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Ristorante La Perla
Rating Details »
Neighborhood: Foggy Bottom
2600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
(at N 26th St)
Washington, DC 20037
(202) 333-1767
2600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
(at N 26th St)
Washington, DC 20037
(202) 333-1767
- Nearest Transit:
-
Foggy Bottom|GWU (Blue, Orange)
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Good for:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
16 reviews for Ristorante La Perla
TWO WORDS: ALMOND CAKE!! If you go for anything, get this. Oh and a few more words: Penne with Vodka Sauce... I actually sat there and licked my plate it was sooo amazing!!
Don't forget the almond cake!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
3/3/2009
HANDS DOWN THE BEST ITALIAN PLACE IN DC or in AMERICA for that matter. Never in my life have I… Read more »
I was looking for a nice quiet italian restaurant for a date I had this past weekend. Came across this place on yelp and the reviews were good so I made reservations. Great food! And the atmosphere was perfect for a date. I got the Penne con Vodka based on one of the previous reviews and it was excellent! The chef stopped by our table and introduced himself which I thought was pretty cool.
On a recent trip to DC my girlfriend and I were looking for a place to eat before a National Symphony Orchestra concert at The Kennedy Center. We had made reservations for Marcel's but unfortunately since we were traveling I didn't have the proper attire with me. Therefore we found La Perla last minute and were not disappointed. For starters, the bread they brought out before the meal was warm with a soft inside and crisp crust. I ordered the gnocchi bolognese as my entree. The gnocchi were cooked perfectly and had a great consistency. The bolognese was flavorful with the perfect ratio of sauce to meat. My girlfriend ordered a special which was pappardelle with seafood in a saffron cream sauce. It was as good as it sounds and my only wish was I had more bread to keep dunking in her sauce (my apologies if that sounds dirty). The only negative of the meal came with dessert. We ordered the almond cake and the tiramisu. The waiter came back with a slice of almond cake and something that was chocolate covered. Knowing that Tiramisu looks different everywhere you go, I was ready to believe. But after I cracked open the chocolate shell it was just ice cream inside. I got the waiter's attention to inform him that one of the desserts wasn't what we ordered and he tried to convince me to keep it anyway. After telling him I wanted to try the Tiramisu he took the ice cream away and went into the kitchen. When he returned with the Tiramisu he questioned why I had eaten it if it was the wrong thing. I had literally cracked a piece of the chocolate shell off, and not touched anything else. It was almost as if he were implying that they would have otherwise served it to someone else. I gave the waiter the benefit of the doubt that he got yelled at by someone in the kitchen and was simply stressed out because he had been quite pleasant for the rest of the meal. This slightly insulting situation was resolved when who I can only assume was the chef/owner of the restaurant came out , asked about our meal and sent us two free shots of Limoncello. All in all the service was very friendly and the food was exceptional. If you are looking for a great meal before a show at Lincoln Center and don't have a jacket and tie, this place is perfect.
Go for atmosphere and service. The food is classic, heavy and filling, but I've had better Italian food. However, a dinner at La Perla doesn't let you down - you'll enjoy the food, love the atmosphere, but it won't become your favorite restaurant.
The best part of my first dinner at La Perla? When the little old Italian owner came over to our table, gasped and told me I reminded him of a young Elizabeth Taylor. I'll take it.
Me- "Where are we going to dinner?"
Cousin- "La Perla"
Me (not out loud, thankfully)- "We're going to an upscale lingerie store for dinner?"
No, apparently La Perla is a delicious Italian restaurant that my cousin has been to once.
My cousin had made reservations for 7 of us to come here after her law school graduation (woot). We were immediately seated and greeted by an adorable little Italian man. Seriously, this guy was awesome.
The menu was quite extensive, although I was a little astounded by the abundance of THINGS THAT MIGHT KILL ME. Seriously, for someone with a food allergy (shellfish), the number of dishes with shellfish was a little overwhelming (if I was a statistician, I would guess 62.7%, but I'm not). This is annoying for a couple of reasons: #1- I had less to choose from and #2- I was a little worried about cross-contamination. I decided to throw caution into the wind and get the **** piccante, which is like piccata. I have no idea if there's an actual difference. Regardless, it was probably the best I've ever had. It said it came with a side of spaghetti, but I figured it would be in the same lemon/butter/caper sauce. Nope, it came with tomato sauce. Which would be fine if I was 6 years old, but that didn't really mesh. I'm sorry, I have to take away a star for the mismatched pasta & meat dish.
Other than that, this place is pretty cool. The wine we had was good (and they have Ferrari-Carano, which I am probably the only person in the world who would order, as I used to work for the Caranos), and the desserts were quite delish.
