Mallard

Met friends for dinner on a Saturday night. It's located prominently on 14th street, close to the 14th Street/Rhode Island NW intersection. The restaurant decor is giving southern grandmother's living room, with eclectic wall photos and southern knick-knacks. We were gifted an amuse bouche of parsnip soup from the chef. It was perfectly season with a creamy texture. After that, we began with the duck wings; they were extra crispy with a nice, balanced flavor. Instead of ordering individual meals, we shared the lamb, duck and Brussels sprouts. The duck was crispy on the outside and perfectly rare on the inside, and seasoned throughout. The lamb was also fully flavored at the right tenderness. Brussels sprouts served as the perfect veggie side to cut through the richness of the lamb and duck. For dessert, we shared their take on banana pudding. It was like a deconstructed banana pudding with bits of Cracker Jacks and vanilla wafers.All in all, food, service and ambience provided a great first impression, so I'll be back!

This weekend, I visited Mallard in Logan Circle, DC, for a quick brunch. Finding parking took about 15 minutes, but despite making a reservation in advance, I was surprised to see plenty of open seats. The restaurant has a cute, classic decor with beautiful art pieces on the walls--definitely a charming atmosphere.What We Ordered:Poached Duck Egg - This dish came with Confit Duck Leg, Hollandaise, Mushroom & Potato Hash. While the textures were great--the duck was tender, and the hash was crispy--I found the overall flavor a bit underwhelming. A touch more seasoning would have made a difference.Shrimp & Grits - Loved this one! The grilled shrimp had a strong, smoky flavor that paired well with the creamy grits. Definitely a standout dish.Nashville Hot Chicken - My favorite of the three! The chicken was crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, and cooked to perfection. The waffles with Huckleberry Jam complemented the chicken beautifully. Personally, I didn't feel the sunnyside egg on top was necessary, but the dish was fantastic overall.Mallard has a great ambiance and solid food. It was an enjoyable brunch. I'd definitely come back to try the dinner menu.

From the moment we walked in, the cozy atmosphere set the perfect tone. The lamb topped with microgreens was the highlight -- absolutely exquisite. The burger was also fantastic. We got the Brussels sprouts and crostini as an app that were equally impressive.The pimento cheese was so good we wished we had more, while the shrimp and grits were just okay in comparison. The cocktails were outstanding, perfectly crafted and a great complement to the meal.Overall, an amazing dinner with great food, drinks, and vibes -- can't wait to go back!

I enjoyed Mallard! A relaxing, vibey escape from the busy 14th Street, Mallard has one of the most aesthetically pleasing restaurant bars I've seen in DC and an exciting upscale Southern menu. Jeffery took care of us, giving detailed descriptions of each menu item and helping us pair drinks with our choices. The duck wings and smoked lamb (seasonal special) were my highlights of the night. I'll return to try more items, particularly the Shrimp & Grits, Sweetbread & Waffles, and Pekin Duck entree.

Came here for restaurant week and had an absolutely great time. I was a bit salty that so many items had additional prices so restaurant week wasn't that big of a steal, but that being said the experience and the quality was truly great.The art up on the wall was quite eclectic duck and other things themed but the place had a nice upscale vibe. Would recommend as like a one year anniversary or just bougie kind of meal. Our server Dalila was an absolute gem. She was communicative about the additional restaurant week pricing, brought us celebratory drinks for a friends birthday, and accommodated our other requests.We started off with a complimentary French onion soup that was so rich and had a strong truffle and umami flavor to it. We liked it so much we asked our server for another one before dessert and she was able to make it happen. For appetizers, my friends and I got the fried oysters, sweetbread and waffles, and cast iron valley fois gras. I've never been crazy about oysters but they had a nice crispiness to it and deviled egg aioli that paired nicely with it. The sweetbread and waffles I'd probably skip again, it was just a standard chicken and waffles and I felt like I could get that somewhere else. One of my favorite bites of the night was the fois gras which was so buttery and paired well with the other fresh ingredients. Truly so rich and delectable. For my main, I got the pekin duck which is a classic. I wish my duck had slightly more seasoning on it but I loved it being paired with the what I think was lingonberry? It was also cooked perfectly medium rare. The star of the dish was the chicken.fried leg which I don't know what was in that seasoning but it was mind blowingly addictive.For dessert, you cannot skimp out on the coffee and cigarettes. This is in my top desserts I've had in dc with an espresso ice cream with chocolate mousse that paired perfectly with one another. There was caramel made out of tobacco and the plating was immaculate. The plating and composition made it look kind of like an ash tray and there were some Oreo crumbs that looked like ashes, truly whimsical and fun.From this three course meal, I felt the right amount of full and left happy. Overall, I appreciated their upscale yet whimsical dishes, and each dish had a very intentional plating to it which I loved.

