I would rather have gone to Denny's for brunch. Fancy menue with zero service. Meals were late coming out, two out of ten orders missing. Waiter went off and left the kitchen staff to bring out plates and everyone was mixed up. Food was good but cold. Limitless drinks were not attended to. This was a family gathering otherwise I would have made a stink while we were there. Very little effort was made to correct numerous errors. Stick to Denny's, at least they try..... read more

Terrible Service. Super nasty hostess informed us we would have to wait at bar for 20 minutes, even though the restaurant was 65% empty on a Saturday night. Will never return, food was decent, overpriced. read more

This was not a very together restaurant. I decided to dine at the bar. ordered a beer and a salad and an entree. It took a while for the bartender to notice I was there. I ordered a drink, salad and an entree. The beer and salad arrived in decent time. However, after an hour goes by and still no entree, I asked about my chicken pot pie. I kept being told that it was coming. Finally I asked the bartender what was going on as many guests were being served there entree that came in at minimum a half hour after me. When it did arrive it was ice cold. I was not impressed and asked for the bill for what I had consumed. There was very little remorse and no offering of comping anything. I WILL NEVER GO BACK AGAIN. read more

Ris was recommended by a friend. I was looking for someplace special to treat a girlfriend for her birthday. What a treat, we both loved our dishes, I had the crispy scallops which were awesome. The birthday girl had the salmon. The presentation and freshness of the food was amazing. AND the dessert didn't disappointment. The waiter was great and made a fabulous recommendation for a Malbec blend (1st time) which is now my new favorite. Congrats Ms. Ris for a fine establishment. read more

Had a good quiet dinner with the wife. Kitchen and wait staff were very responsive to my gluten allergy. The chef even sent a runner out to confirm the ingredients in my order. Waiter was excellent. Shrimp Tempura appetizer, Icelandic Cod and Rack of Lamb Special were true highlights. read more

Yelp says 5 stars means "Woohoo! As good as it gets!" -- and that what Ris was. Service was professional but not too formal, friendly but not intrusive; the space is inviting; THE FOOD WAS FANTASTIC -- fresh ingredients, prepared in a way that's inventive but not too cute. It's at the more expensive end of the scale, but not at all over the top (about $90 pp with tip, but with few drinks). I know others have said the service wasn't top notch, but that wasn't our experience, and some have said the food was uninspired, but that wasn't what we thought either. I'd highly recommend this. It may not be the Inn at Little Washington, but that's not what they're aiming for. read more

Maxwell was the absolute best. I came in for brunch with a friend on Sunday and ended up staying right through the afternoon. Maxwell was extremely knowledgable about the menu and gave us outstanding recommendations. We kept ordering! He was friendly and great at conversation. Maxwell is the kind of server that makes a restaurant experience go from good to phenomenal! Thank you, thank you! read more

Ris has an Easter Brunch and after a fantastic meal with my family last year we thought it would be a good idea to spend our Easter there once again. From the moment we were seated we realized it would not be quite as special as our previous experience. This year the restaurant lacked any significant Easter decorations such as the homemade cookies, table baskets filled with chocolates, and Easter eggs. To begin with, we asked if we could sit in one of the three empty booths in a rather empty restaurant, but we were snarkily told they were reserved. Of course, no one ever came to sit in any of the booths while we were there... Then we sat down and waited around ten minutes until a waitress finally approached us and asked, "Has anyone helped you?" At such an upscale restaurant I would assume that the waiters and waitresses would know their table assignments, but maybe they don't. Anyway, we ordered drinks, our breakfast, and a cinnamon bun to start off with before our main dishes. The cinnamon bun came out five minutes after our breakfast and our Steak Frites Scramble tasted like they were made up of 80% cheese and 20% egg (Quite disgusting). Extremely disappointed when comparing it to the experience we had last year. For a $100 easter brunch for three I expected to at least have decent service and food, but got neither. Service was terrible and sadly so was the food. I wouldn't go back and definitely wouldn't recommend. There are several restaurants in the area for much cheaper that serve exceptional food! read more

