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Couscous Cafe

1195 20th St, NW, Washington, DC 20036 | 202-689-1233 | Web site »

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Neighborhood:

Foggy Bottom

Cuisines:

Middle Eastern, Moroccan

Tags:

hours:

Mon-Fri 8 am-7 pm

Price:

$ ($14 and under)

Quick Take

In addition to the eponymous couscous, this eatery, popular during the office lunch rush, offers savory brochette of lamb and chicken tajine.

Read Our Review

Our Review

Just when you think every decent location downtown has been gobbled up by a Starbucks, a Cosi or a Potbelly, along comes a place like Couscous Cafe & Catering to prove you wrong -- and make your lunch hour a little sunnier. A cup of tomato soup thick with cracked wheat, chickpeas and lamb, and phyllo-wrapped chicken with crushed almonds are the sort of dishes co-owner Aziz Benassou says he was raised on back in his native Algeria. Now he now offers them in the 30-seat eatery he runs with the help of his mother and sister, Hadda and Ranu Benassou.

"Couscous is to us what pasta is for Italians," says the restaurateur, who features the processed wheat (semolina) in a stew of root vegetables and as an accompaniment to broiled salmon. North African music and walls painted in soothing yellow, green and burnt orange offer patrons a welcome break from the same old, same old at noon.

--Tom Sietsema

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Couscous Cafe

Couscous Cafe

1195 20th St, NW,

Washington, DC 20036

202-689-1233

View Website | Get Directions

hours:

Mon-Fri 8 am-7 pm

Location:

Cuisines:

Middle Eastern, Moroccan

Price:

$ ($14 and under)

Tags:

Quick Take

In addition to the eponymous couscous, this eatery, popular during the office lunch rush, offers savory brochette of lamb and chicken tajine.

Read Our Review

Reader Reviews [0]

My Rating

Choose:

Editorial Review

Just when you think every decent location downtown has been gobbled up by a Starbucks, a Cosi or a Potbelly, along comes a place like Couscous Cafe & Catering to prove you wrong -- and make your lunch hour a little sunnier. A cup of tomato soup thick with cracked wheat, chickpeas and lamb, and phyllo-wrapped chicken with crushed almonds are the sort of dishes co-owner Aziz Benassou says he was raised on back in his native Algeria. Now he now offers them in the 30-seat eatery he runs with the help of his mother and sister, Hadda and Ranu Benassou.

"Couscous is to us what pasta is for Italians," says the restaurateur, who features the processed wheat (semolina) in a stew of root vegetables and as an accompaniment to broiled salmon. North African music and walls painted in soothing yellow, green and burnt orange offer patrons a welcome break from the same old, same old at noon.

--Tom Sietsema

Continue Reading

Reader Reviews [0]

Average Reader Rating

Currently there are no reader reviews for this listing. Be the first to write a review.

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Couscous Cafe

Add to Calendar

1195 20th St, NW,

Washington, DC 20036

202-689-1233

Quick Take

In addition to the eponymous couscous, this eatery, popular during the office lunch rush, offers savory brochette of lamb and chicken tajine.

Map & Directions

Get Directions »

Location:

Cuisines:

Middle Eastern, Moroccan

Tags:

hours:

Mon-Fri 8 am-7 pm

Price:

$ ($14 and under)

Reader Reviews [0]

My Rating

Choose:

Our Review

Just when you think every decent location downtown has been gobbled up by a Starbucks, a Cosi or a Potbelly, along comes a place like Couscous Cafe & Catering to prove you wrong -- and make your lunch hour a little sunnier. A cup of tomato soup thick with cracked wheat, chickpeas and lamb, and phyllo-wrapped chicken with crushed almonds are the sort of dishes co-owner Aziz Benassou says he was raised on back in his native Algeria. Now he now offers them in the 30-seat eatery he runs with the help of his mother and sister, Hadda and Ranu Benassou.

"Couscous is to us what pasta is for Italians," says the restaurateur, who features the processed wheat (semolina) in a stew of root vegetables and as an accompaniment to broiled salmon. North African music and walls painted in soothing yellow, green and burnt orange offer patrons a welcome break from the same old, same old at noon.

--Tom Sietsema

Continue Reading

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Couscous Cafe

1195 20th St, NW,

Washington, DC 20036

202-689-1233

Quick Take

In addition to the eponymous couscous, this eatery, popular during the office lunch rush, offers savory brochette of lamb and chicken tajine.

Map & Directions

Get Directions »

Location:

Cuisines:

Middle Eastern, Moroccan

Tags:

hours:

Mon-Fri 8 am-7 pm

Price:

$ ($14 and under)

Reader Reviews [0]

My Rating

Choose:

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Our Review

Just when you think every decent location downtown has been gobbled up by a Starbucks, a Cosi or a Potbelly, along comes a place like Couscous Cafe & Catering to prove you wrong -- and make your lunch hour a little sunnier. A cup of tomato soup thick with cracked wheat, chickpeas and lamb, and phyllo-wrapped chicken with crushed almonds are the sort of dishes co-owner Aziz Benassou says he was raised on back in his native Algeria. Now he now offers them in the 30-seat eatery he runs with the help of his mother and sister, Hadda and Ranu Benassou.

"Couscous is to us what pasta is for Italians," says the restaurateur, who features the processed wheat (semolina) in a stew of root vegetables and as an accompaniment to broiled salmon. North African music and walls painted in soothing yellow, green and burnt orange offer patrons a welcome break from the same old, same old at noon.

--Tom Sietsema

Continue Reading

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