The service was EXCELLENT, and yet ANOTHER cute adorable Italian man came out and talked to the tables. I had no idea who he was, he looked like a dishwasher lost on his way to the kitchen, but he was so cute I just wanted to put him in my pocket and take him home.
I would definitely recommend this on a visit to D.C., if you're into Italian food. The prices are a little steep, however, so make sure it's at LEAST the 3rd date. Or that you'll be guaranteed to see some La Perla.
OMG, I love their food. The fettucine alfredo and the spaghetti carbonara are amazing. The latter was better at La Perla than any restaurant I went to in Italy or Little Italy.
The dessert selection is amazing, too. Get the tiramisu or any of the cheesecakes.
Oh, and note well: don't discuss politics with the chef/owner who comes to your table. My friend, who's both Italian and liberal, made that mistake, but it was all good. The chef still treated us to shots of limoncello, which, as a college freshman, was impressive.
I had the carbonara Spagetti tonight and I have to say, it was the best I've ever had here in the US. I 've had the dish in numerous places in Italy (The best being at the Da Giggetto Ristorante Cleto Vecchia oma
Taverna degli Amici La Piazzetta Checchino-dal-1887 in the Roman Jewish Ghetto)
You should specify if you like your pasta dish "soupy" or "Sticks to the fork" He will make etiher way. The Owner Victorio came out to greet us and was very amicable. The Restaruant is a bit over decoratated but the food and central location make up for it. My Wife had the Veal Piccant was terrific with that great tang from the capers. We found the pasta dishs itself a bit over sauced but I'm being picky.
A great place we would go back to.
The atmosphere was great...sit outside if the weather is good. The food was really good but I would not classify it as one of my favorites. The lobster and shrimp creme soup and the penne with vodka sauce were especially tasty. The extensive wine selection is great as well. As noted below, the owner came out to speak with us at the end of the meal and was very gracious. Overall a very good experience but because of the cost I would save it for special occasions.
I love this restaurant! Not just because I live across the street but they are GOOD! I go there by myself more but I have taken my dates there too. Never disappointing and always leave satisfied with the settings, service and mostly the food and wine. I also go to pick up their housemade dessert and addictive pasta soup.
La Perla is my favorite on my block as well as Thai Coast. They always provide friendly and professional service on personal level.
One of my favorite restaurants, any place! It's always too long since I've been there. Great for an amazing late-night dinner after the Kennedy Center or DAR. It's as beautiful as it is delicious.
Crystal and I had a birthday celebration for both at La Perla, and people who thought that they know DC's best were amazed. My cousin and I both had spaghetti, and he'll never think of that common word the same as he used to. They handled our table of 15 as nicely as they did the night that Crystal and I dropped in after an Il Divo concert almost as they were closing.
Get the huge oysters as an appetizer: the best I've ever had!
I have to go with Lynn B. on this one.
We were in DC, staying at the River Inn and heading back to Seattle from a trip back to Virginia. We had one night left in town and went looking for a restaurant after a long day sightseeing and a bad lunch in Georgetown. We got to La Perla about sunset and I was immediately excited because, as a chef, I love good - and beautifully-decorated - Italian restaurants. The menu was fairly traditional, so there was a lot of dishes I've made over the years, running two Italian restaurants among my other stops. We got wine, a bottle of Re Manfredi Aglianico that we sell in our own wine shop. My GF ordered the Pasta Genovese Pesto and I had the Carbonara, a dish I love and make frequently.
I'll admit that I'm a sucker for atmosphere. I think that restaurateurs who show care in how their place looks and feels usually can be counted on to deliver on the table, too. The wine was good and the price was reasonable but her Genovese was dry, loaded with what looked like Parmesan cheese out of the little cardboard can, and actually stuck together in clumps when she picked it up on her fork. It tasted okay, not exceptional, and we had to get refilled on water THREE times to get it all down.
Carbonara is one of the most voluptuous, sinful dishes in the Italian food canon. It has cream, egg yolks, bacon, butter and cheese in it. It should be creamy, decadent, cheesy, smoky from the bacon, and trap little pockets of steam that release as you eat down the mound. La Perla's was sticky, dry, again loaded with grainy parmesan, and had little of the smoky flavor that distinguishes the dish. The pasta was nicely cooked but the sauce flavor was mostly about cream and cheese and if there was any egg added to it, I couldn't taste it. It was NOT thick and creamy but rather dry and scant. The pasta was barely coated.
