The fish here is really fresh. The favorites are the crab sandwich and catfish sandwich. We get pan fried with spicy house made sauce. I like these two dishes since they come from Maryland. Sides are good. I got Brussels sprouts which were tasty. read more

Chef Brandon provides a unique and flavorful array of tastes. Be sure to check him out.

I visited Fishscale for lunch. I always like to give honest reviews so, parking is a WHOLE situation since the restaurant is located on Florida Ave. Also, the restaurant is not very big so, I would plan for take out instead of dining in. Now for the great part. We were greeted immediately, very warmly and directed to the menu. It was Tuesday so, of course I went for the tacos Everything was cooked to order and I just could not resist the Japanese potatoes. The restaurant is very clean. You can see directly into the kitchen and even the bathroom, also very clean. The food was amazing, not too heavy, flavorful and most importantly FRESH! I had a ginger beer to wash it all down. Customer service was attentive and wait for it........ it's a Black owned business I will be returning, just got to figure out parking. Visit this place as soon as you can, you won't regret it! read more

FishScale - Japanese sweet potatoes - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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An amazing black owned and unique restaurant! The service and food is amazing! Ingredients are super fresh and your food is made when ordered. I would order before going in if it's your lunch break since they start making it after you order. Process: pick your meat and if you want it as a burger. You get to choose 2 toppings that are all made fresh daily. Pick your side and drink. Which are sold separately. I got the rockfish burger and chips. I chose the samba and cucumber-tomato relish. The samba sauce is SPICY!!!! So if you like a good tingle then I would try it out. The fresh cucumber and tomato relish was so refreshing in combination with the samba. Definitely loved the combo. The actual fish burger just melted in my mouth. The bread was crazy soft as well. 10/10 fish burger and definitely recommend trying this place out! Can't wait to go back and try another combo of toppings. read more

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I decided to visit this place in honor of #smallbusinessSaturday This was my first time visiting FishScale at the recommendation of my friend and honey, I did not regret it one bit. Hospitality: The woman who took our order was great at making a first timer feel welcomed as she provided a breakdown of the menu and any substitutes available. Food: Let's get down to business...the grilled rockfish burger was topped with diced cucumbers and tomatoes (there were other toppings available) but I selected this. The fish was grilled to perfection and still maintained a juicy flavor which was oozing with the right seasonings.I thoroughly enjoyed my selection but of course my friend informed me that for my next visit, I should try the salmon burger and crab cakes. Looks like I'll be doing a couple more runs over there lol Overall this restaurant has a great vibes, good music, and tasty food...what isn't to love about that!!!!! Black owned and so worth the visit! read more

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Fortunately, I live in DC and have access to " Fish Scales with such wholesome and delicious food. If you like seafood fish or just clean eating this is the place for you. You can get crab cakes, various fish choices, vegetables great potatoes etc, seasoned well with great flavors. On 3/29/2025 my stitch group joined me @ Fish Scales to celebrate my auntie's birthday and she was delighted. After eating her meal w/o a drop left on her plate, she sent kudos to the chef. She enjoyed her rockfish meal. I tried fluke fish for the first time. It was seared and seasoned to perfection. Thank you to such a courteous and friendly staff. The experience was wonderful!! You made my auntie's birthday a memorable one!! read more

FishScale - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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The food is delicious. I had the flounder and slaw dinner. The fish is fresh and well seasoned and I am in love with the slaw made with yogurt. The slaw was refreshing. I will be returning soon. read more

