I don't know how I overlook this place each time I am near. I somehow just associate it with the Metro station and forget that it is its own standalone business. I think what happens is that I mindlessly walk through here as I use it as a passageway. I need to start paying attention to what is in here and keep note of it. Basically this is a mall. Like every mall just about everywhere, they are without some businesses. But, I will say this about the DMV area, even with some shops being empty, the malls still know how to draw people in. Even if it is just for the food options. This place has a ton of food options and some of the places in here are the only place in DC to find them, or at least a place where it is fairly easy to get to in order to visit the business. They got the run of the chains you would see in almost any food court. Charleys, Five Guys, Jamba Juice, Moe's, Panda Express, Starbucks, Subway, etc. But there are a lot of mom and pop stands mixed in. You can definitely find something for your lunch or a quick snack. This is one of the only places I have seen a Church's Chicken in the city. It can be a maze walking through here, especially if you arrive via Metro. But like I said, it is a great passageway to get yourself to areas without having to be outside. With the Spy Museum on the one end it's a great place to spend a day in the city. The Wharf not too far either. There are a few shops throughout as well. Mostly open during daylight hours if you need to grab a thing or two. Everything from a post office to a convenience type store. If you are lucky enough to work nearby, I am sure this is busy around the lunchtime hour. read more

A little confused what this is. I think it's a fancy train station/transfer hub, I guess. Anyway, I found out about it because I was staying at the hotel nearby. If you're staying at the Hilton, there's a direct connection to it from the hotel. So this place is helpful because it has several fast food options. Nothing to rave about, but when you're traveling access to quick, fast food is important. Many food places either seemed always closed when I went a few times or open at inconsistent times. The place also never seems busy. Kinda ghost town-ish. Panda Express seemed to be the main attraction here. All together tho, it was clean. I think the space has potential to be a more useful shopping space for people. read more

This underground area pedway beneath the Spy Museum and Hilton boasts several food options: Sbarro, Panda Express, DC Dogs, Bi Bim Bop, etc. along with a few shops, post office and metro stop. This area does not have many above ground options but this is a nice respite from the Spy Museum. read more

L'Enfant Plaza - Shopping Centers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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This is a necessary stop to connect to and from work but on way home yesterday about 415ish as I waited for the Silver line near the 6th car platform an upsetting incident happened. I witnessed this old frail looking lady charged at this similarly frail looking man and pushed him down with no hesitation. The blue line was coming and fortunately he fell parallel flat backward to the platform and not onto the tracks... it was scary. Incidentally, even while still arguing, both got onto the blue line and by all accounts through the window as the train left, they still appear to be trading 'words... Alas, Silver line came I went in and went about thr day as if with normalcy...TBH, I hate this part of my commute even just twice a week in DC... read more

I walk through L'Enfant Plaza a few times a week. It's a really nice bypass to different places. For instance, it's connected to L'Enfant Plaza Metro Station, Spy Museum, several employment agents, several restaurants, etc. All of the restaurants are ran smoothly and the food is good. There's a little coffee shop located beside a buffet and both are very tasty. I just discovered this Plaza but I'm ver impressed. Why? If you're traveling into DC to site see, this plaza can be a lifesaver for many reasons. 1. Public Restrooms 2. Plenty of Restaurants 3. Security 4. Metro 5. Outdoor Seating I could go on. read more

Was visiting DC from out of town. Tried the food court here for late lunch and was very disappointed in the options. If it fits into your travel schedule, the eating options at Union Station are much better. read more

Really handy food court with nice bathrooms. They feature a good selection of express restaurants.

Sbarro at L'Enfant was HORRIBLE. Staff were extremely rude to a school tour group- seemed irritated- they did not offer what was ordered- nil food was mid. Just so rude. read more

The plaza stores are all closed or closing down. Nothing there to shop. The have some fast food places that are ok. read more

L'Enfant Plaza is a big mall. It's not much different from your local one. The difference is there's several local restaurants and stores. It's just a place to eat and buy clothes. This is connected to a Metro station which is the best thing about it. It has mostly fast food. It has places like Five Guys. There's Amsterdam Falafel, which is one of the few local restaurants. Be careful about when you go. The businesses have strange hours. It often seems like almost everything is closed. The stores that are here mostly are chains so it's not like you can't go to another mall. Overall it's just pretty boring. Hours are weird for a mall. They seem to be busy weekdays and not so much on weekends. read more

