A little overpriced, but delicious every time! Conveniently located by the Woodley Park metro. Beautiful sunroom. Coverage is average and overpriced don't get it. read more

I LOVE Open a City! My daughter (age 6) and I are both unable to set gluten and the variety of gluten free options at OC continues to grow. All of their food is freak and delicious. I have been many many times and have never eaten something I haven't loved. My only conplaint would be that you cannot make reservations, but I understand why they need to have thst policy. Great prices also! Can't be best - my favorite restaurant! read more

Amazing food. The chicken & guac burger was out of this world. Also super cute and great atmosphere with background music (not live). Delicious drinks, too! read more

I recently visited DC and after a day at the Zoo decided to check out Open City. What a MISTAKE! We advised our waitress that we are not pork eaters at least twice. The kids menu does not list the ingredients or provide a description of the items. I ordered the spaghetti and meatballs from the kids menu. After, I received the dish I noticed a smell. I asked the waitress what are the meatballs made of ... she was unsure and apparently had to ask the executive chef which seemed to take at least 5 minutes. (A life time when you are feeding a toddler.) In the meantime, my spouse asked another waitress and she advised my spouse that the meatballs were made of only beef. Our original waitress came back and advised us that the meatballs were made of beef and PORK!!!! Are you kidding me?!?!?!?!? Then, my dish came out and it had bacon pieces all over it. WOW! The best part of my viist to Open City was the manager. He came to our table and tried to make it seem as if we did not communicate that we don't eat pork. And, then told me I can't get pasta with the chicken tenders for my toddler because it doesn't come with the dish and the pasta would have to be weighted. Are you kidding me?!?!?!?!? The waitress gave us a bill that only had a mixed drink. She apologized several times. Something the manager never did!!! We left Open City disappointed ... with no food for me or my toddler. So, if you are NOT a pork eater, or would like a wait staff that knows the menu and can provide great service ... Don't go to Open City. read more

Had the open city burgers and fries. The burgers were great. Also had the hot apple cider.

What a horrible experience I was brought here by 3 friends who said they've dinned here before and it was good so we decided to give it a try. Let's begin with my experience, it was a Saturday night and the place was practically empty it was obvious it was a slow night for them. About 45 minutes after ordering my sister asked the waiter if he knew about how much longer the food would take and waiter responded " I'm not a psychic but I can check" in a rude tone. Then 15 minutes later our food finally came out, mind you we are a small group of 4 and a large table of 13 was seated after us and given their food before us. Once we got our food the pie was cold and hard. My friend called the waiter and asked if the pie could be heated, the waiter looked annoyed and said "sure i will heat it again" ;however, we could tell the pie was never heated to begin with. Eventually, the waiter returns with a semi warm pie and we remind him of the potato fries we ordered an hour ago. 15 minutes pass and we finally get the fries, a total of 1 hr and 15 minute wait for some fries. Finally to top it all off when we got the check we were charged 8 dollars for extra chicken when the chicken was supposed to be 4 dollars. Once we brought this to our waiters attention he looked bothered and walked off to fix it. The food it's self was mediocre, maybe because everything was cold. I would not return which is a shame because the place looked promising. read more

Food was good but the waitress who stolen my credit card and my buddies bull poop. Yelp says my review is too short but I do not believe in ranting. Bring cash if you go. You can't steal credit card numbers if you use cash. I also don't believe in being vulgar so I used poop. I would have given 4 stars if my credit card wasn't stolen and based it on the food. A 1 star for the stolen credit card so it averages out to a 2 star. read more

Nice location, nice venue with lots of light. The food is ok, nothing extraordinary. The service varies, there is no consistency, sometimes you happen to be served by extremely great Waiter or waitress, other days you wonder if they hate their job. The hygiene could be better. Their glasses for water look unclean and worn out. What mAkes it appealing to many is the location and the venue itself, not the food not service. read more

I used to live right next to this restaurant and loved visiting Open City for a quick treat. My favorites were their Chai Tea Latte and gluten-free cookies. I recommend this place for coffee rather than an actual meal. Their food is decent. I enjoyed their wings and pizza, but wouldn't visit Open City specifically for those dishes. read more