Wonderful place. Been meaning to try this place for a couple of years and finally made it here with the couple of the fellas. Black -owned... Up the street from my beloved alma mater, the great HU. We were originally going to go to a new soul food restaurant around the corner called "Doro", but there's no seating there. So we then proceed to walk around the corner in 20° BLUSTERY temperatures today (brrrrrr!!!!) and arrive inside of FishScale. We're the only ones there at the time save for the owners - and the one owner is an absolute gem. The other is the chef and he was busy working. Didn't say anything. The gregarious owner is Kristal and she greets us with a big smile and proceeds to run down her entire menu. I wasn't sure I was ready for all of that but we let her continue lol. Luckily it's not that large. She's clearly very passionate about her business. She's very personable and came over and engaged us in lots of good conversation during the meal. Her personality shines. Sandwiches, subs, fresh salad - all seafood based fare here. Deep River chips in bags. Reasonable prices. Good sized portions. One of my colleagues had a catfish sub (drizzled aioli on top). A riff on a Philly cheesesteak. The other had fish tacos, and I had a crab cake sandwich. Kristal suggested sweet potato fries since they don't have regular. Initially I was a little turned off, but she swore that I would never go back to regular fries because these were "Japanese sweet potato fries", and I was therefore intrigued. They were absolutely fabulous. She says the uncooked flesh is white inside. The potato cooked potato shows up kind of a banana yellow fleshy with a marvelous crispy skin having been grilled and drizzled with a savory sweet glaze of some sort. They were terrific, sure, but I'm still going to eat regular fries lol. The have some nice drinks including wine. I like this place. I shall return forthwith. read more

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Really attentive service and the food was really fresh and delicious. I had fried rockfish and potatoes...yum! I watched them season and batter the fresh fish! Their tartar sauce was homemade and quite good. The inside is small but classy, well decorated, and clean with a few tables. Great addition to the neighborhood! read more

FishScale - Fried rockfish, taters, and tartar sauce. - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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TASTY FOOD! Honestly it's perfect - so glad I checked out this black owned spot. If you haven't tried this place, YOU SHOULD. I ordered via Uber eats and everything came packaged so well, the sandwiches traveled nice! Also, loved the writing on the boxes lol I ordered the Wild Caught Fish Burger with the Spicy Sambal and grilled onions. VERY GOOD. You can choose what kind of sauce you want on the burger, so if you don't like spicy, don't get the spicy sambal - ITS GOOD AS HELL, but spicy. I loved this burger. The Chesapeake Cheesesteak was EVERYTHING. It's a filling sandwich, and all the flavors blend together so well. I could eat this sandwich daily. The roll was also perfect. I'll definitely be coming back to this place, I really enjoyed my food! read more

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I've lived in the area for a while and only just got around to trying this place. I'm glad I did! The fish was cooked to order and delicious, and service was very friendly. The curry and mumbo sauce were flavorful and had depth (sometimes these can just taste sweet). And the prices were very reasonable. This will be on my regular rotation. read more

Like every year, I had to support a black business for Juneteenth. So, I decided on this place... though, next time I'll try to get there while a march isn't happening on the street that it's on. From what I can tell, Fishscale has a relatively small menu, but it's great stuff! I had a Rockfish burger with jalapeno sauce and grilled onion sauce, and Japanese sweet potatoes. The burger was outstanding. I loved texture of the bun, I loved the flavor of the fish and how the sauces worked with it. The sweet potatoes looked like regular potatoes, but they were indeed sweet like sweet potatoes. That sauce that was on them... WHEW. I forget what it was called now (and I can't see it on their site right now) but it was really delicious! I am looking forward to going back and having more of those sweet potatoes, and trying their catfish cheesesteak! I do wish more sweet potatoes came with one order though! read more

FishScale - Rockfish burger and Japanese sweet potatoes - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