I love RIS and always have a great time there, regardless of whether I'm just sitting at the bar or I'm dining there. They have a great happy hour, though it doesn't appear to be well known, so you can usually find plenty of room at the bar. Their new Sunday brunches are great - the popsicle mimosas are an amazing idea for a hot DC summer! The new smores dessert is pretty amazing, too. The food is always perfect and the service is great, too. read more

Had a nice quiet Sunday brunch there. The Mexican dish I had was fantastic. It's also a good location for people who have tickets to the Kennedy Center. read more

We just experienced a horrible dining experience at the very overpriced RIS. The service was pathetically bad. It took 45 minutes for our drink order to arrive. We asked to see the manager and were told the manager was working the bar for a private party, which was delaying all drink service for 40 minutes. The hostess assured me the drinks would be removed from the bill and that the manager would come over to discuss the delays. The manager never showed up, the dessert arrived 30 minutes after the cappuccinos, and the drinks remained on the bill. When I asked the hostess what was going on with the service and the bill, she claimed she had no authority to deal with any of the problems. RIS was a good restaurant when it started out but it should now put itself out of its misery and shut down so no one has to sit through the horrendous mismanagement and bad service we just experienced. read more

It was good that I came in with no expectations. I visited this spot during restaurant week to give it a try. I had the fried green tomatoes and grits, the hanger steak, and the parfait for dessert. The tomatoes in my first dish were not ripe and the the dish made me feel sick. The hanger steak was fine but the menu said that it came with roasted potatoes and I only had two small pieces of potato on my plate.... The parfait tasted fine but it came in a mini jar which was clearly a restaurant week sized portion, which brings me to my last point. The hostesses were cold and barely made eye contact when we walked in and our waiter was rude, snappy, and barely present during our meal. It was clear that the staff was treating restaurant week goers as second class citizens. This, in my opinion, is not only disgusting but also stupid. Restaurant week is a marketing expense that restaurants take on to attract new customers and those trying the place should be treated and fed to the best of the restaurant's ability in order to fulfill the whole purpose of taking part in restaurant week. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. One more thing - the hostess was wearing a moomoo which was shocking, quite frankly. When she walked up to the desk I thought she was a diner because I had never seen someone who works in a restaurant dress like that. Still can't get over that outfit. read more

Went here for happy hour thursday night with a group of friends. Bad experience for several reasons: 1. Bartender -- youngish woman -- not very cordial 2. We were sitting and standing at end of the bar and a waitress came up and told us to move closer to the bar, not very politely. Where? We were standing next to the barstools. If they need to keep the area clear for wait staff then they should not have barstools there 3. Most importantly -- the air conditioning was very weak in our part of the restaurant. We asked about it and were told that it wasn't strong enough to cool the whole section. They offered to bring out a fan but the bartender (this time a man) said he could only fit it behind the bar on a low counter -- so no air made it over the bar. Then, some patrons on the other side of the bar asked that it be moved near them. Somehow he was able to not only move it near them but elevate it so they actually got the benefit of the air. Not at all a good experience. read more

It is too bad the service here did not live up to the quality of the food or the price point. First they tried to sit is in an empty private room with no windows when there was plenty of seating in the main dining area. Then it was at least 15 min before our server (who had the personality of a fish) took our drink order. And while busy, there were open tables. Ok fine, then we get our biscuits and yum, I start to calm down. Then the Thai Brussels sprout come out--a unique twist. The server was less than attentive. Then our eggs Benedict come with barely a splash of hollandaise, so after asking the water guy, then our sever and waiting waiting while our meals start to chill, I can see the server is just standing at the bar so I get up and ask again for the hollandaise. Five more minutes, and she brings out about 2 tablespoons. She never asks us if we need another drink, we have to flag her down. I ordered the bottomless mimosas with the popsicle, so it's clear I'm interested in more than one. When I ordered my third glass and asked for straight champagne she barely contained her eye roll. Dear chef, someone needs to mind the front of the house better for you. read more