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Updated review: L'Enfant Plaza is a convenient location to change metro lines. I ride more than my check ins reflect. It doesn't always work out to check in, or there isn't a signal. You can grab a bite at several restaurants nearby. Parking is tricky. read more

L'Enfant Plaza is an off-the-beaten-path spot in the heart of Washington, D.C. It's just off the National Mall and home to several government buildings designed in brutalist architecture. On the outside, it is a plaza with tables, benches and several colorful murals. On the inside is an underground tunnel system taking you to many fast-casual restaurants and entrances to hotels and even the International Spy Museum. read more

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This place is loud, dirty and doesn't have enough table and chairs. One star because the Metro is close by.

When my buddy and I were out and about in DC, we decided to check out the food options at the mall. Because we were in the capital city, we thought that the mall was going to provide many great options. We were wrong. We walked in here and were unpleasantly surprised to find most stores closed. A good half of the food options were also closed. We decided on Five Guys burgers, and the meal was great, so the trip here was not a total loss. However, it make me wonder who's bright idea it was to have shops close on a Saturday morning? I've never seen such a thing. I guess it's just a DC thing. The mall was clean, and free of bad crowds. So that was a plus. However, the choices here are not that great, so I wouldn't come back here. read more

L'Enfant Plaza - Shopping Centers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Tourist beware!!! Stay away during the Monday thru Friday lunch rush. Federal workersand their contractors own this place at this time. If you don't want to lose life and limb please please stay away. Hungry government workers will plow you down at lest during lunch. L'Enfant Plaza is stock full of your typical fast food and fast food type ethnic places-Moes, Church's Chicken, Five Guys, Au bon Pain, Rotis, Amsterdam Falalefel, Panda Express, etc. I think there is even a fast food Indian restaurant here. It's a Mecca for what passes as the middle age comfort food of America. I'm of Asian descent and to me Panda Express is comfort food. Forget about those authentic type Chinese dishes that all those foodies are always yapping endlessly about. When it comes down to it, when I crave Chinese food, Panda Express is what I want. And I bet others feel the same way. They're just too proud to admit it. So you tourist out there, if you are still hungry and don't feel like standing in line for hours at the food trucks in front or near the museums come here after 1 pm or jut to be safe after 1:30. You will not be disappointed read more

L'Enfant Plaza is never open. Most of the restaurants are literally never open. The only option around dinner time is Panda Express. We passed through every day for 6 days while staying at the Hilton and almost nothing was open, not stores, not restaurants, nothing. If I had known there wouldn't be any food options, I would have stayed elsewhere. read more

It's a nice little mall. It was a bummer a lot of stores/restaurants were closed by 5pm. Had bibimbab that was pretty good.

If I had known that La Promenade had so many bad reviews, I would have taken a ton of pictures to support my 4 star review! Alas, I didn't take any! This place is really awesome! My experience with La Promenade came about because I stayed in the horrible L'enfant Plaza Hotel for 5 nights. I would hop on the lobby elevator and go down underground to La Promenade for the shopping or easy access to the metro station below. I was so happy and pleased to see such a nice area in which I could do some random shopping w/o needing to call a cab or hop on the metro. I needed a pair of socks, I walked to the CVS. I needed to ship a package, what-a-ya-know, there is a USPS store there. When I needed coffee, I stopped by the Starbucks. There are some other shops for clothing and novelty items that I did not visit. The selection of food was not bad either. I love Au Bain Pan and Potbelly Sandwiches. Roti smelled good and I did not eat there as I just can't do national chain fast food when I am out visiting a city, but I did grab a salad to-go from Potbelly on a busy day that I couldn't make it out. The convenience of not dealing with the hotel's food was good for me. I would imagine that this shopping plaza will be really nice when all of the work is completed. They have made a good start thus far. This review is mostly based on the convenience to the Metro and a hotel and the variety of what this plaza offers in the proximity to the Washington Mall. read more