When I first heard of black-owned Fishscale, it was via an image of the Chesapeake Cheesesteak. I was a bit skeptical because it wasn't beef. ​ ​ ​Here is the thing, I think of myself as a cheesesteak expert. I am originally from south NJ & due to the proximity to Philly, I grew eating my share of cheesesteaks. When I first moved to VA 20+ years ago, I learned that it is called a steak & cheese sub, & often the taste was just a backward it was called. ​ ​ ​I preordered & walked from my sister's to take advantage of the warm day. ​ ​ ​While I briefly waited on my order, I inquired about the signature aioli on the side. The chef saw my "Foodie Est. 1985" (designed by me) t-shirt & asked, " How are you a foodie that orders sauces on the side?" ​ ​ ​I answered, " I like to taste my food before adding the sauce." I believe great food should be well seasoned on every level. ​ ​ ​I bit into my cheesesteak & wow, my thoughts about cheesesteak should only be beef changed! The Maryland Blue Catfish was fried and seasoned with caramelized onions & green peppers with provolone cheese. The cheese pulls that I was able to achieve with each bite were perfect. I regret not having the setup to video properly. After that 1st bite, I put on the signature aioli, and I found myself pouring it on! All respect to chef H. Brandon Williams. ​ ​ ​The secret sauce to a great cheesesteak is the bread, which is just as important as what is on or between the bread. My Chesapeake Cheesesteak bread was soft with a slight crunch! ​I almost greedily ate the whole sandwich, but I restrained myself & walked back to give my mom the last bite. She ate the bite and said it was a good cold. You know something is delicious when you can eat it cold! ​ ​ ​How do you get yours? Fishscale is located on Florida Avenue NW between LeDroit Park and Shaw neighborhoods, cross the street from the Metro PCS that plays Go-Go! ​ ​ ​There is limited seating for dine in, so I recommend either ordering for pickup on their website or having it delivered via Grubhub, Seamless, and Uberears ​ ​ read more

FishScale - Chesapeake Cheesesteak - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Great food - loved that I could have the curried dish with the fish of my choice (and the scale-on rockfish was cooked just right). I've been before for crab burgers, and will come back to try their catfish cheesesteak. Service was really friendly too (providing water). read more

I had been wanting to try FishScale for some time and once I finally did, I'm glad I did. It's on Florida Ave in the Le Droit Park community in DC. I had previously heard about it and also passed by many times over the last year however wasn't able to visit due to parking challenges. As a fish and seafood lover I am even more obsessed with fish sandwiches. FishScale clicks on all cylinders. According to their website the seafood they acquire is sourced from sustainable wild fish in accordance with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Program. I met one of the co-owners, Brandon, who prepared my sandwiches. I appreciate the conversation I had with him and attention to detail. Actually, I'm glad I stuck around and watched him prepare my food. I commented that it is not often you get to see restaurants prepare high quality food. Usually if it is high-quality food it's prepared in the back kitchen however the set-up at FishScale allows you to get a glimpse of the food prep. Brandon seems to be a cool guy and so does his staff. The food here is exceptionally fresh. You can tell fresh seafood in particular. If you know, you know. Another tell tale sign of fresh seafood is the lingering smell of it once you get home (if you're doing takeout). I ordered takeout and my ride was 25 mins, so by the time I arrived home it still had that freshly prepared smell. The portion sizes are very appropriate. I ordered the following menu items: 1) The Chesapeake Cheesesteak (made with blue catfish) 2) True Blue crab cake sandwich 3) Jerk Salmon Cheesesteak 4) CharmCity single-serving wines The inside lobby of FishScale is also very welcoming and has a warm ambiance. Check them out. If you are a fish sandwich lover or even a casual fish sandwich enthusiast, give FishScale a try. I will definitely return. read more

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Love this place! The owners are really friendly and take their time to explain all the different fish options. They've got options to make your fish pan seared or fried, in a cheesesteak or sandwich and it's all delicious. You can tell there's a lot of care and love for the food; it shows in quality and taste. I got the rockfish, pan seared, with lettuce, tomato, and aioli. The fish was tender, flavorful and perfectly cooked. Also had the fried potatoes which were smashed and fried to crispy perfection. You can get delivery but it's best fresh and it makes me wish they had a location closer to me. read more

FishScale - a burger with lettuce and a donut - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