During DC Restaurant Week, Nicole and I celebrated my 36th birthday with dinner at Mallard. While waiting for our drinks, we were surprised with complimentary birthday bubbles, though the non-alcoholic version was a bit tarter than expected. One small mystery of the night--we noticed other tables receiving an Amuse Bouche (French Onion Soup), but for some reason, ours never arrived.I enjoyed two mocktails: The Wendy Palmer was light and refreshing, while the Sweet Appalachia brought an earthy complexity.For appetizers, the Duck Wings were fall-off-the-bone tender, balancing sweet and savory in an unexpected way. The Cast Iron Hudson Valley Foie Gras was decadently rich, paired beautifully with warm praline pound cake, parsnip fondue, and shallot marmalade.The highlight of the meal was the Pennsylvania Pekin Duck, featuring a spiced breast and a chicken-fried leg, served alongside kabocha squash, roasted sunchoke, and red-eye jus--each bite melting in the mouth.Dessert was an absolute standout: Coffee and Cigarettes combined malted chocolate mousse, macadamia praline, tobacco caramel, espresso ice cream, and smoked olive oil into a stunningly bold and balanced finale--served playfully in a vintage ashtray for an extra touch of nostalgia and whimsy.Despite the small hiccup, Mallard delivered a refined dining experience with inventive flavors and polished execution. Would I return? Absolutely.

I was super impressed with Mallard. It was by far some of the best elevated American food that I had in recent memory. I've decided that this spot is making it into my go-to places as I was blown away. Each dish we ordered was impressive and packed with flavor. My favorites were the duck, steak and the banana pudding dessert. You also can't go wrong with any of the cocktails.Make sure to make reservations because this spot was full on a Friday night. It even has a nice homey and southern vibe to it - which was nice. The highlight of the evening was getting to meet the sous chef Alejandro who came out to greet our table.

I had been to Churchkey on numerous occasions, but sadly never made it to Mallard's predecessor restaurant. I was excited to try this replacement, though, as I love Southern food and it is conveniently located to me.For starters, the space is gorgeous. Very inviting and homey without being tacky, and beautifully decorated for Christmas if you visit during the holidays. There's plenty of vintage, duck-themed decor, with mismatched but chic glassware to compliment the vibe. Overall, very impressed with the ambiance. Our server was also very attentive and polite, making great recommendations when asked.As far as the food, everything I had was tasty, though the portions varied widely for the price. I was expecting the duck to be larger for its $40+ pricetag, while the shrimp and fries and catfish looked hefty. The fried oysters were good, but small, while the brussel sprouts were (also good and) quite a large portion. Oddly, my favorite item out of everything was the complimentary mini banana bread loaf with salted butter and crisped rice. It was to die for and I could have eaten five. I wish I could have it every day.The drinks were good, interesting. I had one of their signature lemonades spiked with gin, which was fairly reasonable and delicious though nothing avant garde. I had a white port with dessert, which I didn't even know existed! And for dessert, I had the "Cigarettes and Coffee" which was good, but not amazing. I'd be curious to try the banana pudding next time, as it sounds delicious.

Cozy vibes, friendly staff, unique flavors! What an adorable place! The interior was decorated beautifully, not too dark (you could actually read your menu lol) and not too loud. Food was great! Our favorites were: - sea island pea dip (flavorful dip but the duck fat saltines were the true star, flaky ritz cracker flavor but better) - foie gras (super decadent but not too rich with the blackberry pie sauce) - smash burger (can't go wrong, tasted like an elevated Big Mac) The pork trotter had a nice sauce but the trotter itself was all ground meat, tasted a little bit like a chicken nugget. Not my favorite. Also appreciated the 8 types of alcohol-free drinks! Lots to choose from! Staff was attentive and even wiped our table after each course. We even got complementary pumpkin bread bites which were delicate and delicious!

Went for brunch and unfortunately the dish I ordered was mid at best. The cornmeal pancakes sounded great on paper, but seriously lacked any flavor and texture. Even though the dish had wet toppings, it ate very dry. Overall after a few bites I was bored. Maybe I need to come back to try dinner and dessert.