So here's the thing, depending on where you work downtown, you may not have that many options to eat breakfast or lunch nearby. I luckily work in an area that boasts several restaurants and stores for convenient breakfast/lunch pick-ups or sit-downs. Located above the L'Enfant Plaza metro station, the Plaza has several options for the employees that work downtown and the tourists that visit. It's a great place to go when you need a break from your routine schedule or when the weather isn't cooperating, because everything is located in an enclosed space. It's a mall of sorts, with several varieties of food. I must say that L'Enfant Plaza has done an impressive and much needed renovation in recent years. They have added several new options for breakfast/lunch, that's sure to please any palate. California Tortilla, Starbuck's, Church's Chicken, Five Guys Burgers, Roti, Potbelly's and Panda Express are just a few new restaurants they've included. They even have a CVS (it's currently closed for renovations), a Hallmark, post office and a few clothing/shoe stores. You can get your eyebrows threaded, shoes shined, make an appointment with a physical therapist and so much more here. They've increased the amount of tables and chairs for everyone to sit and have added some much needed natural light. The L'Enfant Plaza hotel above the Plaza (also undergoing renovations) has a restaurant that has a great happy hour and serves a wonderful lunch. Some of the mom and pop shops that provide breakfast and lunch are also wonderful options. As with anything, some places are a bit pricier than others but at least you have options and don't have to walk a mile or two to get to some decent food. I'm usually a brown bagger for lunch, but on the occasion that I do forget my breakfast/lunch at home or I want something different, it's good to know that I have convenient options to turn too. read more

Lots of quick service eateries to choose from which is a positive if not everyone in your party wants the same thing. Downside is that it is very chaotic. read more

Bottom Line: A collection of random stores and eateries that is suitable for business people passing through but not worthy of a tourist destination. If you are hoping that L'Enfant Plaza is sophisticated monument to Frenchmen Pierre L'Enfant who is credited with designing (most of) the District of (Christopher) Columbus, you'll sorely be disappointed by this collection of fast food eateries and random stores. The most French thing about this plaza is the French fries served at Church's Chicken and even French fries are debatably Belgian. On a weekend you can expect many/most of the shops and eateries to be closed but on the weekdays, be prepared for long but fast moving lines at places like Potbelly Sandwich Shop, Panda Express, Starbucks and Pie Five. In addition to the shops and eateries, there are also some services like places to get a hair cut or shoes shined. Something that is nice about L'Enfant Plaza is the amount of light that comes into this area via skylights and glass walls at street level. Also, it is nice that this directly connects to the Metro. L'Enfant Plaza mostly caters to busy business professionals on a lunch break but you'll see some tourists and school groups come here too since a majority of this plaza consists of a food court. For those that are familiar with the Crystal City Shops (Crystal City Underground), I would say this concept is fairly similar. read more

JBG is really trying to make something out of this place. And it's getting better every time. But we're still not there. If you are visiting DC and need to grab a quick lunch or need to stop at a pharmacy, this place is all you need: you will have the choice between most main fast food chains, from Mc Donald's or Five Guys to Roti or Au Bon Pain. Plus you can sit outside during summer. If you want to shop, don't waste your time and just hop on the yellow line downstairs to go to Pentagon City. The few stores at L'Enfant Plaza won't get your thirst for fashion satisfied. read more

L'Enfant Plaza - Plaza - Shopping Centers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Why did my past two jobs have to locate me to this lowly desolate place? I mean, for a while, it kinda sorta had it going on. Sporst store, kewl Sushi bar, Au Bon Pan, Yogurt joint with good wraps, Hot dogs not from a cart, dry cleaning on site, choices, choices,choices. Don't get me wrong, it's no Chinatown/Gallery place, but at least it was a little lively. Walking throught the halls, I found myself thinking "Lions, tigers and bears - oh my". Tumbleweeds blowing down the empty halls. Well at least with the opening of Roti and Potbelly, this place is starting to pick up again. There are signs that more restaurants are coming, but it's going to be a while before the atmosphere reaches a point where you can say "it's lively". (sigh) can't wait.... read more

The 2016 YELP Review #214: At 0030 hours I think I am driving but, where am I going? Tomorrow woukd be the 4th of July ... so why not go to D.C. I stopped 4x and I made it from Florida to D.C. wirh time to spare. .. even after parking my car and walking to the monument. While exoting the parkomg garahe something awesome happened... Spmebody yelled that the ticket taking machines broke... so all cars exiting were treated to the magic of free-ness! AWESOME! read more

Compact, but convenient. Feels airy and spacious despite its size though, which I really like. Decent, even if small, selection of places to eat. Plenty of chairs to accommodate the federal lunch crowds. read more

