The Palm

We went for Valentines. The front door staff is not so friendly, but the coat check lady was delightful. The dining room was darker than I remember. Overall, a five star though. The weight staff is excellent. The warm basket of delicious bread and soft butter in a ramekin was greatly appreciated. There was a raisin, and garlic, herb, and crispy roll type bread in the basket. Yummy!The wedge salad was large enough to share. It includes walnuts, not a typical addition to this type salad. This was very good and they were kind enough to split it for us.My friend ordered the 14 ounce NY strip steak. He said it had great taste, was well prepared, but was a bit tough. I had a 3 pound lobster. I asked them to crack it for me. The claws were exceptional. The tails were a little tough. The butter, and I squeezed some lemon juice in it, was very good. I wonder if it's all butter or something else is in there. Their lobsters really are good and I believe they are known for their lobsters. Sadly, they aren't from Maine anymore. Back in the day I believe they were.We ordered the potatoes au gratin. They were a little disappointing. They weren't sliced as normal. They were round potatoes, not my favorite. When I order au gratin I want more of the cheese than potato.We ordered the enormous carrot cake. The cake was good, not great, but the cream cheese frosting was excellent. Plenty to share and bring home later.Sadly, the picture of my lobster was blurry. It was beautifully presented, sliced in half and claws on top.We both had the Always in Fashion old fashioned cocktail. Excellent!!! The best of all the restaurants in town, hands down. I'll definitely be going back for one of those.I don't think you'll be disappointed if you go for dinner or a drink at the bar where you can also order food. By the way, there is complimentary valet parking after 6:30 PM.

Restaurant week took me to the Palm in Dupont Circle. It was right down from the metro station, I think it was the Connecticut Ave exit (??). I know where I'm going in Dupont circle so the signs don't mean a lot. I expected more of a crowd on a Monday, during restaurant week at 5 pm. I joined the folks at the bar. I had an idea of what I wanted at a steakhouse. The barmaid gives me a menu and I order a glass of house red. I order the house salad immediately, no tomato. Italian dressing came on the salad.I decide on the 6oz center cut fillet with mashed potatoes on the side. Tiramisu for dessert. The salad comes fast and it's pretty fresh and good. I have never been to the palm so I decide on a few wall pictures. The walls are covered with famous people, athletes. politicians (mostly politicians), other people of note. It's incredible. I'm finishing the salad and the meat and potatoes arrive, the main event. I have been looking forward to this all day. It's cooked medium as I ordered it. Potatoes are very tasty. Generous side size. The meat is ok, I guess I expected better. The lady behind the bar made the evening. Conversation with her and other folks at the bar. People are starting to come in. I meant to bring a tie but left it at home...most men are wearing suit and tie, ladies are in dresses or skirt and blouse. The wine is gone, meat and potatoes all consumed. I take the tiramisu to go. I pay the check and I'm out the door. If you have never been I have to say it's worth the visit for the atmosphere, the walls and good service at the bar.

Solid, age old spot. We had dinner at almost 8pm and the crowd was clearing out. The dining room got quieter as people were finishing their dinners. The tables were a bit close to each other but it was fine. Our server wasn't too on top of his game but he looked very tired. He was forgetting drinks, never came back with cheese for the top of my pasta, didn't know how to answer my partner's question about what type of beer, etc. My spouse questioned whether his steak was actually A5 -- it was on the cheaper end, and when it came out he definitely said it probably wasn't to that quality. He eats a lot of steak. I really enjoyed my meal though. I got chicken Parm and the chicken was nicely breaded and smothered in cheese. The sauce was chunky tomato which I like. My only complaint was that it didn't come with a lot of pasta, which is surprising... Usually carbs are easy and cheap. And you can't even see it here, cuz there just wasn't that much of it. The cheesecake is Junior's from New York. It was a bit more crumbly than I like, and I wasn't a huge fan of the bourbon caramel sauce. There's also barely any crust, which is one of my favorite parts of cheesecake. I did like the clotted cream and mint on the side, it gave the cheesecake more character.The servers came over to sing happy birthday to our friend... They'd been doing it all night. We heard several tables being serenaded, including the one right next to us, right before us! Overall, not bad, I really did enjoy the chicken parm. I had never been to this location and I enjoy looking at people's faces drawn on the wall.

In a word: disappointing. Glad I tried this place during Restaurant Week so I did not pay a fortune. I had the Calamari Fritto Misto. It tasted old and extra chewy. Definitely not of the caliber I'd expect from a restaurant like this. I was shocked when they brought out the second course, Sicilian Salmon, and it was literally just a filet of fish -- no sides or garnishments. It felt cheap -- even for a Restaurant Week lunch deal. Service was ok but the restaurant was also relatively empty for a late Tuesday lunch. I wanted a cocktail but everything is at least $20 even a glass of wine. Maybe I just picked wrong but I probably won't eat here again.

My old ass boomer in-laws made a reservation here and it was perfect for them. If you're looking for you're typical white table cloth steak house with some seafood options. The palm is for you. I shared the porter house steak with my husband. Definitely left with two days of left overs. We asked for medium and it was VERY red, so after a couple of bites, we asked our awesome server (I wish I remembered his name) to take it back and cook a little more. They gave us an extra complimentary drink which was very kind of them. For four of us and a let's say two drinks each, we did ended up paying $450+ so it's definitely not an expensive place. I did consider to pay into their loyalty program so I could get my face on the wall. Please ask them how you can do that lolololol. Great place, I'd definitely come if I'm looking for a good piece of meat. Paloma was mid.

Eating steak with DC's elite../Parking: located in downtown DC, parking is slim pickings. Street parking is all around but you may have to searchDrinks: great house wine selection and full bar. Also a great selection of soft drink Food: they have a great selection of meats, including A5! We ordered A5 and NY strip. We told the waiter we wanted to split it between the two of us. The waiter offered to plate them individually half and half - so nice and convenient! The NY Strip was perfection and the A5 was the most tender steak I've ever had! Service: service was just okay. Our waiter didn't seem incredibly enthusiastic or pleasant. When he brought the food over he didn't even clear the table, he simply pushed items out is the way with the plate he was placing down. Not very classy. (Watch video)Atmosphere/vibe: we went for lunch on a Friday. It was pretty empty. They have cool pictures on the wall of Washington elites so it was nice to have lunch with Wolf Blitzer LOL. There is no outdoor dining so prepared to be inside a dim lit restaurant.Bathroom: it was clean and worked well Return: absolutely!

Great service, great food, great location. Rather pricey but what is expect from a DC establishment. The restaurant itself had several famous images on the wall. Not enough African Americans for me. When I don't feel like taking the trek to Bethesda, Baltimore, Annapolis, old town Alexandria or Columbia....I will come here. The convenience is worth it. Shrimp, steaks, lobster and drinks, are all well worth the visit.

Ordered two espresso martinis and they each had a lemon peel garnish- is this normal for The Palm? The service was super slow and dinner was just ok, I feel there are better steakhouses in the area.

I actually want to take 1/2 a star off, as the air conditioning was not working when we arrived. It was so hot the we moved from a booth to a table under a fan. Fortunately, it was fine by the time we left.I called the hostess about dress code and she was very gracious and said that my shorts and sneakers would be fine! Fortunately, I found some decent trousers and shoes!Our server Said (from Morocco) was amazing! Truly a class act. He created empathy with our 7 year old grandson and paid attention to everything in a timely fashion.The wine, salad, steaks and sides were excellent! Our son had arranged for a surprise cheesecake birthday treat for his mom, and it was well handled!Highly recommended! Will repeat when back in DC.

I reserve 5 stars for a place that really deserves it and the Palm deserves the 5 stars. The steaks were 1st class. Cooked perfectly. The service was out of this world. Everything from the lobster soup to the carrot cake for dessert was the best I've had for some time.