La Bise

It has been a while since I've written a review for La Bise. We visit 3-4 times a year. This was yet another great meal at La Bise. After reflecting I don't think I had a single favorite dish because they were all my favorites last night!To start, the citrus-cured Hamachi crudo was fantastic. I believe it was infused with lemon and orange and passion fruit. These fruits were delicate enough to bring out the freshness of the fish. The foie gras accented with persimmon was as decadent and smooth as always. The sea bream prepared with a coconut-lobster bisque was highly unusual and extremely tasty. The curry in the sauce was once again (like the sauce with the Hamachi) just strong enough to bring out the flavors of the fish. For the main course, we each had the beef bourguignon. This was a completely new dish for us at La Bise. You could tell both with the sauce and the beef that it was incredibly tender and a lot of time and attention was taken with its preparation. Dessert was a thoughtful, beautiful combination of kiwi, dark chocolate and meringue to accommodate our lactose allergy. Service remains attentive at all levels. The sommelier was extremely thoughtful in pairing the wines with each of our courses, each course was properly timed with setup and removal along with wine arriving before the course. Bread (one of the last places that still is generous with bread :- O ) is always available to scoop up any sauce.For the total price, we had five courses including dessert and five glasses of wine. The total price including tax and 25% tip for outstanding service was $459. For the quality and service, we thought this was a good value and La Bise remains a favorite in our regular Saturday night rotation.

I loved every moment here from the moment we arrived to, every last sip and bite, to the moment we left. We had a show to attend and when I notified the staff, they made sure to be attentive to the time to make sure we left on time. Our server was Quinton and she explained every single dish with such detail, my mouth was watering and it was hard to choose; I wanted them all. We received our bread and butter first and as the first thing out, we were wowed from the jump. The lavender butter was amazing. I ordered the Alaska Cod and my husband ordered the Duck that was encrusted with lavender and chamomile!! What?!!!! Who thought of that combination??!!Everything was AMAZING!! I usually need a To Go box, but not this time. I ate every last bit. I will definitely have to come back again!!

I came here during lunch for Restaurant Week - a three-course prix-fixe menu for $35. The restaurant is conveniently located around the corner from the Farragut West metro, or a short walk across Farragut Square if you're on the red line (Farragut North). We made a reservation on OpenTable but it wasn't crowded at all. They had a bright and upscale ambiance - your classic white tablecloth restaurant - with modern decor.After placing our orders with the waiter, the meal started with bread service and I appreciated that they explained the two different butters when they brought it to the table - regular and honey butter. The bread basket had three types of bread, and that honey butter was addicting!I went with the Potato and Leek Soup for my first course, Wild Mushroom Risotto for my entree, and Dark Chocolate Mousse for dessert. I was pleased with all of my selections, and the maitre d' kindly checked on us for each course and made sure that everything was in tip-top shape. Service was excellent. All of the necessary table settings were brought out or taken away for each course, and water cups never went below half-full. The potato and leek soup was rich and creamy, with a little bite of pepper. It warmed me right up on a cold day. The Wild Mushroom Risotto had complex earthy flavor from the mushrooms, was mixed with cheesy goodness, had pine nuts that gave great texture, and was finished with herbs that gave it an added freshness. I also tried my friend's salmon entree and the cookery was masterful. I loved the crispy skin on that salmon. For dessert, I'm a lover of all things chocolate, and the dark chocolate mousse was the perfect way to end a meal. The chocolate mousse was encased in dark chocolate and topped with an orange cremeux. I was hesitant about the orange cremeux, but the lightly sweet and tart cremeux paired well with the chocolate. Overall, it was a nice meal and I'm glad I got to experience La Bise's menu during Restaurant Week.

La Bise doesn't receive nearly enough hype for how good the food is. We came here a few months back before a show at DAR Constitution Hall and were blown away by everything we had. The duck that I had is something I think about pretty frequently. Those potatoes are so thinly sliced and they also accompanied the duck with a citrus foam that reminds me of the Inn at Little Washington's passionfruit foam (which is really high praise!).Other standouts were menu items that I typically wouldn't gravitate towards, like the leeks. But I am totally glad we ordered them! The interior of this restaurant is also really fun and quirky, it feels like you're at a very trendy restaurant. Looking forward to coming back!