My partner and I were both starving and decided to come here after seeing it was highly rated. Even going in with high expectations, our expectations were surpassed. Everything from the food to the service was excellent. While the portions were on the smaller side, the quality was outstanding and we still walked away with full stomachs. If the off menu crab cheesesteak is available, go for it! It was delicious & the crab lumps sizable. Loved that they compost here and sustainably source their seafood. And somehow even with fresh seafood, the prices are still reasonable. Orders are prepared fresh and seating is limited but turnover is quick enough that the timing works out to sit down by the time your food is ready. Staff are incredibly kind. Parking is tough in this area but still doable. Highly recommend eating here; we'll definitely be back and can't wait to try more dishes. read more

I've driven past this place too many times to not stop in at my first chance. I'm glad I finally had a taste of their offerings. I enjoyed a Mahi Mahi burger with sauteed onions, cucumber and tomato relish, and pesto. The bun is toasted and light which was perfect. It's a fish burger, so it's nice to not feel weighed down by the meal. It was nice chatting with Crystal, the owner. I learned that Chef Brandon, who was working the grill and dressing the burgers, is her brother which is cool in it's own right. They were both pleasant and welcoming. There seemed to be regulars, or just friendly customers which is a good thing to see. The upbeat variety of music was a nice touch. Fishscale is clean and comfortable, just the type of spot to pick up a tasty fish burger. I'll be back when the crab burger is in season. read more

FishScale - Cucumber and tomato relish. Sauteed onions. Pesto. Mahi Mahi burger. - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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first and foremost, the customer service is amazing!! The person at the register( the owner assumingely) explained their entire menu throughly and answered every question. my issue lies in the food and cost. i completely understand that at the restaurant you are paying for quality, but this for basically $20 (see photo) is a slightly ridiculous. The fries were seasoned to perfection , but the fish was bland and contained several hard pieces. read more

FishScale - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Love supporting a black owned business. Especially one that's warm and inviting. I came here on recommendation from WETA's Signature Dish and I was a little underwhelmed. The fish burger was very dry and lacked depth. The sides were underwhelming as well. I dont think id be back here. If youre a pescatarian this might be the place for you. read more

Wow! Just got carryout here for lunch and loved every bite. I started with the Japanese sweet potatoes, which have a nice crispy skin to them and good flavor. For the sandwich I went with the Chesapeake cheese steak, which is made with local catfish. The fish was so perfectly cooked and seasoned, and was quite delicious. The staff were also very friendly. Bonus points to this restaurant for embracing sustainable practices too. They have information on their web site about their seafood sources, and I also appreciated that the to-go containers are compostable if you have access to a composting service. read more

FishScale - Japanese Sweet Potato - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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What a wonderful life it is! Fish scale is a quaint Black, looks to be family owned restaurant/carry out. Y'all I can go on and on about this place. I really want you to visit Fishscale and taste these creations! I just wanted to take a small bite while it was hot as I was going to eat it when I got home. Well I nor the sandwich made it off the street. I just felt like the part of my 600 lb life where I'm in the parking lot hoping someone asks me where I got it from so I can yell FISH SCALE MAN!!!!! CLEAN. Great Customer service. You get a bag of Vickie's chips with your philly fish sandwich Man. I mean its not a new concept, a fish sandwich. But I watched the chef make my sandwich and he cooked and created my sandwich with a sense of pride and love. Like he was making it for himself. Perfect. Just for ME! Please support these people. read more

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This could be the best sandwich I've ever had! The Jerk Salmon Spicy Cheese Steak! Off the rails good! Perfect spice, fresh fish, bread was perfect! Came with chips and I had Perky Lemonade! All of it fit... Customer service was top quality and super friendly! I came from Cali to visit my son at Howard, I'll come back just to eat here! Hahaha... Y'all check it out! read more

