First the name is misleading. The food is not southern cooking and it is the worse food I have ever had.

Will not be back due to the service at the bar. Since the weather was so beautiful this week, my husband and I stopped by after work on a Tuesday for happy hour. We waited a few minutes for the host to greet us and noticed two remaining seats at the bar with dirty dishes in front as if someone had just left. Before sitting, we asked the host to see the happy hour menu, which we pondered over for a few more minutes before ultimately deciding to take the seats at the bar. By now it's been 10-12 minutes - dirty plates still there. Once we sat down we waited another 10 minutes before a bartender finally came over. He initially tried to take our order before cleaning the area, which was weird, but he must have noticed me staring at the dirty dishes and started clearing them. When I asked for a full dinner menu, he motioned to the one in front of me that was covered in food and crumbs from the previous party. He then took the plates and never came back to actually wipe the leftover crumbs and food residue from the bar. After 20+ minutes in total of waiting at this bar, barely being spoken to, and having to wonder what's so hard about cleaning up after the last guests...we left. A customer shouldn't have to ask for a "clean menu," but it seemed like basic service on a Tuesday evening was too much to ask. We went to one of the other awesome spots at the Wharf and had a great time. read more

I would have given this spot a 5. The food was delicious (the new southern taste, because I am a down home country girl and this was not your original southern cuisine, however, it was good). The table service was good as well. Here's why they received a 3...as we were leaving, I stopped to use the restroom, one of the toilets were overflowing. Water alllll over the floor. I told the hostess...Her response was and in a nasty tone...We will get to it, as you can see we are busy as she pointed to the crowd. I responded with oh ok and metioned that i hope no one gets hurt. I called back to speak to a manager about an hr later and was told no maager was avail to take my call... read more

Mac and cheese is not the way to go. No taste and chalky. It came out cold. It looks nothing like the other picture posted in the reviews. read more

Kinfolk Southern Kitchen - Craft mac and cheese - Southern Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

The food speaks for itself. Every dish had amazing flavor and well seasoned. The service was a little slow, but worth the wait. Our waiter seemed to be in a happier mood after we paid our check then to anytime prior to that. The location is stellar, beautiful views and great for people w read more

Twice I've tried Kinfolk, hoping for a convenient BBQ option near the Wharf, and twice I've been disappointed. The restaurant itself is gorgeous, but it gets loud and hot quickly. Service is usually on the slow side, but that seems to be the standard at the Wharf. As for the food, the portions are small, the prices are high, and the quality is inconsistent. The burnt ends and cornbread were decent, but the real standout was the crab dip--absolutely amazing. Skip the overpriced fried green tomatoes, though. If you're craving true, satisfying BBQ, you're better off looking elsewhere. read more

After all the hype, positive and negative, about Kinfolk on social media and Yelp I was eager to give it a try for myself! To my pleasant surprise my friends and I had an excellent star visit from start to finish! When we arrived for Sunday brunch they asked us to have a seat at the bar while we waited for our entire party to arrive - no problem. Some girls in our group had luggage with them and they kindly stored it behind the hostess stand so we could enjoy our visit - so kind! We were sat right away once our party arrived in their sunroom which had great people watching views and lots of sunlight (that did make it a bit hot but hey I welcome warmth at the end of October). I started with the deviled eggs and had a simple waterfront omelette for my meal - both of which were fantastic and had good flavor. My friends also enjoyed their Wharf's breakfast, chicken and waffles, biscuit, and salmon (dinner menu option). 4-5 star reviews around the table! As for brunch cocktails we mostly went with mimosas but luckily they made those well. Only note would be a request for a bottomless option as $12 mimosas can easily add up. Finally, the service was wonderful and I greatly appreciated the waiter even bringing over a purse stand for us to hang our bags while eating. Kinfolk is a solid brunch option at the Wharf and I look forward to coming back soon for Happy Hour. read more

Service was great...can't say the same about the food. Mac n cheese was flavorless, and macaroni was super overcooked and soggy. The tandoori chicken wasn't cooked all the way, like the bone was still red. Said something, and they tried to tell me it's from the marinade....I will not be back. Wish I took a picture, but I was too disappointed paying too much for mediocre food. read more

Visited this spot for our first date night as new parents and I will admit it's nice. Clean and causal dining with great food options for those wanting DC's style of southern dishes. Food was good yet my hush puppies were undercooked yet the manager gave us another batch that were okay. I ordered the baby back ribs and my hubby had the blue catfish which he loved. Overall I give this spot a 4 star. read more