We were looking for a restaurant to enjoy for DC Summer Restaurant Week and found this one that was already on our list to try. Ambiance - Beautiful! Gorgeous inside and out so, we decided to enjoy our meal outdoors this time. Inside was very modern and clean. Food - Let me start with the drinks. I ordered the alcohol free hibiscus mule. My husband ordered a Long Island iced tea. Both tasted watered down. I was also a little disappointed in my roasted leeks. I thought the sauce would be warm, but it was tepid so, the temperature made the dish slightly off putting, but that flavor was insane! I was also disappointed because, based on the restaurants IG reel, they were advertising this dish specifically for restaurant week, and the reel showed three leeks and truffles. It only came with two leeks and no truffle. As a truffle lover, I would have paid extra if pricing was an issue, but it wasn't an option. However, you could pay $10 extra for either the duck a la'range and lamb options. Everything tasted very good though overall. Service - Very good. Our server had tables both indoors and outdoors, but we never felt neglected. Overall, I'd recommend this spot. Maybe go when it isn't restaurant week when you can do the whole menu.

This was my first trip to La Bise and had such a wonderful time. We decided to make the special trip here because we saw they were running a special menu in conjunction with the release of the French film The Taste of Things. Everything was just exceptional. Our waiter, I believe his name was Henry (apologies if it wasn't!) was just fantastic and even let me attempt a bit of French with him. The two ladies working the hostess stand were also very friendly and checked were checking in on tables as well. As for the food. By golly what a treat. The first course was oysters and caviar. They were so beautiful and very rich tasting. I could only finish two of mine, not that my boyfriend minded helping out with the third . The main was a venison pho. This was exceptional. The broth was so delicate and the venison was the best I have ever had. I was shocked at how well prepared this was, as to be honest I am not a fan of how gamey venison usually is but that was absolutely not the case here. Is surprising how different things can taste when prepared flawlessly. The third course was a poached pear and we did also order the Souffle cause I am a sucker for a Souffle. Souffle was perfectly prepared my only picky thing would be I do wish they had a different flavor than strawberry. It kinda tasted like fruit loops haha. In any case do yourself a favor and go have a great meal at La Bise

Ashok Bajaj is well known in the DC foodie circle for his restaurants - in particular the Indian ones (Rasika & Bindaas). He has a plethora of other restaurants, including this one, under his helm - but I feel like his European-centric restaurants are not as great. It might be because I came here during Restaurant Week, and the offerings in the RW menu is a bit too much of a run-of-a-mill type of offering that doesn't have much unique touch. However, I'll say that I felt that the quality of the food did outshine what I had at Le Diplomate.The soup was better than the salad. The salmon was better than the steak frites. The pavlova was better than the mousse. That's all I can say, really.if you're looking for Le Diplomate alternative, this spot is a good one since I wasn't impressed by Le Diplomate either. The vibe at this place, however, is a bit too sterile and modern for me and isn't as cozy nor pleasant as the former - even if they use tablecloths at La Bise (with obvious creases to be seen - yes, I don't understand restaurants using tablecloths and not iron out the creases if they're trying to make the use of them to enhance the place).I wouldn't hesitate to venture again here to see if their regular menu offerings are better than what I've had during RW - although I'd also love to see the vibe get a certain update. Considering that we have a lot of French restaurants in D.C., I probably would not venture to return to this place too quickly though.The service was great.

Came for winter restaurant week lunch, and it felt like a lovely treat with nice options. The yellow cocktail was soooo refreshing a tad bitter and bright !! Not sweet- which I appreciated . The potato soup was so light fluffy and unctuous, and the pear salad was bright and light. I had asked for my steak medium well and the salmon well done and crispy, but I found them to both be cooked more at a medium level which isn't super appetizing for me. Their flavors were nice and their sauces delicious. French fries were crispy and salty. Desert was PERFECTLY decadent. A solid addition from the Knightsbridge restaurant group that also owns Rasika bindass etc. Our server was adorable and attentive- she developed the recipe for the cocktail I had ! glad we tried it!

A great experience for dinner! Our server was extremely kind with recommendations and accommodations, making sure the food we had was to our liking and that no one was upset. The food was terrific and the setting was cozy and not too loud. I also had someone with me celebrating their birthday and they celebrated it simply and nicely, which I liked. The well-done steak was also quite tasty (and I'm not a well-done person at all, so that surprised me). Veal crepe was such a nice dish with good saltiness and crunchiness. The branzino was terrific with the soft fish, the tasty skin, and the savory vegetables on the side. I would definitely recommend trying this place out.

We went for restaurant week and were impressed by the selection! They have both a $55 and a $65 three course pre fixe to choose from.We each got two glasses of wine so the bill ended up being pretty spendy for restaurant week which is why I'm giving 4 stars. Restaurant week started out as an effort to make high-end dining more affordable and accessible to the average consumer, and I unfortunately would not say this experience met that goal (our bill was about $250 total including the service fee).Overall though the food was great and I would recommend trying it if you enjoy French food and are looking for a higher end experience.