Open City is the place to go in Woodley Park for whatever you might be craving...coffee, drinks, breakfast, a sandwhich, or a full-platter dinner...plus dessert. This bustling little place is open morning, noon, and night - whenever I've needed a place to stop in the area, it has fulfilled my needs. No reservations - sometimes groups can slip right in, and at other times I've had to wait up to 45 minutes for a seat. Every dish I've had is great, such as the spinach salad and buttermilk pancakes. The milkshakes are big - worth the money, and the dessert counter is enticing. This is a relatively noisy place, and it is not ideal (during peak daytime hours), to relax and read a book, or work on the computer. There is a good amount of indoor seating, and in good weather the outdoor patio can hold about 30 additional patrons. Ideal to eat here for a casual dining experience with family or friends. read more

Hit or miss here. Sometimes food is great, other times seems a bit rushed. Bars a good area to hang or spend time reading.

I went here for lunch recently and ordered the bacon wrapped meatloaf. What arrived was a circular piece of what I assume was meatloaf. I never did eat it. The top of it was completely burned. No exaggeration. It was completely black. I pointed this out to the server who took it back to the kitchen. A few minutes later she came back with another piece of meatloaf that looked suspiciously similar to the other one. I turned it over and sure enough they had just taken the piece of meatloaf I had just sent back, flipped it over to the less burned side and sent it back out. That was just insulting. There are better places to eat in this neighborhood. read more

Food was really good! Wait was really long. May be biased because I was in good company. The beautiful desserts were tempting, but servings were very large and we were all too full. read more

I really wanted to like this place, since: 1) it's in my neighborhood, 2) it has a very large and nice patio area and 3) it has a great menu at reasonable prices. But, my boyfriend and I were both disappointed. The food was just so incredibly blah. Both our meals were overcooked and bland. Finally, our waiter was terrible. read more

This place is just steps from the metro. On weekends for brunch it is packed, and the wait is quite long (up to an hour for 4 people), but worth it. The cafe-coffeehouse vibe is great, very casual. The food is delicious. The coffee is also wonderful. Grab a cup and wait the hour, you won't regret it. Favorites: Veggie Scramble, Cornmeal Pancakes, Pumpkin Pancakes read more

Service on the telephone was so unhelpful I have second thoughts about even trying this restaurant. Spoke with two persons; neither helpful, both rude. read more

Stepped out for brunch during a conference event I was support over at the Omnishore Hotel. I had previously been here and found it excellent. Had the Cornmeal pancakes for brunch and they were amazing. Highly suggest this place for a meal. Will not suggest on a Saturday morning due to the crowds and popularity of the restaurant. All in great service, great food, great atmosphere, and great location. Highly highly suggest. read more

Open City used to be good for breakfast but the quality of the service and the food has diminished quite a bit over the past year. Living off the prime location and past reputation now. read more

I discovered this place while looking for waffles one evening, and have been back multiple times since. The atmosphere is very lively and the service is always very good. Their chai waffle is absolutely delicious is you're looking for something a little sweet, and their vegan burger is one of the best I've had. They also offer many tea and coffee options, as well as great smoothies. read more

I visited Open City for the first time today for brunch. Overall it was okay. The prices were typical DC brunch prices. The food was alright. I've had better. They charge you over $3 for a mug of coffee and don't do free refills, which is unusual, especially because it's just mediocre coffee. Our server was present but not friendly and not very helpful . Overall, there's not really anything that would bring me back to eat here. There are so many better options in DC. read more

Usually, I'm obsessed with this place- I tell everyone I know to go, and I bring everyone who is visiting because it's my favorite place in DC to eat. Very disappointed in my last visit. A little embarrassed too, because I was with my mom and my grandma who were visiting from out of town and I wouldn't stop talking up this place before we got there. I honestly think it was just our waiter- he got ALL our orders wrong (there were four of us) my mom and her friend ordered scrambles and were brought omelets, even after clarifying when they ordered that they wanted scrambles when he read our orders back to us. So this wouldn't have been a big deal if they hadn't repeated that they wanted scrambles, not omelets, three times. My grandma ordered fruit that never came, and mine was supposed to have no cheese (I'm lactose intolerant). And they weren't even busy! I hate to do this to this place, but hopefully if/when I go back I can have a great experience and rewrite this. In the meantime, it is no longer my go-to in Woodley Park and I'm annoyed they made me look like a fool for raving about them before. read more

i'll bandwagon a little: service is crap. but, you get a great location and can eat outside year-round... good place to take in a slow brunch (facilitated by the wait staff whether you want it or not). the food is good enough... the fancy coffee drinks are solid. stick to the breakfast menu for value read more