See all

Food and service was great! We had delicious cocktails as well (old fashions, My old Tariff, etc). Great ambiance right by the water! read more

Kinfolk Southern Kitchen - Jalapeño sausage, smoked chorizo chicken sausage, burnt ends - Southern Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

The atmosphere is very comfortable for an evening out. All of the employees were friendly and polite during dinner. Now regarding the food...the best part of my meal was the side of gumbo. Everything else could've been taken back. The brisket has to be the worst that I've ordered in a restaurant. It looked overcooked and was very tough. I def wouldn't recommend ordering that. read more

The food was absolutely amazing! Our waitress was Leslie & she was very helpful with guiding us with the menu. The restaurant itself was nicely lit and had nice music taste. This place was a 5 star restaurant for my day trip to DC. read more

See all

FOOD: I had the fried chicken with corn and potato salad. Though a lil pricey, I really enjoyed my meal. They give you 4 pieces (half ck) of chicken so that was good. I couldn't eat all of it. My friend had the catfish and he loved it. He ordered the mac and cheese and no it was not the mac and cheese you get at home. they need to level the mac and cheese. The Mac is whack. We also ordered appetizers: corn bread and deviled eggs. NO to the deviled eggs. I make better deviled eggs and i don't cook. The cornbread was cornbread. RESTAURANT: really nice inside LOCATION: great SERVICE: great I would definitely go back and I would recommend. read more

We went here Sunday without a reservation and even though it was busy, we were seated in about 25 mins. I ordered the chicken and waffle and it came out fast and was delicious. Ambiance was nice. Was a bit loud but that is to be expected at brunch on Sunday in DC. Would recommend and will definitely be back. read more

Kinfolk Southern Kitchen - Chicken and waffles - Southern Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

The ambience and food here is 10/10. All I will say is DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES ORDER THE BEEF RIB. Tastes great, but price for size is appalling. read more

See all

The entire experience was exceptional. My husband and I went for Mother's Day. The food was amazing . I had the brisket and my husband had the beef rib.. 3 days later, he was still talking about it. The drinks kept coming and each one got even better than the last. The atmosphere totally was the cherry on top. He was truly impressed and it's truly hard to impress him. The service was expedient. The service paid attention to detail and were very nice, in spite of there being a very busy energy about the whole place, they seemed to handle it with extreme professionalism. Well done! read more

Kinfolk Southern Kitchen - That darn brisket!! - Southern Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

First off we came on Cinco De Mayo, and it was one of the few locations that didn't have a party atmosphere with music blasting and people yelling to hear each other talk. It was busy, but not crowded. The service was great! My server was polite, knowledgeable about the menu, and good with recommendations. The burger is fantastic! The Tandori Chicken was great, but the choice of sides was weak sauce. The server didn't even mention the mac and cheese as an option when I asked which sides he would recommend with my Tandoori Chicken and I knew it was because it wasn't hitting. The cornbread was terrible, don't bother ordering that. Most of it was stuck inside the ramekin, and very chewy. They have non-spirited cocktails on the drink menu which I really appreciated. The restrooms are nongender single stalls which I liked, however, you have to touch the faucet handles to wash your hands. Yuck! I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. This restaurant is worth a second visit to see what else is good. read more

I had very high hopes for this spot. I love the wharf and have had great luck with many of the restaurants and bars in that area. When I saw this restaurant opened up earlier this year, I was excited and eager to try. I went with a friend friday evening after a happy hour at another spot. The service was very efficient; I give it that. The hostess was very friendly and recommended items and our server was fairly attentive as well. I ordered the fried chicken with macaroni and broccoli as well as cheddar biscuits and my friend ordered the jalapeño cheese sausage and the sweet potatoes. Our server recommended the fried chicken to me and also told my friend that his food would be very filling. It was anything but. The sausage link could've been classified as a sample with how small it was and my friend said the sweet potatoes were so bad he couldn't even finish it. I do thank them for comping his order of sweet potatoes. On to my food. The consistency of the breading on the fried chicken was absolutely awful, tasted very bland and slightly burnt. The macaroni and cheese had a consistency of a slightly lumpy paste. The only thing I could really stomach was the broccoli which actually had a lot of flavor. To top it off, i couldnt finish the food at the time because honestly I lost my appetite however I told the server i would take it to go. I don't know if there was a miscommunication but I never saw the food again and I'm assuming they threw it away. Although the ambiance is nice, modern and elevated, the food is absolutely not authentic and certainly not worth the 100 dollars spent. There are better options in DC; this is a place I would tell visitors to leave off of their lists. read more