L'enfant Plaza, sounds to me as a playground for children, but it is more for kidults :) A place where you can eat, work and sleep. "All new, all here, all now" I don't agree with the all new since the buildings are creepy and the surrounding (10th Street) is old and falling apart. Fortunately JBG company tries to bring a lifting to the area, through new projects such as a new metro entrance, a new building, some artistic murals, etc... But still a lot to do if this plaza wants to be called a Business Centre... read more

L'Enfant Plaza - Shopping Centers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

I agree with the warning that this place is not safe for tourists during the weekday lunch rush, but I mildly disagree that it's not a tourist destination. This metro station is walking distance to the Aerospace Museum and the other museums close by to the Air and Space making this plaza a very good choice for a quick relatively inexpensive meal and maybe some post-museum shopping. There's lots of room, tables, seats, and D.C. tourists so need a place to sit down and take the proverbial load off. This is also the only open public restroom access for quite a distance around. The only problem are the hours. The plaza-mall is open long hours, but many of the food stalls and stores are not. The times I ended up here, I was grateful to find a public washroom, a place to charge my phone, and I took advantage of one of the few open fast food places but the choices were very limited. Also, there's a really strange prison like playground all locked up just next, which kind of defies explanation. read more

L'Enfant Plaza - It's mostly closed but a couple of fast food stalls are open so the rest room is open. - Shopping Centers Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

This space is really interesting since I feel like most patrons are federal employees and contractors as well as school field trips. They have a decent variety of restaurants to choose from, but overall, I am not thoroughly impressed by the selection. I am hoping that with the spy museum relocation that there will be more businesses who decide to open their doors here and rejuvenate the space. One thing that I also find curious is the amount of non-food, retail space in L'enfant plaza. I never see anyone in them, yet they take up a large amount of space. How do they stay in business? I may never know. Some of the highlights include Roti and California Tortilla. I feel like these locations have fresher options. I love that there is a Jamba Juice here! Another thing that I'm curious about is how the Plaza will change with the influx of museum goers in the future... I guess people will need to start avoiding the crowds during lunch hour and get their food around 10:30 or after 2:00. Definitely a convenient place to have at the top of the metro station. If you're not into the food options at L'Enfant, there are plenty of food trucks around during the weekdays. I feel like this stop might be more used if people want to walk down to the renovated waterfront if they don't want to wait absurd times for the green line. read more

Stopped here and ate lunch. Cool mall with a lot of food choices. Items are a bit pricy, but does offer many things for you to do.

I have to assume that the only reason that L'Enfant has such a bad rap on here is because many of these reviews are on the older side. I think this place is great! It's still a bit under construction, so there are definitely still things to come, but the improvements that have been made over the past couple years are definitely worthy of a star upgrade, IMO. I used to work right across D street from L'Enfant, and was a (very) frequent visitor for lunch. They main area is very close to the Metro entrance. They've got a good spread, too: Starbuck's, Potbelly's, Roti, Five Guys, Au Bon Pain, Crumbs Cupcakes, a pizza place, a self-serve froyo place (that does crepes and oatmeal, too!), and further into the plaza there's a McDonald's. There's also a standard-ish Korean deli-type place with a sushi bar. That's a lot of choices if you work in the area, especially when paired with the plethora of food trucks around the corner. Variety, people! I likes it. I find the place to always be clean, and I kinda like the decor. There are these LCD columns that I find simply fascinating, admittedly. It does get a little craycray if you get there right during the lunch rush. My advice would be to get there by 11:45, or after 1:30 if you don't want to stand in line. As for the non-food places, there's a CVS, a post office, a newsstand, and a couple of random boutiques (for those who do their last-minute gift shopping at lunch, I guess?). Again, not sure why this place has such low ratings, but I think it's a pretty great addition to this work-driven area! Just don't expect anything to be open if you come late or on a weekend. This is a place that caters solely to the working crowd, so everything's shut down by like 7 (if that). read more

Great mall Close to metro close to meuseums Great Check it out read more

I have to upgrade my review a little bit here. They've been doing some serious renovations at L'Enfant. They've moved and upgraded the Au Bon Pain. They've gotten a Starbucks in. And as I mentioned earlier, they've gotten a few decent chains in now. But after having been here for a few days this past week, I still dislike this place. I suppose the concept looked great in the 70s or 80s or whenever L'Enfant was built. You take a hotel, some office buildings, an underground plaza, and you connect 'em all to the Metro. Kind of make a self contained city out of it. And that's what I still hate about it. I feel trapped in here. There's no real reason to go outside and indeed the plaza still looks so cold and forboding, I wouldn't want to. I need to go outside on my lunch, even if only for a few minutes, and enjoy the blue skies--or rain, or snow, or whatever. It doesn't help that my unit works in windowless room all day whenever I'm here. And that's also why I never stay at the L'Enfant Hotel whenever I'm here. There's not much else around here, especially after 5pm. You want dinner? You're eating at their restaurant. read more

