and I'm sure is amazingAlso this is THE PLACE to go to, unless you make bank, for a big special occasion like a big birthday or any Anniversary.You'll drop serious coin, but from the service to the genuinely wonderful atmosphere and the considerate attention to detail, the vibes are immaculate. Service and food were exemplary, our favorites being the brioche chicken and Halibut. My only qualm is it get very noisy in Bresca as the night goes on. So, heads up there.This is on our list of very nice, special occasions to go to. For sure. Also, pro tip: you can pay for parking at or pay in advance on Spothero at a garage on U street right before 14th street.

I expected the duck with the full tasting menu and didn't get it. So, that was a big let down. The food was good and service was good. Except for the final savory course, which was some sort of pot roast--I took one bite (not good at all-really bad). No inquiries or apologies from server or kitchen, which you would expect from a place of this caliber. Overall, I think I expected a lot more after having such a great experience at Jont (the upstairs sister restaurant) and Jont being one of my favorite restaurants. Not sure I need to go back to Bresca after this experience. I rather spend the extra at Jont.

I had high expectations for this spot...but seemingly too high. I went with a group of three other girlfriends on one of the last few days of their extended DC restaurant week. For starters, I totally agree that RWs may not always be the best time to form an opinion of a place but in my mind that usually has to do with the food options/quality not the service; my issues here were completely service based and the food was excellent. Also of note - their RW week menu was largely overlapping with their standard preset, so it was also not a large lift that can be attributed to RW. We had a reservation and were seated immediately. First red flag was they didn't ask to take our jackets or indicate a place we could put them; the corner booth where we were seated had large pillows and so was quite tight and no back of the chair to hang it on. I sat on the end with my coat in my lap and nothing was said when the waiter came. Eventually I ended up sitting on it for the duration of our meal. Next when we were offered water it ended up being bottled rather than tap even though this wasn't stated or alluded (standard in other countries but not here). This is not shocking that a Michelin starred restaurant would default to $ bottled water but coupled with the coat thing...? It did not align. (To be clear - I wouldn't care about the costs at most places I dine but I expect a different dining experience at a starred spot). I thought that would be the worst of it... We ordered cocktails. Great! Then we spent some more time de icing between the 3 and 5 course menus before the server returned and took our food selection. Still no drinks. When I got to a nice meal I like to enjoy a cocktail (or two!) before the meal and then wine with my entree. The "snacks" arrived - still no drinks. The first course (salad) arrived, on top of the snacks, improper spacing - still no drinks. And what was worse there was no acknowledgement of no drinks. One friend intentionally slowed down eating her salad so the entrees wouldn't come before our drinks. It felt so rushed - but still no drinks. Finally we ASK about the drinks - well 2/4 of them have been made they tell us (yes, we saw them sitting on the bar just waiting....oddly, though we'd only ordered two drink types between the four of us, what was made was one and one). To make matters worse they bring the two that ARE ready to the table (even though we've known they've been sitting on the bar for at least ten minutes). They take our salads and immediately bring the entree - meanwhile only two of the four cocktails are at the table. No one eats any - we're all waiting, just like what's going on? Someone else (not our server who still hasn't commented on our lack of drinks nearly an hour after ordering them) delivered the final two drinks and asked how everything was and we told him that these were our first drink and we'd ordered them BEFORE any food and that we actually didn't even really want them anymore and had intended to have wine with our meal. Finally some recognition of the missteps he brought us wine right away and let us know the drinks (and we thought the four glasses of wine as well) would be comped. We certainly appreciated the acknowledgment but it was just such a shocking turn of events - and even still it only occurred because we said something first! Sadly the meal continued the same way with us being rushed through the remainder of our courses. And then! The server brought our bill before we'd even finished dessert!! We wanted to get another cocktail/after dinner drink! We did let him know and he took it back but the whole thing felt like they were just trying to get us out of there. Very disappointing. When we got the bill we noticed we had been charged for two of the four glasses of wine? We just wanted to get out of there at that point. (Still even at the end - nothing from the server: "oh I'm so glad my colleague took care of you," "sorry for the delay"...nothing) I've had the fortune of dining at many Michelin starred restaurants around the world and a huge component isn't just the food quality but the service and ambiance as well and this entirely missed the mark. The food was great and we loved the soundtrack and the sommelier! (After all that - the cocktails were just fine.) Might give them another try at the RW price tag but based on this experience wouldn't be going for their regular service.

Bresca is a fine dining shaped experience. Bresca was the reservation we got when every other good option was booked a few days before Valentine's Day and now I'm aware why that was.TLDR: we paid 700 for a table that was so bad it shouldn't even exist, mid food, and Kesha playing. Waiter poured a drink on the table and another knocked over the flowers. I don't really care about that though, they were nice which is the main thing. Hostess however, I think sat us at the worst table they have because our reservation asked for a nicer table. Also scoffed at me for some bizarre reason.Anyway, for a $700 tab for a 4 course meal, we received: a thoughtful pre-meal drink which was fine, scallops that were reasonably good, and a fun little rose for me as my boyfriend's feminine counterpart. And, I was happily surprised with the fact that we were full! Yay, the food worked. Those were the good parts.Food was just mid is the point of my tirade here. We started off with "snacks" which was cute but the food was overtly simple with no complexity. This lack of complexity and cohesion within dishes is the biggest takeaway from my experience and what I now consider to be the definition of Bresca. There was a scallop with a Tsuyu sort of sauce that overpowered the flavors and a horseradish prawn that was exactly what you'd expect. There was also some smoked salmon choux thing I could've made better myself. Hint: add a chive or two.Second course I was excited for: yellowtail. My favorite and part of why we booked. Much to my dismay, it was drowned in the same sweetish Tsuyu type of sauce that they must have thought was the pinnacle of culinary prowess, since they used it again directly after the first course. I would've gone for a ceviche type of deal with mandarin. Once again, no complexity, no cohesion. Sweet and yellowtail is not a cohesive combination, point blank. There isn't a universe where that is what people are really craving. Sides included some sort of lemon bean thing that was weird and a bok choi that was unremarkable.Third course was a wagyu that was fine. Definitely lacking in complexity, but there was slightly more cohesion in that the steak was paired with some smoky jajang sauce and then a thicker version of exactly the same sauce. There was some nondescript mushroom and green on top, unremarkable once again. Dessert was some raspberry sorbet with macaron and strawberries with a basil cream. Basil cream was a good touch, just add more basil. That's where the complexity could have come from if you just added more.Anyway, the insulting seating and mid food ruined my Valentine's Day.