All I have to say is "The best espresso martinis I've had in DC". Sarah was our bartender and she hooked this drinks up. We got a few appetizers and loved them. Crab dip & calamari! The place was nice and was full of people. Great ambiance for mingling. We sat at the bar. Hubby and I enjoyed the place. read more

Kinfolk Southern Kitchen - Menu - Southern Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Service was excellent and the fried green tomatoes were awesome. I had the shrimp and grits and my husband had the fish. I was surprised with my food and the service. The cornbread was good as well. I cannot wait to go back. read more

Made a brunch reservations for a friend's birthday. The vibes and ambience was very comforting, and both food and service were amazing at Kinfolk DC. Maya was the best ever and made sure we always had what we needed (and she was super funny haha). Definitely will be recommending to my friends and will be coming back here very soon. read more

Please check out the menu first with the prices - then the reviews on Google. If you have money to throw away then this is your place! This restaurant is not black-owned and the so- called southern inspired food is not tasty. If you think you will be getting upscale southern inspired 'Soul Food' think again. A bucket of chicken is $94 with 8 pieces... and sides you ask? Well, you 'll get cornbread, cheese biscuits and mac and cheese with the chicken.... that's three starches! No collards on the menu! The sides you'd think would be enough for a family of four since you are paying $94 for 8 pieces of chicken. Welp, the side of mac and cheese was a single serving size - enough for one person. Each person of 4 got a spoonful about one bite each!!! Had to order extra to go around, and send the chicken back due to it being undercooked and pink inside. The biscuits looked good but are not. The mac and cheese tastes like Kraft powdered processed cream at best with shredded unmelted cheese sprinkles on top. One piece of fried catfish is $36.00. No sides. The little chow chow relish as a garnish underneath the 1 piece of fried catfish was a joke with minced pieces of shrimp... you may get two minced bits if that and it's wet so it makes the fish soggy underneath! As I glanced at the menu and the prices... then the amount of people who were there... I thought the food must be worth it. Nope! It is not. I have had waaaay better food both expensive and economically priced. This place is a joke. Loud, busy and with overpriced food. read more

Great food, great service, great atmosphere! If you're in the area on a nice day, choose the open area seating. I highly recommend this place! read more

Crab dip was really good and their fries :) , the mac and cheese was baked well and tasted great . Also their fried chicken was good , it was fried hard and they give you whole chicken wings . 8/10 read more

Kinfolk Southern Kitchen - Southern Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Carlyle, was very professional and efficient! 2 minute check backs was awsome! I will be requesting him next time!

We went for Friday lunch at Kinfolk, and I've rarely experienced such poor service at a nice DC restaurant in the past 10 years. The server was rude, repeatedly refilling our water even when the glass was full, causing spills and interrupting our conversation with an unprofessional attitude. The food was also overly salty, and we were forced to pay a 20% service fee. Unfortunately, I wouldn't recommend dining here. read more

There was a sign indicating a soft opening so we thought we'd give it a try. We chose this place to enjoy something different from what's available at home and we enjoyed it. We ordered 3 different appetizers, Fried Green tomatoes (holy moly, so delicious), pork skin with pimento dipping cheese sauce (really good) and shrimp hush puppies (good, but could have used MORE shrimp there was hardly any) the dipping sauce was good . We shared a very tiny half fried chicken, 2 wings 1 leg and a small thigh, it should of been a breast, thigh, wing and leg that would have been more sufficient with Hot honey sauce and a spicy mustard on the side, good just small. the kids had mac n cheese made from Scratch tastes good could have used some salt. the bar is beautifully designed. The decor is beautiful my favorite was the bathroom decor and set up. It's genius there are 4 bathrooms and they separate rooms for everyone (boy, girl, mermaid or centaur ) there's a place for you to use the restroom and wash your hands. the service was good, Very attentive. Always filling water glasses. read more