A friend and I had a lunch reservation during Restaurant Week; what a mistake. We arrived on time and then had to wait to be seated while the hostess seated other customers who arrived after we did and without reservations. It was obvious from the start that the staff were overwhelmed by the volume of customers. We were finally seated and placed our order. We received our appetizer which was very good (gnudi). After the plates were cleared, we waited about 15 minutes and then someone brought us bread and butter (the pat of butter was half melted on the plate). We waited some more; after repeatedly asking if our entrees were coming, someone admitted that the order had been lost. We finally gave up and left an hour after placing our order. But it didn't end there: While collecting our coats from the coat check, the door fell off the closet and we both started laughing given how absurd the entire situation had become. The hostess also gave us the wrong coats--since the ticket didn't match the hanger with our coats. I cannot comment on the food as Ris was unable to feed us and we left hungry, but I can state that the service was absolutely horrible. In a city filled with excellent restaurants, there's no need to waste your time and money on Ris. Rating: Abysmal. read more

Very disappointing experience. Came here for dinner on the night of the Women's March on Washington; the place was packed, so I understand if the kitchen was a little backed up and staff were busy. But the service was slow and apathetic to the point of absurdity. The greeter didn't smile or say hi, just looked at us like we should hurry up and not waste his time. Our waiter seemed harried and perfunctory. We waited nearly 45 minutes for our starters - which were roasted vegetables, for goodness' sake - and then another 30-45 minutes for another couple of starter dishes which we had asked to be served at the same time as the earlier dishes, NOT as a second course. No explanation or apology from anyone about why things were taking so long. When we called the waiter over or requested things, he would get them, but otherwise he pretty much disappeared. The Brussels sprouts were tasty, but everything else (cauliflower, mussels, French onion soup) was ordinary. Dessert was meh. I wouldn't go back and I'd advise others to stay away, or at least go when you have a better chance of halfway decent service. read more

This place is a short walk from my wife's office and so we go there after work occasionally and sit at the bar. Beautiful bar, with TVs on to the game but no sound and comfortable seats. The bartenders are attentive. They pour a generous glass of red, too. So all is well--- unless you're hungry, in which case you'll be underwhelmed by entrees that are barely bigger than appetizers although they are all $30 or close to. Three scallops on a small bed of couscous didn't cut it; it was a tapas portion. Hanger steak is pre-sliced so that you don't notice that the kitchen can take one cut of it and get three $28 servings. My wife, a light eater, disagrees with me and loves the place. My conclusion is this is expensive real estate and the customers are on the high side of affluent and so there's no great concern with the price/value relationship. I can't fault the execution or the ambience. It's just that you may want to stop for something else before the end of the evening. read more

We did RIS for dinner on a Sunday and everything was really good. It's not perfect - I think the prices are bit high - but a place we'll keep in the hip pocket for dinners out with guests. We were three and did three apps (wedge salad and 2 x gnudi), three mains (crown of cauliflower, catfish, and chicken Milanese), two desserts (almond cobbler, butterscotch pudding), two beers, three coffes (cappuccinos and latte). Everything was very good - the wedge salad, a classic, stood out and my catfish was an excellent combo of flavors. No complaints on any of the food. Desserts disappeared quickly, coffee was great - and area that oft kills places. Ran just over $65 per person, without tip. For the quality, it's worth it even it it seemed about $10 too high per person. Service was excellent with good timing on delivering coarse. Nice layout. Props for not having a bunch of music blasting - makes for conversation. read more

I went to RIS with my foodie friends last weekend for a late dinner. We all had heard great things and are always up to try new places. We had some drinks at the bar prior to being seated at our table. My friend's husband loved the margaritas! The greens salad as the starter was delicious! I had the burger and they had the salmon and the flank steak. I enjoyed my burger with the gorgonzola and onion jam (good thing I wasn't making out with anyone later)! My friend enjoyed her salmon. Her husband felt the flank steak was a-ok, but out of this world. The desserts were a little froufrou, but very tasty. I enjoyed my key lime dessert which was the special. Overall, I felt it was a great choice. The restaurant itself had a great atmosphere and is very modern. However, it didn't have the ominous "echo-y" feel that a lot of these places have that are "modern." I feel like my mother saying- I can't hear myself think or the people I am with, but it is often true. The staff was very friendly and knowledgeable. I definitely plan to dine again at RIS soon. read more