Ugh! I've loved this place for more than a decade but each of the last three times I've gone, it's gotten worse. I loved the atmosphere of the restaurant itself and was OK with the long waits for a table, mediocre service, and vile bathroom. Sad to say, today was my last visit. It took more than half an hour to get two kids' meals (pancakes and a waffle) and my nicoise salad. The kids' food was hot and crunchy on the outside and room temp inside and the plates were very hot. Clearly they had been sitting under lights for a while. The tuna on my salad was the least appetizing I've ever seen. It looked like it had been sawed off a larger piece with a serrated knife while still frozen. Jagged hunks of bright pink. The inside of the tuna was still ice cold. I expected seared tuna; this was disgusting. Frozen on the inside - yuck! When we finally got our food, the server kind of dumped it on the table and disappeared. Never came back to check on things, and I had to track him down for our bill. As we left, I stopped at the counter to order a medium skim chai to go. They were pretty backed up and it took a little while to get to the counter drinks. When my drink was up (though I didn't know it was mine), the barista yelled "skim chai". I asked if it was a medium (since it looked small). He again yelled "skim chai" in my face and I said "Yes, I heard you. I'm wondering if it's a medium skim chai". He once more said "skim chai" and put the drink down and turned his back on me. Turns out it was my drink and Open City's medium is the equivalent of Starbucks' tall. A $4+ rip-off from a condescending jerk. I've had some fun meals at Open City, but won't be back again. Yuck. read more

I love open city, I think it is a wonderful/causal place to go with friends, however the past 2 times I've gone, the service has been horrible. Both times we had a server named Carlos who seemed very incompetent. When he showed us to our table he placed the menus down and didn't welcome us or offer to get us a drinks. He didn't know much about the menu and when we asked for refills he completely forgot to bring them. Finally, he brought the check before we asked for it, and we felt completely rushed. We asked if there was anyway we could split it and he said no to just put 4 cards in, even though we didn't want to split it evenly. So we decided to write the amount to charge each card and when he saw me doing that he flipped out and told me that was too confusing, so he said he would split it and asked what was on each check and i began telling him and he cut me off and said "never mind, ill just try to do it and you can let me know if its wrong" and when he brought the check back it was incorrectly split. The second time i went back I had him again and once again he refused to split the check. Overall, I love the food, but when the service is bad, it sheds a bad light on the restaurant read more

I would recommend. The food was good and with nice portion amounts. we had the Reuben Latkes and the California Omelet with coffee and a cappuccino. All very good. The Latkes were the best. The service was fast and pleasant. It is a reasonably sized place with lots of 2 table seating and the ability to put tables together. Not the place to get comfortable and relax, sit back and visit to enjoy your meal. It is a get in, get seated, order, eat, visit "shortly", and go. With such a crowd, there was not a long wait. Not a good place to do much more than talk, they have wifi but opening your computer for shared work or presentation is out of the question. I visited Open City on Saturday Morning. The crowd was already out the door at 9:20AM. There was a private party in the room to the right as you stepped inside the door. I know this because after checking in (on a rainy day) I stepped aside (inside the room) to wait for my name to be called. The hostess was pleasant when she informed me of the situation and that I could not wait there. (the door was propped open and I could not see the posted note that read "private party"). Problem, it was raining. After being seated, the food was very good and nice portions. I would visit again. read more

One of my friends has been raving about this place and I was super excited to go this weekend. Ummm...my friend should be declared mentally unfit to give restaurant advice. It was DISGUSTING. I got the steak and eggs and while the meal looked pretty on the plate, the steak was WAAAY overcooked (I ordered medium rare and it was served medium well/well done). It was tough and chewy so I moved that to the side and tried to eat the hash browns (which were cold) and eggs. In the end, I ate the fried eggs--which is the only reason this gets two stars because those were perfect--and toast. We ate at the bar so we didn't have to wait for a table. My boyfriend got the OC sampler which came with grits, eggs, toast, chicken sausage, and pancakes. He only ended up eating the eggs and one piece of toast as well. Save your money and go to Barnside Diner in Alexandria! Two people, $44, and in the end both of us only ate our eggs and toast. read more

simply put, the owner needs to replace the manager and retrain the staff. great coffee, good food. service is like watching people walking in their sleep. when awakened, they open their mouths to show how rude they are. honestly never seen worse service in my life. read more