I have to concur with some of the other people who rated Lenfant Plaza metro stop in Washington D.C. a reasonable place to connect to other metro stops and grab something to eat. Their food court is pretty easy to find near the metro and has a multiple number of food eateries that include Five Guys, Au Bon Pain, Roti Meditteranean Grill, Moes Southwest Grill, the Potbelly Sandwich place, Suntrust bank atm and more places. My husband and I have accessed the Lenfant Plaza metro stop in downtown Washington D.C. multiple times since the summer period of 2010 (when we first moved to Hyattsville Maryland)to eventually access multiple areas in Northern Virginia and parts of downtown Washington D.C. read more

Finally! After what seems like (and probably is) decades of being horrifically in need of a cleaning, the Promenade has finally been updated and modernized. It now features a Potbelly, Roti, Au Bon Pain, Mo's Southwestern Grill, and a real Starbucks (as opposed to the hotel Starbucks, which we all know is not the same thing), among others. There is also plenty of non-grody seating - in daylight, since they added windows - and no foul-smelling delis anywhere in sight. Yay for progress! read more

Can't say too much about the plaza itself but the area food trucks that you'll find on weekdays are fabulous!

I walk through La Promenade to get to work and each time I do, feel as if I have entered some kind of crazy time machine that took me back to the 1990s - but one look at the prices in the shops and restaurants reminds me that I, in fact, have not. I bring my own lunch to work, so the sub-par selection of lunch options doesn't directly affect me, but it would be nice to see this place updated even a little. Still, I wouldn't go so far as giving them a "1" rating because: 1. I had a decent iced coffee from Olympic Espresso and the people working there were really nice. 2. I like the skylight in the middle La Promenade just needs a little love... read more

I frequent L'Enfant Promenade (LP) for lunch during the work week. As others have pointed out, LP is vastly improved from what it was a few years ago. But it's still a destination of convenience, not of desire! Most of the eateries from the "old" LP are now gone (McDonalds is still there), and the new places are now closer to the Metro entrance. There's now about 10 restaurants and coffee places (all chains). While there's no absolutely terrific place, most are decent (Five Guys, Roti, Moe's, etc.) with enough variety to get you through a week's worth of lunches. However, if you have a highly evolved palate, you may want to look elsewhere The amount of seating is generally adequate. All of the eateries share common tables that stretch the length of the corridors where the restaurants are located. There's also a large group of tables near the Five Guys. Two complaints.... First, the corridors are painted plain white with a few reddish geometrical shapes as decorations, but the white walls dominate. Frankly, it all looks very institutional and almost hospital like. Second, the eateries can get quite busy around lunch. If you don't arrive by about 11:15 AM or so, don't be surprised if the queues are long. read more

Good place to grab a bite to eat if staying at Hilton National Mall, but just be aware that many of the food spots close well before the plaza closes (some as early as 5pm!). There are a number of different food options. Lines look long, but move quickly. There is also a CVS here if you need to stock up on snacks or personal beauty items. read more

Very nice place to go to grab a bite to eat, do a little shopping, or even just have a nice sit and relax. This place can be pretty busy during lunch hour but at any other time it's not too bad and you can get in and out quick. Very nice atmosphere as well, very clean. Nice and clean bathrooms too. Will be stopping back!! read more

Totally understand the low reviews. When I first started working near here 3 years ago this place was an old, smelly joke! NOW---that is so not the case. There are a lot more tasty options for lunch and breakfast for that matter here. Since the renovations started we now have: Five Guys, Potbelly, Moe's Southwestern Grill, Au Bon Pain, Crumbs, Roti, Sandella's (Flatbread Cafe), Frozen Yogurt Indulgence, Starbucks and Gourmet Too (Asian American cafe w/ hot bar, salad bar & a deli counter) Plus, there are plans to add more tasty options. I'm personally holding out for Chop't. If you're in the area looking for a quick lunch that's pretty cheap this is a good option. As for the "shopping" ...well the plans to improve that are far down the line so go somewhere else if you need to grab anything more than a Hallmark card for the time being. read more