I wasn't as put off by the prices as some of the other posters were. Yeah, it was a little pricey but it's DC, for Pete's Sake, and tourists like me expect a LITTLE gouge. The service, however, was clueless. We got a young man who seemed baffled by simple questions about the menu and didn't offer to GO ASK, the cardinal rule for every server who has EVER worked for me. If somebody asks a question you can't answer, GO ASK. I used to give my cell number to servers, so they could call me when I was off. This kid just said he didn't know and moved on to the next thing.
The La Perla website seems inordinately concerned with promoting their stainless steel kitchen - "Il Cuore (The Heart) of La Perla" - and the chef, Vittorio Testa, loaded with a lot of photos of the stainless and of Vittorio, looking very much Mark Feuerstein, the actor, only older. THAT, folks, is the OTHER side of the fine decor and the care given to your restaurant's interior: The notion that, once you look good, the job is done.
It isn't. And La Perla MAY - MAY - have just had one bad night when we showed up. But I doubt it. I think sometimes restaurants get all happy with their press and fawning customer comments and get sloppy. And IMHO, that's what is amiss at La Perla.
I was in DC for my graduation from grad school and needed a place to feed my hungry family. We had already missed breakfast and were desperate for a cup of coffee and food of any kind. We stumbled upon La Perla, which was just opening up for lunch and figured we might as well give it a try.
Service was slow at first, which could probably be attributed to the fact that they just opened. We had a lot of time to sit and marvel at the bizarre decor as we perused the menu and sipped our coffee. The walls had lots of strange framed fruit pictures - corn inside of a banana peel, etc. Personally, I don't find humorous, mutated produce to be particularly appetizing, but to each her own, I suppose. It would have been one thing if they had stopped with the odd framed "art", but they also have lots of garish lighting fixtures and chandeliers. And then there are all of those scarves hanging high up on the walls or are those flags? I have no idea.
Fortunately, the odd, mish mashed decor did not reflect the food that we were served. My Panino alla Vegetarian (Sun-dried tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and grilled vegetables [peppers, eggplant, zucchini] with limoncina dressing) was served warm and it was delicious. The sandwich came with the best fries I've had in a long time.
If you can look beyond the decor, you'll be in for a real culinary treat!
I will never forget the first fun dining experience at La Perla.
Start with the first dinner experience and continue by a couple of lunch and another evening dining experience.
Greet by the hospitable friendly manager and by the chef owner Vittorio Testa, that making sure everything serve well, smooth and properly and for a customer satisfactions.
Delicious pasta, the wine list is rich of variety.
My favorite in the menu for pasta, Linguine Vittorio, medallions of lobsters sizzling in garlic, brandy, dry vermouth, shallots, a touch of assorted herbs and spices, and sun-dried tomatoes.
My favorite red wine in this place is Amarone Classico Monte Christi from Morano, Italy, that have a medium body, not to heavy with a little bit of fruity taste.
If you want to go dine and have Italian food without worrying to dress up dressy or formal, La perla is a place for you to go!
You will enjoy the food as well as the Italian arts.
Goda il vostro pasto!
Salut!
There should be more places like this. Clean, elegant, classy, and not at all pretentious. The food stands up on its own, and for a decent price. Visit this place if you are a reasonable person in search of quality food and selection at reasonable prices. If you are an obnoxious idiot who cannot appreciate good food and respectable behavior, then stay away and don't ruin everyone else's fun. Go spend your dad's money at some little tourist trap along Georgetown's main strip.
I'd pass this restaurant many times going into Georgetown and finally had a chance to take it all in.
Dining with another couple, the Man and I had a wonderful time. Great food, super drinks and fabulous company - what more can you ask for. Absolutely nothing.
- I had the Pasta Presidente - a seafood linguine with champagne sauce. Tons of shrimp, huge chunks of lobster, fresh pasta and a light cream sauce to die for!
- Wine, we had 2 bottles but I can't remember the names. Both complimented our meals
- 1 bottle of Champagne - again, great compliment to desert. Oh, I had the tiramisu and my girlfriend had the custard (kind of tasted like flan)
- the chef stopped by to chat and check on us. Really sweet man and wonderful chef. Compliments to the Chef :)
- our waiter was very informative and made great suggestions
- yes the decor is a bit odd, but hey I didn't go there to look at the walls
We had a 3 hour dinner and no one tried to rush us out, so we just enjoyed each others company in peace. We'll certainly go back
visiting DC for the first time..looking for a place to eat that's near where I was staying.. came here by accident..not knowing how much it was! turned out the Pope and the Bush family had eaten here before! but, boy was it good! the service was great.. pasta was super yummy.. you can truly tell the finer italian food.. if you want italian, come here!