If I opened a restaurant, I would want it to be a lot like this one. To be fair, I have only been here for breakfast and for late night dessert, but it seems like a place that does everything well. For one, I think that it is the best all around breakfast place in D.C. If you are looking for breakfast cooked with really quality ingredients, 7 days a week, this is the place. Sure, there are nicer, fancier, and in some ways "better" breakfast places (I think that Tabard Inn and Founding Farmers both have really out of this world breakfasts), those aren't the type of place you go for your standard saturday morning brunch. They're too expensive and kind of an indulgence. Same goes for hotel brunches. They are amazing and decadent, but not really a regular weekend thing, at least for me. Open City has really good coffee, a great selection of food that is a big step up form greasy spoon diner food, but also not too fancy. Their hash-browns are amazing, their sausage is awesome, their eggs are phenomenal. When I moved to DC from Seattle, I missed my favorite breakfast place in the world (Portage Bay Cafe; truly the best) but this is a good replacement for DC. Also, as far as other meals go, I can't really comment, except that it's a really nice atmosphere, they have amazing home-made pies and cakes that rotate frequently, they have an awesome beer selection, and their food is a perfect example of what I like to call upscale comfort food. read more

I eat dinner at OC several times a week and I'm always happy with the food and the staff (hey, Karolin!). But I'm boycotting the restaurant for the summer because they kept my extended family waiting almost an hour and a half for brunch on a sweltering Sunday two weeks ago. The hostess said 30-35 mins max, then another 10-15 mins max. Multiple times. We stood around on the (benchless) side street in a failed attempt to stay out of the sun, only to be confronted with an endless stream of conventioneer buses belching din and diesel fumes for our entire wait. And when we were seated finally it was in the 'sunroom' -- which meant a sweltering meal and excruciatingly slow service. The seven of us all got sunburned, my 80-year-old mother almost fainted, my niece and nephew were miserable. I'm boycotting for the fact that they strung us along rather than telling us the truth about the wait. See y'all in September... read more

ordered out on a busy day - got our salads pretty quickly and food was fresh. can't complain.. (plus great cookies!)

I'm sure this is a fantastic place, based on the good reviews. Knowing it would be very crowded for a Sunday brunch, I actually showed up early to put my name for a table for two, and as expected, was told the wait would be 30 minutes, perfect for when my guest would arrive. When my guest arrived at the scheduled time, I followed up, and was told that we'd have to wait an additional 30-40 minutes (!). (note this was for a table inside. Outside was too cold, so there was not much wait for outside). Combined with the chaotic atmosphere (I do not like eating in a restaurant with the imposed feeling like you're part of an assembly line), we left. So my recommendation is, even if you go at a busy time, anticipating a wait, an additional wait may also be in store for you. Unfortunately, the neighborhood doesn't have another great brunch place, unless you want to give up the eggs and hashbrowns and go ethnic for lunch instead. I would attempt it again, but aim for a less popular time. read more

This place has a nice atmosphere and a good location near three hotels so it gets a lot of tourist traffic. That is how it survives. With all that traffic it doesn't need to have good food in order to attract customers. A colleague and I sat down there for lunch and when they brought our food both of our sandwiches had lettuce on it that was rotting. If any part of a head of lettuce is rotting then it is not fresh. It has been sitting around for days and yet they are continuing to serve it. When we informed the server she apologized but did not offer any sort of discount or any sort of compensation at all for the fact that we are being served rotten food. She then proceeded to ignore us for pretty much the rest of the time that we were there as did the busboy who left our empty plates sitting on the table for much too long, walking by several times looking at them and then continuing to pass by. The food as a whole, (rotten lettuce aside), was mediocre at best. It's probably safe to have beer or coffee at this place but don't expect fast service and don't waste your money on the food. read more