Service: Outstanding! Entrees were served promptly and simultaneously, ensuring a seamless flow of the meal. The staff provided thorough introductions to each dish, leaving no doubt about what we were enjoying. My water glass was never empty--a testament to their attentiveness. Truly excellent service.Food: We came with high expectations based on numerous glowing recommendations but, unfortunately, left disappointed. It was restaurant week, which may have contributed to the issues we experienced. The restaurant was out of duck--the primary reason for our visit--which was frustrating. The restaurant offered three prix-fixe options, and we chose the most extensive one at $175. While the dishes were good, none of them stood out as exceptional or worth returning for.The pork was incredibly tender, almost melting in the mouth, but I wasn't impressed by the accompanying sauces. The yellowtail dish fell flat--the flavors didn't complement each other, and the fish had an overly fishy taste.Overall, while the service was excellent, the food didn't meet the hype, especially considering the price point. The explanation about the duck's 21-day dry-aging process was interesting, but it doesn't make up for the disappointment of not being able to try it. I'm not sure if we'll be back.

Get the duck. Enough said. You'll see why they got their Michelin star. Definitely will be coming back.

We came for restaurant week (they were offering 3 & 5 course tastings) but ended up going with the regular tasting menu (7 courses) since it looked really tempting! Favorites were the brioche chicken dish (the brioche topping and jus sauce was SO delicious paired with the crispy chicken skin), the roasted mushroom cavatelli, and the ribeye dish. I liked the black cod dish but didn't feel like the beans added much to the dish, and the yellowtail crudo had a little fishy aftertaste tbh. Service was great. Overall would definitely be back for an a la carte meal just for the chicken!!

Went here for my anniversary and it was a great experience! The tasting menu was incredible and the drinks very interesting. They start you with a mint kombucha that may have been one of the best things I had that night (who would have thought!). The service was also so attentive and top notch. The only reason I can't get this to five stars is that the place is really loud and we were seated just inches away from the next table. We still had a great time, don't get me wrong. I just think that for the price point (this was the most expensive meal out I have ever had) it would be nice to give each table a bit more space and hang some soft fabrics that can absorb sound. Other than that small nitpick, it was great and definitely recommend! The food is worth the price!

Solo diner review: What a wonderful evening with delicious food. I had a bar reservation for one at 7pm on a Friday night (9/6/24). There were only a couple other diners when I arrived, but it was packed soon after with couples and larger gatherings. Dinner highlights were the melon yogurt, the poached swordfish, and duck (of course). The meal was well paced with attentive and friendly service. The decor is an interesting mix of ducks, hexagons (a nod to their Bresca/beehive name), and golden fish heads sticking out of the walls. I would not recommend getting the full tasting menu at the bar. There are hooks underneath for purses, but nowhere to put a smaller bag. Stools are too tall to reach the floor, but are otherwise comfortable seats. I also felt that I wasn't able to develop a rapport with any of the staff. There was a bartender who greeted me, but then I didn't talk to her again until the end of the meal when she brought my bill.There are two large bathrooms tucked down a little hallway (with more fish heads) and attire ranged from business casual to a little dressier. Most men wore buttoned shirts, but without jackets or ties.Overall the evening felt relaxed and luxurious without being pretentious. However, when I go back I'll make a reservation for a dining table instead of the bar.

Street parking around the DC area but we ended opting for a garage nearby since we couldn't find any street parking.We arrived pretty early but didn't have any problems being sat right away as we waited for the rest of our group to arrive. The decor inside was cute, I loved the beehive design on the walls and photos.They had some $9 cocktails until 6:30 (we were here on a Sunday) and I chose the St Germaine Spritz. My husband opted for the Paloma Americano. Both were pretty good and definitely cocktails I would order again. Two of us opted for the tasting menu ($158/person) and the other two members of our group chose a la carte items. I did substitute the duck for the Margaret River Strip. Substituting it was $40. For the a la carte options we orders the cheesesteak, the kanpachi crudo, the Foie gras, and the brioche for the Beginnings. For the mains and the large formats, we ordered the duck and the cod. We ended up order a bottle of wine but in my opinion, it only paired well with the duck. We had ordered the Beaujolais and it seemed high in tannin so I didn't really enjoy it.We enjoyed most of the items. The Foie gras came with this biscuit that I didn't think paired too well. Both he Foie gras and the biscuit was a little sweet. It did pair well with the brioche though. The duck was also delicious though, definitely recommend.The only thing I didn't enjoy was the river strip. While the steak itself was good, the sauce that it sat it in was very salty and the saltiness and the tannin of the wine just became very overwhelming. I will say that the desserts were probably the best course. I loved the coffee ice cream that came with Chocolate Tree. We also really enjoyed the cloud cake, it was a very refreshing. We did also have the madeleines which were to die for. Overall, I'm not sure I would return but most items were pretty good. Service did kind of dwindle off towards the end but everyone was very nice and answered all our questions!