Department Of Energy Main Cafeteria

I really don't do cafeterias, but this one isn't that bad. I eat here mainly out of convenience. I like the hot food buffet, particularly the Asian-style dishes. I usually stick with tofu, noodles, and vegetables, and it does the trick. They also do some pretty good fried chicken wings and hush puppies, too though. Not great for vegans, as not all ingredients are listed, some items are often mislabeled and actually contain animal products, and the few core items they do offer change (the addition of egg or cheese, for example).Definitely appreciate the discount after 2 p.m. and I wish the overall prices were a bit lower. It's not like you are really saving money by eating here. However, there's nothing that great in the area to eat, so I don't mind coming here, as I'm not really missing out on anything else.

Great place to eat around L'Enfant plaza. It requires a Fed ID to get in though. After 2pm there is happy hour for the items at the buffet. The food is of great quality and is always fresh.

I often forget about this place, but to be fair it offers a lot more to eat than most places in this area. Of course, you need your government badge to enter the building, but at least if you don't work in this particular building, security here isn't nearly as "YOU HEARD ME...SPREAD YOUR CHEEKS AND LIFT YOUR SACK!" as the HUD building--I never knew HUD was that crucial to national security or anything. But I digress.This place has a large selection: hot/cold bars, deli section, pizza, burgers made-to-order, blah-blah-blah. The salad bar is pretty damn good too. However, for some reason, I always gravitate toward the carved turkey and mashed potatoes. I don't know why--I mean, it's okay and all, but...hmm. Whatever.*Warning* This place is pretty expensive, so don't let anyone fool you. You can easily drop $10-13 without blinking...on a salad and a Snapple! That's probably why I often forget about this place. Decent food though.

One of the better federal cafeterias. Lots of space and light. I would almost say they built it too big, but I'm not complaining. The food is pretty good - a nice selection at the salad bar. By far, their wrap station is my favorite.They also have water stations in the dining room, which makes getting refills of water easier. This is a great place to stop in for a cheap quiet lunch.

The Forrestal Cafeteria is decent. It's nothing to write home about and can be quite expensive.They always seem to have a large selection of Chinese food on the buffet which is decent, but again, nothing I would go out of my way for. The salad bar is mediocre by way of offerings, but contains the essentials (which always look fresh) and an okay variety of dressings. I do notice that they have a lot of vegetarian-friendly options, which might be helpful to folks with that kind of dietary restriction.If you wait until 2:00pm, they discount the entire buffet at 30% off. A lot of people actually get there at like 1:50pm and start filling up their lunch containers and wait by the register until the discount starts. It's kind of ridiculous.I personally only go there for the 2 o'clock discount when I do go, because it's otherwise way too expensive in my opinion.To re-iterate what many have said, this is place is sort of the shining star in an otherwise black hole of federal workday dining. The food is okay, some is even good, but none of it is excellent. It offers a wide assortment of fare and is worth checking out if you work in the vicinity.Please note that you cannot enter the cafeteria unless you're a federal employee, and you must have your badge with you.

Hidden in the soul-less building, is a cafeteria with a food court, ample tables and reasonable prices - open to the public if you have ID to show the guard. Sure, you have to be in the know about this place. It's not great food. But it's not the worst food court/cafeteria food either. I had a large Caesar salad with all the fixins and salmon for $6.99. The mini pepperoni pizza is only $3.69. They have a salad bar. They have a wrap bar. A burger and wings bar. A dessert area (I saw lots of folks eating soft serve with candy on top). This place is open for breakfast and lunch only. If, like me, you get stuck looking for some food around here during the week, it'll get you fed. And I actually kind of liked my salad. If it had been on a fancy plate, some restaurants could charge twice as much for it.

Cheap coffee AND a coffee club that allows you get a free one after ten purchased coffees! Bright and sunny and spacious so it never feels crowded! Affordable for the area! Cashiers that smile! Sushi! Soft-serve ice cream! Hot and cold buffets that have fresh-looking appealing food! Doesn't close until 3pm!Afternoon Happy Hour with 30% off all buffet items (2-3pm)! I normally wouldn't be this excited for a place like this, but when you stack it up to its competition in the area, DoE Cafe wins by a long-shot.

Most of us need to work to support -- among other things -- our Yelping lifestyles, and work often means a limited amount of time for lunch. I'm not inclined to bring a sack lunch, so I'm usually forced to select a lunch spot around the concrete L'Enfant Plaza jungle. Often over-priced and over-hyped food trucks, the recently updated L'Enfant Plaza Promenade, and this place -- the Department of Energy's Main Cafeteria -- are the nearest options.It's unlikely most of us prefer cafeterias, but this place ranks about as high as a cafeteria can. Lots of choices -- both reasonably healthy and others not so much. Generally acceptably clean. Plenty of places to sit. Not particularly stylish, but also not a dungeon. Sure, you'll sometimes get overly salty mac-and-cheese or a surly person at the cash register -- all reminders you're in a cafeteria.

Seriously, on the spectrum of federal cafeterias, this is a breath of fresh air. It's clean, the buffet options are great and the hot food options are decent. The food overall seems to be a little pricey compared to the other cafeterias, but then again, the actual quality of the food and freshness of the vegetables is better. There's so many good healthy options, too, if you're trying to avoid fatty foods.

If your expectations aren't very high the food is OK and reasonably priced. Good place to quickly fill your stomach if you are hungry and short on time.