Oyster Oyster

I really wanted to love it but i did not like something about the lions mane mushroom dish, im not sure if it tasted too much like meat but it gave me the ick

Where to start? I just had an exceptionally incredible experience beyond my expectations at Oyster Oyster. Few things can enliven you when you’re fatigued and drowsy after a red-eye flight and a long day. The dinner here did that and more for me! Me and my wife are vegetarians and made a reservation quite in advance for our first ever trip to DC. The restaurant was quite charming with elegantly compartmentalized seating options - the kitchen, booths and chairs and tables. We got the booth. Before going further - I’ve dined at restaurants recognized by World’s 50 best, multiple Michelin 2 star restaurants, fine dining restaurants with vegetarian degustation menus in multiple countries. By far, this stands as the best experience I had. We got the Harvest menu. The experience started with a refreshing warm and umami drink to cleanse our palates. - The first course was bites and finger food. It was “game-on” statement displaying the variety of flavors and textures. With an Indian background, I was delighted to see the novel usage of some of our native spices / ingredients in new flavors - fermented coriander seeds with turnips, sesame with tomato. - The second was salad with potatoes and greens. Absolutely refreshing. - We then had Old Bread New Bread with butter made from sunflower seeds along with Squash and mushrooms. The bread and butter was so addicting that we had to request our hostess not to take that away and we are holding on that to not get stuffy in stomach. - The next course with “meatless” balls was so comforting. I just couldn’t comprehend how they could do that with eggplant! - It was followed by desserts which were ok (not exceptional to me at least). We also took a wine and juice pairing along with this. I’m no wine connoisseur and cannot speak with authority on them, but as a diner, I was thrilled by the juice pairing. The juices were totally crafted by the team with unused ingredients from the kitchen. They just complemented with the dishes as a pair quite well. Definitely recommend their juice pairing. Lastly, the service was top-notch. Our hostess Izzy (apologies if I got this wrong) was quite enthusiastic to share the details of each dish along with the story behind it. My wife once had to leave the table to use the restroom. The hostess took the napkin she put aside and folded it placed it back in this time. Everyone was so genuine and greeted us on our anniversary. Upon leaving my wife commented that the menu they gave us has details about food, but not the drinks. Guess what, the next day I had the drinks menu (both wines and juices) in my email. I haven’t even asked. All-in-all phenomenal. Highly recommended this to anyone. Caveat: - One difference from other experiences I mentioned is how those other places used rare and unique ingredients. All dishes at Oyster Oyster were very humble ingredients like Potato, Squash, Eggplant. That wasn’t a concern for me. In fact, it mesmerized me that these ingredients could be elevated to this level!

Hands down one of the best restaurants I've been to. Really interesting, sustainable, unique, and delicious courses. The juice pairing was really unique too! Service was super friendly, receptive, and helpful.

We had a great experience eating and drinking at Oyster Oyster this past weekend! Service: fantastic, friendly, not stuffy but still polished, very attentive. Food: absolutely delicious! Great variety, and portions were perfect. Ingredients felt fresh and the dishes were super creative. Space: comfortable, vibey, and well decorated. If I had one complaint, it would be that I was freezing sitting near a vent. Bring a sweater!

Amazing experience, food, and service. Each dish was thoughtful, well-composed, and delicious. Wine pairing complemented each dish very well also. Highly recommend Oyster Oyster.

These guys are stellar, love the concept and the commitment. I written previously about the “heaviness” you can get at a top-end set menu place. FINALLY got the opposite, light, daring, and genuinely surprising. Advice - do the juice paring. The apricot and chanterelle juice was something we kept talking about and was so perfect. This sets a new bar of excellence for us far beyond simple wine parings. Really appreciate the details and our primary server, Jack, was wonderful. Local and very fresh celebration of ingredients. Marigold “butter” again, just bonkers and sets a new apotheosis for the kind of subtle innovation I really appreciate.