L'Ardente

This place is worth a visit if you like Italian cuisine. I have been here several times - when I visited the city. Love the menu. Their lasagna is a must try. For us it is always an opener. (Because we want to include in in the flow)We had the veal pasta and veal parm (yes not exactly Italian dish) - both were amazing!We saw next table eating duck and truffle from this really cute little dish w tiny chic legs - we asked our waiter. He explained it and brought us two of them.. amazing duck appetizer w truffle.Since we tried tiramisu several times we closed w choc mousse and ricotta cheesecake. Both were impressive. Thanks to the team for hosting and ensuring an amazing exWe will be back soon!

It's true what they say, L'Ardente makes the best lasagna! I've really never had lasagna like theirs before. It was easily the best dish we got. Everything else was delicious and the portions were generous. I highly recommend the burrata as a starter too. The ambiance is luxurious and I was obsessed w their plating/silverware! Note we tried to dine here for dinner during restaurant week but they do not offer their restaurant week menu for dinner, only lunches.

Looking for a date night restaurant close to Capitol Hill and this place kept coming up so I booked a reservation. It was so warm and inviting upon entering, I could tell it was going to be great. The place was packed soon after it opened. The server was very friendly and told us all about the menu. We ended up getting a margarita pizza, cacio e Pepe and the 40 layer lasagna with truffle on top. It was all very tasty and delicious. We were too full for dessert, I wish we hadn't been because everything looked so good. It was a nice little touch brining the bill out in a little crown full of mints, so unique!

This was a very good Italian dining experience. L'Ardente is one of the more glamorous, upscale Italian restaurants in the city. Unlike some Italian restaurants in the city that maintain and build their customer base on recipe-focused excellence over appealing restaurant ambiance, L'Ardente attempts to balance both, leaning with a focus on decor, fine dinnerware, and energetic lighting. The food is delicious. Not the best or most authentic Italian dishes I've experienced in DC, nonetheless delicious and fresh. The recipes are very rustic and simple, however, well-executed and plated. I like this place because it does feature a few Mediterranean dishes if your desire isn't Italian-focused recipes. One thing I wish this restaurant did was offer more space in between dining tables. The tables are small and like many Italian restaurants in the city, diners are seated in close proximity to one another despite the cuisine itself being one that features recipes with large portion plates. The customer service was OK. Note: there is an automatic 20% service charge added to every bill. This is considered a tip used to pay service team members. Overall a good experience. Give them a try.

Good food and attentive service! The cinnamon brioche roll was our favorite! So fluffy on the inside and the blueberry orange sauce was fruity and not too sweet! We were able to find street parking by the National Building Museum. On Sunday, the street parking there was free for the first 2 hours.

Everything about this place is perfection! The ambience is 10/10. It's a perfect girls night, date night, or even dinner with family which is what I did. The food is top tier and the servers are amazing.I HIGHLY recommend the zucca pasta. I also must recommend the phenomenal tira misu. The presentation for it was eye catching.I can't say enough good things about this restaurant!

Highly recommend checking out L'Ardente... the next time I return, I am ordering the homemade ice cream first. There offer a few vegan friendly options. I ordered the cavolfiori, focaccia, spaghetti pomodoro... and, of course the ice cream. Nice atmosphere; perfect for lunch date.

Came here for a celebratory meal after our daughter's graduation from GW. We ordered a sharable brunch full of fun, funky dishes.After several in our party ordered drinks, as a table we split calamari fritti, gamberi, Italian toast, verde salad and a funghi pizza. The most unique of those dishes was the gamberi which was a shrimp cocktail plate filled with dry ice giving off an incredible smoke-like presentation. The accompanying cocktail sauce was spicy hot and we all loved it,Plenty of other dishes to choose from, will have to return to give other options a try!

Excellent service, delicious food, wonderful desserts. We have to say this was one of our favorite restaurants in town. When we return we will reserve another date.

Dishes were hit or miss, grilled artichoke was fantastic, lasagna had good flavor but was obviously prepped ahead of time and then topped with cheese and reheated under the salamander before serving. Obviously there are logistical issues that prevent lasagna from being made to order, but I cant help feel like there is a more elegant solution to serving the lasagna that doesn't result in bits of re-solidified mozzarella stuck to the plate. The frutti de mer pasta felt awkward too, you end up with a soup of sauce and seafood bits at the end because the pasta/sauce is too slippery to transport any bits of meat. The prosciutto plate was awful, it needed a fat to pair with it. Giant chunks of grilled focaccia ended up being unwieldy to top with prosciutto, and then try and consume, it became a dry mess in the mouth.The dishes all looked amazing though, and the vibes inside are certainly special. Service is also excellent, the somm seemed very knowledgeable, although our server could have been a bit more familiar with the menu. For someone who is easy to please, L'Ardente is a great spot for a special occasion meal.