Cafe Deluxe

Used to be good. R.I.P. Waiting for a new owner and new management. We’re neighborhood people and know the place well, both when it was very good and now.

My colleagues and I went to Café Deluxe for lunch today. We each had a different kind of burger, I believe there are 6 choices on the menu. The burgers are half price on Wednesdays so that is a good deal. I had the salmon burger and it was okay. The fries were lukewarm but still tasty. Service was disappointing, our waitress was really not good. She never refilled our glasses of water or checked on us during our meal.
Last month I had Happy Hour at Café Deluxe and enjoyed that a lot. The Bartender was great, provided good and quick service. The HH drinks are well priced and so are the HH bites. My friends and I had a really fun time and our bill came to less than $ 20 each.

I am hesitant to commit to five stars having only been one time, however I believe if you can’t find anything wrong then less than five stars would be an opinion unfounded. So, five it is. A friend and I went for lunch. I would call it upscale casual. I highly recommend the dining room for it’s fun, non-​rushed atmosphere. The service was superb. We had the Lamb Sandwich, Bison Burger with regular and sweet potato fries and a lovely merlot. The presentation was good not superb. The food was flavorful, plentiful and a mix of fresh with the sides frozen. All-​in-​all a lovely dinning experience at a very reasonable price.

I decided to swing by for lunch on 1÷7÷16. I will say that I was highly disappointed with the food. I ordered the tomato soup and the crab cakes. The soup was hot and tasted fine. The crab cakes were barely edible because they tasted like they were grilled using fish grease. I could barely taste the crab. The aioli helped with the taste but not by much. The coleslaw was warm and tasted horrible and the french fries were crunchy and tasted fine. My cocktail was extremely sour compared to the last time I visited the restaurant for lunch. The good customer service was the only saving grace.

Caf D is a rad place-​especially for brunch And/​or outa towers. The food/​atmosphere isn’t groundbreaking but is consistently good. My folks go bananas for the meatloaf. Not my choice, but there are TONS of super delish vegetarian AND gluten free options. I usually get the Austin veggie burger. Pretty dang delightful. My husband gets either mussels or a d delish salad… we are so happy we like so close!

Seriously. My second and last trip here. Got my order wrong TWICE. Not hard to make a burger. The first one they gave me was raw — when I ordered medium and it had American, not the cheddar I asked for. The fries were nice and hot though! (And as an aside, they put the hot burger on TOP of shredded lettuce so the lettuce is incredibly limp and nasty.). So they took it away and started ALL over again. Another 20 min. No one ever apologized. The new burger was medium, but the cheese was American, again — and this time the fries were stone cold, I’m pretty sure they were the original ones — it was the middle of the afternoon… Since it was 3:30 in the afternoon and I was hungry when I came in, 45 minutes later I just choked it down.

Considering that the menu is mostly basic American food that is hard to do poorly I cannot recommend Café Deluxe. I have tried weekend breakfast bacon and eggs, and a hamburger for dinner, and both times I was disappointed in what I received. The food reminds me of being stuck in a hotel restaurant churning out overpriced over-​salted basics. The extra dollars in cost should mean something special but the fare is meh.
I will not try going back because I can echo some of the other reviews at how the service was annoyingly poor. The restaurant was mostly empty for a weeknight dinner, and our server was nowhere to be found. He expected us to order right after sitting down and then after bringing our food he disappeared. I had to ask the bartender to get him after waiting at least ten minutes after finishing dinner. It was surreal sitting in a mostly empty restaurant with no server. Too much drama for an overpriced burger.
Living close by, the place is typically busy, especially at brunch. I just don’t get it.

I have been here so many times over the years when I would visit a family member. Each time we found the service friendly and efficient and the food was amazing! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the steamed mussels and the seared tuna with aoili sandwich

Going for brunch at Café Deluxe is one of my favorite weekend pastimes. I love the ambiance of the restaurant, and the staff are always so attentive and my food is prepared lightning fast. It has such a warm family atmosphere and the food is just amazing. I especially love their biscuits and jam and their coffee. I always get their deluxe breakfast and I’m never disappointed. Whenever I have friends visiting from out of town, I make a point to take them to Café Deluxe.

Ate here Wed night.
Sounds like front-​of-​the-​house service is an ongoing issue. We were seated though our entire party had not arrived. So that’s a point in favor. So five of the seven of us waited. And waited. And waited. I made eye contact with the hostess a few times, but she just kind of looked away awkwardly. After about 15 minutes, I flagged down a waiter who wasn’t responsible for our table, but who took pity on us and took our drink order.
So service was pretty horrible the whole evening, but our waiter did a yeomanlike job trying to cover. Where were the other waitstaff? At first I thought they were short-​staffed, but then, suddenly, a bunch of waiters were out and about. Were they having a staff meeting? Having an early holiday party in the back? No explanation was forthcoming.
Even with a full staff, we spent much of the meal swimming in dirty plates and dishes – even though they seemed to have a full bus staff.
At one point the maitre d’ came by and asked us, «And everything is to your liking?» or the like. I wanted to ask him who was in charge of the train wreck.
Food was meh. I was really looking forward to the garlic spinach side, but it had been salted like a dried cod. I think the only real crowd favorite was the chicken. So maybe order that if you’re meeting people here.
Ah, and the beer selection was pretty out-​of-​date. Maybe that’s to appeal to the elderly conservative crowd up by the Cathedral, I don’t know.

The brunch was pretty good, I ordered some beignets (the tiny donuts covered with cinnamon and sugar, very sinful) and a croque madame. Overall, the food was passable but our server was really nice. The food came right on time, the hosts at the entrance were kind and attentive which is a huge plus. I would sum it up as a 3.5 star for food itself and 4 stars for the nice service and staff. Kudos for the management!

During my four years in DC, I have never received as rude of service as I am right now at this Café Deluxe. The hostess was so cold and unwilling to sit us at the patio – where there were many open tables and people eating – so we should have left then. The server just asked us «are you ready to order NOW?» I will not willingly come back.

The Good
–They have specials like half off burgers that are unique items from the regular
menu at half off. Burgers are good.
–Foods not bad overall, nothing special but good
–Clean, friendly staff
The Bad
–Nothing special, just safe, and that’s ok.

Quite pricey for brunch. Service was sort of old school trying to upsell us dessert during brunch time (excuse me?). Eggs benedict was really well made with a great spicier, rich sauce atop sourdough bread instead of English muffin. Salmon nicoise salad had a generous portion of fish and salad. The bison burger was in the OK range, nothing outstanding. I think given the price and ambiance, that everything was OK but not great.

As good as a turkey burger can get! It’s not exactly close to any train station, but there is a bus nearby on Wisconsin Avenue, where Café Deluxe is located. The prices are similar to Manhattan prices, so I wasn’t particularly thrown off by it. I came in at like 9−10pm, and we were immediately seated. The kitchen does close at 11, I believe, so try to get your order in for everything before then. It was very empty on a Friday night, but this place is huge, so I don’t think there would be any problems finding seats here. There is also a full bar, if you don’t like sitting in the booths or tables.
I had the turkey burger and it tasted very much like turkey, but it was a very large burger, and very delicious. It was paired with sweet potato fries, which I didn’t think was the perfect pairing for a turkey burger, also considering their rosemary fries are much better, I would have preferred that instead.
My only issue is that the service was really slow. I’m used to eating, getting out and going, but I felt like for a restaurant so empty, I waited a bit too long.

Other then the price being so High I thought this place was pretty good. I did like the fact that Dogs were allowed and think that complaints are kind of dumb… eat inside. In Europe pets are typically allowed to eat outside and in this part of DC I think it really add to the class.
I recommend this location but be prepared for over priced DC food.

We made reservations here for brunch a couple weeks ago on a Sunday. It was surprisingly only half full inside, but the outdoor patio was packed. The atmosphere reminder me of a French bistro. Everything was clean and modern. The staff was fried my and all servers pitched in to bring out food and keep beverage refills coming. I got the corn flake crusted French toast with was fantastic. I’m a huge French toast person but I hate when it gets soggy. The cork flakes gave it a great crunchy texture. My boyfriend ordered the ham and gruyère omelet with home fries. Most would assume a ham and cheese omelet isn’t very exciting, but this one was fantastic. The ham was thick cut real ham, not deli slices, and the Gruyère gave it a great depth of flavor than your typical cheddar or American. Will definitely be coming back to try more!

Went on a rainy Monday evening.
James had the chicken pot pie which was
huge. I had the meatloaf with mashed potatoes & gravy.
We both agreed we made an excellent choice.
I really like the open & airy feeling dining room, the white table clothes & the European feel to the place.
Our server, Jamal was on the spot.
Many good selections on the menu & the prices seemed fair.
I also liked the many outside tables on the
patio; I’m sure it’s popular when the weather is nice.

Generic diner type American food trying to market itself as upscale. Service is friendly, if they acknowledge you. Our table was seated on the patio and ignored for ages until I went to find a server.
The cheesy crab dip is tasty (if totally fatty) and the goat cheese omelette was just so-​so. I asked for less goat cheese but still got way too much. The berries for dessert were the best part.
I won’t return because nothing wows here. Especially not the stereotypically jacked prices. Cheesecake Factory would be my alternative due to their much larger menu.

I told the husband we would eat at an outside café before we left. As luck would have, this place is just down the street from the National Cathedral, which we had just toured.
The weather was sunny bright and 60 degrees. Ok with me. I had a turkey avocado BLT and the husband had the meatloaf. The bread they serve is hot and tasty. Sourdough, I think. Both dishes were great. Even the ice tea is OK (for non-​Texans, that is). Our server Lillian, was superb. Attentive and friendly. The only slight bummer thing is the honey bee that visited us.
And I got to step out into the street and hail a cab, just like in the movies.