Friday, I and my colleagues (aka kinfolks) met for dinner and fellowship. DC, especially downtown DC is not for the Black folk and nor was Kinfolk. First, parking. $40 for about 4 hours in the garage, but I thought it was worth it because I thought it was a Black-owned restaurant. My issue. I am so tired of other people who are not Black appropriating to gain and get us in the door to authenticate. The food was just okay, and when I saw no one in the kitchen (HIspanics only; you never see Black people cooking Latin food), I was suspect. At the same time, there was one Black waitress or rather I think she was for about 2.0 hours of our stay here, and then two more showed up. We kept coming back to the question- is this Black owned because we didn't see but a three more Black people and a lot of white people. Hmmm. We finally researched, and found out Kinfolk, a word Black folk use mainly has nothing to do with Black culture other than their entire menu! While the cheddar biscuits and pepper jelly were the most enjoyable, the salt level was crazy on my plate. But, what made matters worse was the $500 bill. There were five of us, and honestly the bill represented 4.5 of us because one person missed out on appetizers. After seeing the $75 gratuity, the $75+ in taxes, 2 business taxes, we we felt super violated. It is clear that the goal is to make money appropriating, the goal is to deter Black folk from the area, and rob Black folk of their essence in DC. My night cost me just at $145 for 2 shrimps, a spoonful of burnt ends, one cheddar biscuit, a half a fillet of catfish $35 with no sides, a shared order of greens in a single serving ramekin, and a few hours of parking. Food overpriced. I was proud to think such a pretty restaurant was a Black-owned space on the DC Wharf, only to find it, it is a big fat lie. Super disappointed. read more

I recently had the pleasure of dining at Kinfolk Southern Kitchen, and it was a delightful experience from start to finish! Located right on the Wharf, the restaurant boasts stunning views of the waterfront, creating a picturesque backdrop for a memorable meal. The ambiance inside is warm and inviting, with a charming Southern charm that instantly makes you feel at home. What sets Kinfolk apart is its unique blend of Southern flavors with Middle Eastern influences, especially evident in their halal options. From classic comfort dishes like fried chicken and shrimp and grits to innovative twists on Southern favorites infused with Middle Eastern spices, each dish is bursting with flavor and made with the freshest ingredients. And let's not forget about the cocktails - they're a perfect complement to the hearty Southern fare, with creative concoctions that are as delicious as they are refreshing. The service was top-notch, with friendly staff who went above and beyond to ensure a fantastic dining experience. Whether you're a local or just visiting the area, Kinfolk Southern Kitchen is a must-visit destination on the Wharf. I can't wait to come back and enjoy those stunning views, mouthwatering Southern cuisine, and unique Middle Eastern-inspired dishes again! Follow my IG account for Curated Google Maps list for brunch, happy hours, rooftops, parks, wineries & more in the DMV area: @yourdmvbestie read more

Katherine provided excellent service and the food was delicious. This was my first time here and very pleased with my experience.

Carlyle was amazing server! He was very thoughtful and carful with our food and make sure we was doing good.

10/10 customer service was AMAZING!! The food was spectacula, I ordered the chicken and waffles and WOW!! The food came out extremely fast and Carlyle our server was outstanding! Best service I've had in DC thus far. I will be back not only because of the food but, also because of the amazing service! read more

Fantastic service - and the food was great too. The waiter was proactive, patient, and helpful

Food was great. Husband got the steak and eggs at breakfast and he said it was one of the best he had ever got. Recommend this place!

Food is great - but unfortunately service is terrible, in-attentive wait staff and lack basic service items / filling water, putting cutlery . Hope they can improve read more

From greeting to zero wait time for party of 6. Impressive. John Luke was amazing. Great personality. Attentive. We waited for nothing, & yet 2 different mgrs checked on us to get the ball rolling. Teens aren't fun in restaurants, but John Luke made sure they enjoyed their time. The huspuppies/ corn bread. Awesome, alittle kick. Calamari crispy,salty. My crabcakes packed with chunks meat no filler. Then onto our cocktails lite & freshing on this 90deg Saturday. Will return read more

We went here for brunch. Restaurant had no coffee. We ordered brunch. I had to go to Starbucks across the way for coffee. When I returned to the restaurant, the food had already arrived. The dishes are premium priced but looked cheap. For example, the chicken and waffles include three little pieces of chicken on top of grocery store waffles ($29). The manager came by and asked if everything was okay. I explained that there was no coffee for brunch requiring me to go get some at Starbucks. The manager, with no comp or apology, began to explain to me why he had no coffee for brunch, including explaining the complexities of ordering coffee that comes in on Wednesday. Bottom line was that the experience was horrible and management made no attempts to make it better. read more

Visited here spontaneously and the food and drinks were great (except for the potato salad) our server Nicole made our experience enjoyable and was very attentive to our needs. Will be coming back. read more

Amazing southern cuisine! The service was exceptional and the vibes are amazing! Really love the setup and it's a perfect place to casually get BBQ at a fair price with a beautiful ambiance. oh and order the brisket! Got y'all with a nice pic of the beef Tartar read more

Kinfolk Southern Kitchen - Beef Tartar - Southern Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Probably one of the best brunch spots in the dmv. We got almost everything on the menu & it was ALL amazing. Katherina was our waitress & she was so attentive & nice. Great service & food. Must try! read more