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    Ruta Ukrainian Restaurant

    4.5 (118 reviews)
    Closed 11:00 am - 3:00 pm, 4:00 PM - 9:00 PM

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    RUTA UKRAINIAN RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Outdoor seating
    Dogs allowed

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    Recommended Reviews - Ruta Ukrainian Restaurant

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    Ashley G.

    I love Ukrainians and I love Ukrainian food so I want to encourage everyone to try this place! That said, their borsch was too sweet. I suspect tomato paste to deepen the red color instead of added beet juice. Got a Lviv 1715 beer which was a nice touch! Well priced.

    Chris C.

    Our recent visit to Ruta was a pleasure and a surprise. The staff was the best, all were friendly and took the time to answer my questions due to my limited experience with Ukrainian food and drink. So many interesting dishes to explore, beautiful decor reflecting the proud Ukrainian culture. Highly recommended.

    Ukrainian Borscht
    Xeniya B.

    We loved this restaurant! Great food, borscht with pampushka was my favorite We also ordered meat holybtsi and assortment of varenyki - everything came out delicious. The customer service was great as well. Everyone was very friendly. We will be back

    Samantha G.

    Outstanding food and outstanding service! And all in a cute and nice space. The menus are limited in the sense there are only a few offerings. But all those offerings are delicious. Challenge yourself and try some new things. Can't say enough about how lovely the staff are. We had a truly wonderful brunch experience here.

    Russ M.

    We made a reservation for early lunch. Early is the time to go! We practically had the place to ourselves and were delighted to see others heading in as we heading out. Our meal was great. Fish and chips ruled the day. Dessert was as tasty as the presentation looks. This place is a gem. The place is well appointed and exudes a nice style.

    Ian C.

    Eastern European food is usually a miss for me, but Ruta came through! The Varenyky was absolutely fantastic and full of fresh ingredients. The Pickled Herring on rye bread was also decent and the best I've had in the states so far. Our server was attentive and friendly, and the atmosphere was lively yet quiet enough for easy conversation.

    Salmon Benedict
    Melissa F.

    This was my first time trying Ukrainian cuisine. It was very tasty! We shared a couple of things from the brunch menu and they were all excellent. The bartender was friendly and made some recommendations for classic Ukrainian drinks and they were lovely. We took home a piece of honey cake for later and it was very good! The place was clean, the food was great and the service was friendly and efficient!

    Ruta Ukrainian: bar area
    Bella J.

    I was very happy to find this restaurant. 1. Reservation: A must! This establishment is small (see picture) and you want to make sure you have one by reserving by calling them or through their own website only. Opentable, resy, yelp etc all do NOT work! 2. Food: 4.5 /5 Borscht: very good, delicious, has lots of beef Vareniki: I was not fond of it, It had this animal fat taste, which I really could not get over. Normally this is my favorite food, but not in this restaurant Beef tongue: It is wrapped in a crepe (blini) and very small amount. I assumed it would be like all other russian places: slices beef tongue. It wasn't. tasted good but hardly any. Luckily the blini is good 3. Drinks: 4/5 Strong! They use Ukrainian vodka as base and it is quite unique. The one I had jam in it and do not recommend. It is like you dropped your jam by mistake and does not go well. I drank it anyway Martini: good 4. Service: 4/5 we were seated at the bar after waiting for 20 mins although there were enough tables empty. This made no sense to me. Bartender was our server in a sense that he took our order. Can't really speak of service considering there was no specific waiter going back and forth. I still like this place and like the fact that we have a different cuisine we can try and adding variety to the DC food scene.

    4 Varenyky
    Kimaya C.

    We decided to do our own neighbourhood food crawl around eastern market and found this place while exploring the area. It was my first time trying Ukrainian food and I enjoyed it! We got the varenyky dumpling sampler (favorite was the chicken) and the holubtsi (cabbage rolls stuffed with meat).

    Vladyslav K.