FishScale - Spicy Slamon Cheesesteak! Insane flavor... - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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The Chesapeake Cheesesteak is absolutely delicious! I've frequented this restaurant a few times before and this is by far our favorite sandwich of all. I surprised my wife with lunch from this establishment one day last week. She raved about how delicious her sandwich was. She, nor I could put it down. I almost ate both sandwiches ‍on the way home. I strongly considered it, but didn't give in to the temptation. Please stop by and try the Chesapeake Cheesesteak, Crab burger, or the rockfish burger. We've had all three and they are definitely worth the trip. You may even want to purchase two sandwiches, one for now and the other for later. read more

Food is great, and the staff takes very good care of you. We would definitely go again

This is going to become one of my go to spots in the city! A few friends have been telling me about this place for a while and I should've listened earlier. I decided to give them a try to support for the city's #ShopSmall Saturday. I got the Chesapeake Cheesesteak and Japanese Sweet Potatoes are both were great. The catfish cheesesteak was amazing! There's nothing better than fresh fish. I'm looking forward to trying the other items on the menu and stopping by when things reopen. read more

FishScale - Chesapeake Cheesesteak & Japanese Sweet Potato. - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

$4.25 for three sweet potato wedges that were good once I got past the strange outer, overly salty peel layer. So expensive. I thought maybe something was missing. True Blue crab burger was salty at first, not sure why, but tasted better as the meal went on and I ended liking it. $24+ and I am not full; I feel like I had a moderate appetizer and I'm still in need of food. I appreciate that the crab burger used no fillers. This was my first time eating at the restaurant and an exploratory excursion because I'd heard of them and passed the location several times. But I won't be doing this again. read more

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The explanation of the menu was the best greeting. The restaurant was clean and the kitchen was open. My impatience with the wait disappeared. Upon watching the chef be engrossed and meticulous when cooking my food from fridge to fryer. On our road trip back home the food didn't disappoint. Yummy, Delicious, and Fresh. GET IN THERE! read more

Passed this place on my way to Howard University Hospital. It looked so neat that I made a point to go there while I was waiting for my boyfriend's appointment to end. Their website talked about sustainable fishing and the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch program, which I have endorsed and used for years. I was not disappointed! This place is fantastic. I believe their menu changes daily with what fish is available. I got a coho salmon burger with cucumber-tomato relish and pesto and it was quite tasty! There was *something* that was a little spicy for my admittedly bland palate, but it was still great nonetheless. Also happy to see that they sell Me & the Bees lemonade, which I've heard about but haven't had the chance to try. I went at kind of an odd hour (3pm on a Friday), so there weren't any other customers. Which was fine by me because I still feel a little uneasy at the thought of indoor dining around others. I don't come to this area of town very often, but I highly recommend this place! read more

FishScale - Coho salmon burger & prickly pear lemonade - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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My dream afternoon in DC would be lunch here followed by tea/sweets a block or two away at Calabash. The food: The owner was amazing in explaining their different menu options (all thoughtfully sourced) and flavor profiles (e.g., rockfish has a nutty profile and more fish forward vs. the lighter sweeter Mahi mahi). Great choices on toppings and mindful of allergies. This is the type of place where they use Himalayan sea salt, rely on the wood grill to flavor the burger vs. lots of breadcrumbs or cheap fillers. All the condiments are organic. The ambience: bonus surprise for me was their beautiful modern and cozy design, inspired by the nautical theme + great soundtrack. was planning to do to go, but dined in I liked it so much! I'll be back many more times. The story: they started this place when their mom became pescatarian and they wanted to make sure she had something yummy to eat at a family cookout...and they realized they had hit on something delicious! read more

FishScale - Awesome decoration and ambience! Loved the quotes as well - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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Great food! Fish is fresh, prepared to order, and delicious. Great service as well. Had the jerk mahi mahi cheesesteak and fried potatoes. Was delicious. read more

