It’s been almost a week since our Washington DC trip and I think I’m finally starting to get back into the swing of things. We saw a lot of things and walked just as much. But most important, we got to let our inner foodies shine. Before we left for our trip, we told Pack Up & Go that we preferred vegan & gluten free options. Granted neither of us are fully vegan currently, we hoped that it would make sure we had healthy options available.
My diet these days is somewhere between vegan & paleo. And Alaina tends to eat more vegetarian than anything with room for the occasionally meat if she wants it. Overall I’d say we are pretty flexible. And other than making sure I avoided dairy and most gluten, finding a meal wasn’t an issue. Plus our travel guide was pretty through in giving us options. So today I thought I’d share everywhere we ate in Washington DC and a few fun finds along the way.
TED’S BULLETIN
Our first stop on the trip was adorable and highly recommended. It has an older diner vibe with classic movies playing on the wall inside. There’s also an incredible skylight roof that adds to the feel of the dining space. From what our waitress told us, Ted’s is known for their homemade poptarts. And from what I saw, they looked amazing. I opted for a salad w/ shrimp and A got the veggie burger. Both were great meals although I’d skip the shrimp next time and get salmon.
FARMERS MARKET ACROSS FROM THE SPY MUSEUM
I’ll be honest and say that I really don’t remember the name from this one. However, we snagged the best blueberry scone I’ve ever had here. It was gluten free & vegan. There were quite a few places here with produce, coffee and such. But the mini bakery was by far my favorite. They also sold v/gf sourdough bread that was awesome. If I had more room in my luggage, I would have stocked up.
FIG & OLIVE
Because this was technically my birthday trip, we planned to have at least one fancy dinner. And Fig & Olive fit the bill. I made sure to snag a reservation using Open Table Thursday morning so we wouldn’t have any issues and we were able to walk right in. I’d definitely say this is a foodie’s place to eat. Their menu features several vegan & gluten free options. The portions are the just enough and the meals were amazing. But if you’re a chicken fingers person, I don’t think this one is for you. By far our most expensive meal, but we each ordered 2 drinks and an entree.
RADIATOR
Breakfast for day two was a bit randomly and certainly overpriced. Is it really necessary to charge an $8 fee for you to bring food up an elevator? We opted for room service from our hotel and tried two of their juices plus the coffee. It wasn’t the most life changing meal by far but it ended up being a good way to start our day. The hotel also has it’s own restaurant so this was our small taste of it. And from our experience, the food was good.
CAPITAL GRILLE
Since we opted for a lighter breakfast, we ended up being quite hungry for lunch. Our guide suggested several places but we decided to find something near our next stop for the day. Our lunch at Capital Grille was lovely and very filling. The staff was incredibly accommodating and answered all my food related questions. They didn’t push when I asked for an alteration to their truffle fries or when I wanted more details about the dressing on a salad. It was definitely a fancier place than we planned to grab lunch but it was a wonderful stop to make
ROSA MEXICANO
This ended up being a last minute dinner decision for us but it was still enjoyable. We split the guacamole and veggie tacos. Their corn has cheese on it so we requested it was left on the side. But if I’m honest, we filled up on chips, salsa & guac before our meal. So one taco each ended up being enough and we still had one left. If you decide to go here, I’d recommend getting the guac and skipping the sangria. They make their guacamole fresh to order. But the sangria was mostly juice and ice.
THE POD
Before we left for dinner, we decided to grab a drink at the rooftop bar in our hotel. Our bartender Joseph, who was amazing and you should go visit, suggested we snag a drink at The Pod after dinner. It has a pretty great view of the city and sits in the middle of Chinatown. We also ended up catching the end of a fireworks show while we were there.
REREN LAMEN & BAR
Our last find before leaving the city was an amazing ramen place. I can’t say that they are 100% gluten free. But they do have vegan options. I always have issues with finding broth that is more plant based friendly. And they were quick to suggest swapping around a few things to make a meal work for me. They also use fresh organic ingredients in their meals. Plus, it’s affordable. It was a pretty popular place so I’d suggest snagging a reservation if you want to go. However, if you decide to drop in last minute, don’t worry. The food comes out quickly and the turnaround isn’t too bad.
Overall, I’d say we found a lot of great food places that were vegan & gluten free during our DC adventure. Several we suggested but others we stumbled onto with the help of Yelp and just walking around. But everywhere we went I’d happily dine at again.