    Three strikes in just one month -- and I'm officially done with Ruta. First visit: my steak was completely overcooked. Not medium, not medium-well -- just dry and rubbery. Second time: the manager personally promised to send me the catering menu for my housewarming party. I was ready to give them real business -- but they never followed through. No email, no call, nothing. And today? They brought out a dessert by literally tossing a small plate into a bigger one like it was cafeteria service. No care, no presentation, no pride. Three failures in one month -- that says a lot about how much they value their customers. You better start taking your customer service seriously and learn to appreciate loyal clients with the respect they deserve. Because right now? It's not just disappointing -- it's embarrassing.

    Jennifer S.

    Amazing. I loved coming to Ruta. It's a smaller sized restaurant but the menu and vibes were immaculate. The food was so good and filling, while being presented so well. Our waitress was very kind and gave us such great recommendations. I would definitely recommend the pierogis and dessert!! The cake was so so good and the cherry strudel was one of the best desserts I've had this year.

    Ukrainian Burrata Beet salad
    Amanda S.

    This is my favorite Ukrainian restaurant in D.C.! Everything we tried was delicious, but the Ukrainian Burrata Salad was my fav... it was fresh, flavorful, and perfectly balanced. I'm currently obsessed with beets and theirs were absolutely perfect. Our server, Anastasia, was wonderful and so attentive, and I loved how authentic the atmosphere felt. It seemed like the entire staff was Ukrainian, which made the experience even more special. It's also in the cutest area to walk around and on weekends for Eastern Market.

    Marci F.

    I really like the place and the customer service was great. It's very homey and great food for a cold night. I do think the prices are a little bit on the high side for the portions, but that might be just Washington DC. it is a small restaurant so I recommend reservations.

    Meat holubtsi

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    17 days ago

    Excellent service, super friendly waitstaff, and super yummy food. Highly recommend!

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    11 months ago

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    9 months ago

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    2 months ago

    Took my mother in law for brunch and it was fantastic. Great service and delicious food. Definitely recommend

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    7 months ago

    Our meal was great. Service was fantastic. Ambiance was welcoming. Service staff was great

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    4 months ago

    Fantastic and friendly service, wonderful Ukrainian food and drinks, and great local place to support! The restaurant is nice and relaxing!

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    Kilwins Ice Cream - Chocolate - Fudge - Mint Chocolate Chip

    Kilwins Ice Cream - Chocolate - Fudge

    4.2(58 reviews)
    1.5 mi

    Kilwins (specifically owner Jason) turned my frown upside down. About a year ago (meant to post…read morethis sooner!!) stopped by here on a very busy Saturday night (after the boat parade). We walked up and tried to find line, asked a couple people, and were basically told there were two lines. So I got in the shortest one, of course! Right before I got to the counter to order the employee says to me "You are not in line. They are not in line," as if trying to call us out and shame us like we cut in line. We definitely didn't--and definitely didn't do it intentionally if we did. After that, I said "no thanks, we don't want anything. I don't appreciate being treated that way." I was sad to not get ice cream and even sadder to be treated so poorly. Owner Jason apparently overheard and came and talked to us as we left. I explained the situation and he agreed the line was confusing. He offered me and my friend ice cream cones on the house and I was not only incredibly grateful to be validated about the line, but also grateful to see how much this owner cares about his customer's experiences. Ice cream was great. And the concern about our experience was even better! Thank you Jason!!

    My girlfriend and I split a medium. I had this ice cream back at home, so I wanted my gf to…read moreexperience the nostalgia. Expensive ice cream, but very solid. We got the cookies and cream and trip chocolate Would get if no cheaper options around

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    Kilwins Ice Cream - Chocolate - Fudge
    Kilwins Ice Cream - Chocolate - Fudge

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    Milk & Honey Southern Inspired Kitchen - Genius level sweet potato bread pudding

    Milk & Honey Southern Inspired Kitchen

    3.9(481 reviews)
    1.5 mi
    $$

    10/10 no notes. Wings FIRE! Get the watermelon marg and the hibiscus ginger beer…read more Service was great and quick to the point where we were ahead of schedule to go to a show. Vibes for brunch were immaculate but not too noisy.

    First off, I absolutely loved the atmosphere in the Wharf area of Washington, DC. The entire area…read morehas such a beautiful, lively vibe, and this restaurant fit right in perfectly. For appetizers, I ordered the butter glazed biscuits, and they were AMAZING. They came with a dipping sauce that reminded me of peach cobbler, but without being overwhelmingly sweet, which I loved. The brown butter on the side was the perfect touch. I also tried the honey Old Bay wings and wow... they were sweet, juicy, crispy, and had just the right hint of spice from the Old Bay seasoning. The honey drizzle on top took them to another level, and the creamy green dipping sauce paired perfectly with the wings in my opinion. I also had the maple Caesar salad. It honestly wasn't my favorite item compared to everything else, but it was still good and fresh. I'm glad I gave it a try and got my vegetables in lol. I probably just wouldn't order it again next time because the other dishes stood out more to me. For my entrée, I ordered the MH Signature Ribeye Steak with baby potatoes, and it was seasoned to perfection. I personally like my steak well done, and they cooked it exactly how I wanted it. The sauce served with the potatoes was also so flavorful and complemented the meal perfectly. The service was top tier from start to finish. Everyone was attentive, welcoming, and made sure I was comfortable the entire time. Overall, I would absolutely give this place a 10/10 and will definitely be returning to try more items on the menu.

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    Milk & Honey Southern Inspired Kitchen - Interior/ Entrance

    Interior/ Entrance

    Milk & Honey Southern Inspired Kitchen - Chocolate cake

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    Bistro Du Jour - Oeufs sur le plat

    Bistro Du Jour

    3.8(291 reviews)
    1.6 mi
    $$

    Met up with a group a colleagues while in town for a late lunch here at their recommendation…read more Beautiful location on the wharf, not from the airport (my next destination). The space is an enclosed patio and was fantastic. The French menu had so many amazing options it was hard to choose but the waiter was helpful in narrowing the choices and managing everyone's adjustments :) I had Salade Lyonnaise and the bacon on it was perfection, nicely sized so you got hearty bites. The red wine vinaigrette dressing was tangy but not overpowering and the poached egg was subtle. So glad we got to try this place before heading home to Oregon!

    I wanted to love this place so much. I live next-door to it, so I've been looking forward to trying…read moreit. My sons treated me for Mother's Day. From the moment we arrived, the vibe was off. There was no excitement, positivity or welcoming words. No one in the restaurant said happy Mother's Day or even Hello - they looked exhausted and like they were just trying to get through the evening. Perhaps they were overwhelmed and understaffed, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt. The good: - clean seating area - quick check-in - espresso martinis and the French 75 were good cocktails - the vegan entree was good - the mashed potatoes were good The bad: - seated for three people at a table with two of the seats not fitting, one diner had to endure the meal with half of their back against a protruding wall and on a bench seam. - appetizer tray showed up missing one of the four appetizers, when we asked about it, they commented that they were out of it. They brought us some more cheese puffs. We would not have ordered that had we known. - we had to summon the waiter to take our entrée order well after the appetizers had been completely cleared - we had to share Waters when we could not get refills after trying a couple times - atmosphere was bland, didn't seem like effort went into the decor or the experience The ugly: - their signature dish was ordered medium rare: it could not be cut with the table knife and there was no steak knife because it's supposed to be a melt in your mouth dish. It was well done and had to be returned. From our seats, we could watch them inspecting it and talking while one of them rolls their eyes. They bring out another one that was cooked to order. - when we got the bill, they charged for both steaks which was an $82 charge. - again, we have to find somebody to help us with the check. There were no apologies and no offer for compensation for the appetizer, the service, the food, the overcharging, anything. It was really sad because that was to be a very special meal for me and it would be easy to at least try to make things right. :( Please know there are other things I am not including in this review because we are a family that has all worked in the service industry. I hate giving a negative review, but no way around this one. And, yes... my son left a substantial tip. We aren't jerks. :)

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    Bistro Du Jour - Nice seating overlooking The Wharf.

    Nice seating overlooking The Wharf.

    Bistro Du Jour - French onion soup

    French onion soup

    Bistro Du Jour - Warf stadium seating

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    Ruta Ukrainian Restaurant - ukrainian - Updated June 2026

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