I loved this unique spot in the Shaw district in DC near Howard University. The specialize in charcoal grilled fish burgers. The Farm raised fish is selected fresh daily, and all burgers are made in house with no breading and no fillers. Just the fish/seafood and hot grill. All condiments are made in house with fresh organic produce and ingredients. This Black owned business is known in the local farmers markets, and now have their very own brick and mortar shop. i ordered the Blue Crab(duh I'm a MD girl) all meat no fill burger, made with a shellfish mousse and served with sunflower yogurt coleslaw on top. The super fresh flavors and ingredients really shine in this burger. So much meat, so different than the average crab cake because of the lack of breading and fillers. all crab all the time. This spot will get many return visits!! read more

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I've been eating at Fish Scale for over 4 years now and I will never get tired of it. I am a sucker for their taco Tuesday, their True Blue Maryland Crab Burger and the Japanese Sweet Potatoes. I love that the seafood is rich in flavor, organic, accessible, FRESH and SUSTAINABLE. The restaurant is exceptionally tidy with a well designed fun "ocean themed" ambiance and the staff are extremely hospitable and knowledgeable about the food. Chef Brandon is definitely one of the top Chefs in Washington. The consistency of the quality is undefeated. I encourage you to not miss out! read more

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Quite surprised walking into this restaurant! I would describe this place as a very simple, no frills, yet high quality fish burger restaurant. Pick a fish, you can choose bun or lettuce, and pick your sauce. That's it. There's some other options and side selections, but we both got a fish burger (Mahi and Rockfish). It was probably one of the best fish burger I've had, especially the rockfish. Service was also great, explaining to us the menu and what they have left available (everything is fresh caught daily). Highly recommend checking this place out. Mid 4s/5 read more

FishScale - Mahi up front, rockfish in the back. - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

These fish burgers are amazing, I found the spot driving by and walked in to see what the menu looked like. I gave the coho salmon sandwich a try and it was delicious! You top your burger with 5 special toppings I chose caramelized onions and pesto and whew! That pesto made a difference. Each burger comes with chips and a drink. The drinks are both alcoholic and nonalcoholic and I gave the ginger lemonade a try and it was so good I drink it in three gulps. read more

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unique and dedicated to their product. 1 of a kind and authentic. focused on quality. read more

I recently dined at fishscale. The ambiance was amazing and incredibly inviting. The menu offered a variety of fresh daily catch and other seafood options. The blue crab cake is the best in town. Second option is the jerk salmon. If you are unsure just ask the owner. She is amazing. The chef is so personable and knowledgeable in his cuisine overall. It was an outstanding dining experience. I highly recommended it! This is a black owned restaurant and chef in the heart of Shaw/Howard University. read more

Had high hopes but was pretty disappointed with fishscale. Hit or miss on the burgers - one we had was really good, the other was not. I can't remember what types of fish we had, but one we had with the pesto (which was good), and the other I don't remember what we got on it. But I do remember that it was so extremely salty that neither of us wanted to eat it. Other than that, the burgers are small (we ended up eating a second dinner), the sides are ok (Japenese sweet potato and don't remember the other), the meal was pricey for burgers (spent just over 20/person for a burger and a side each), and good lord it took them forever to make the burgers. There were no other people in there, it was a Friday night about an hour before they were slated to close, and it took 30 minutes to make two burgers to go? Pass read more

Everything was delicious. I had the jerk salmon cheesesteak. Who would've thought this would even be a thing but now that I've had it I can't go back! I don't like a lot of spice so I just got the mild but that in itself was so flavorful. My boyfriend got the salmon burger with pesto and said it was the best he's ever had. We will definitely be going back! read more

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As a frequent customer, I must say this is 1 of my favorite lunch spots in Dc. A clean healthy alternative & the quality and freshness is never a miss! The Staff and owners are very friendly and professional. Not to mention this is a black owned business! I always recommend fish scale to all my clients & I recommend you give it a try if you're ever in the area. 1 of my favorite modifications that I like to do because I don't eat bread is, you have the option to lettuce wrap anything on the menu. read more

FishScale - Delicious spicy Mahi mahi tacos! I get mine modified on lettuce wraps:) - Burgers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia