Restaurants

Proof

775 G St. NW, Washington, DC 20001 | 202-737-7663 | Web site »

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Neighborhood:

Chinatown

Metro:

Gallery Place-Chinatown (Red, Green and Yellow lines)

Cuisines:

Nouveau American

Tags:

cheese plates, charcuterie, wine bar, tasting menu, 2009 fall dining guide

hours:

Mon-Wed 11:30 am-2 pm, 5:30-10 pm; Thu-Fri 11:30 am-2 pm, Sat 5:30-11 pm; Sat 5:30-11 pm; Sun 5-9:30 pm

Atmosphere:

Outdoor Seating

Price:

$$$($25-$34)

Sound Check:

72 decibels (Must speak with raised voice)

Quick Take

Allison Dinner

It's easy to fall in love with Proof: a restaurant that offers top-notch fare, a great beverage program and an elegant dining room.

Read Our Review

Our Review

Critic Rating:

2009 Fall Dining Guide

By Tom Sietsema
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009

Here's my fallback for any number of restaurant scenarios. When friends ask where they should go for drinks, Proof and its excellent wine and spirits program leap to mind. (My refresher of choice: tequila, white port and chartreuse.) When strangers want to know what's hot but not too expensive, I tell them that the average dinner entree in this light-by-day, dim-by-night leather-and-brick playground is $25. When visiting foodies ring me up, I'll frequently introduce them to Proof. Lunch there finds a terrific, Indian-seasoned lamb burger and a dewy tuna tartare served between airy seaweed crackers. Evening yields such temptations as roasted wreckfish teetering on a hash of chanterelles, spaetzle and pea shoots. And a plump chicken breast defies the boring stereotype with its stuffing of goat cheese and wild mushrooms and sidekicks of spicy rapini and soothing polenta. "I like the sides and sauces best," a newbie to the restaurant says, an opinion that mirrors mine. Chances are, owner Mark Kuller will be hanging out at his restaurant if you show up for dinner. Chances are, the lawyer-by-day will be leaning against the front wall, sipping a glass of wine and looking very content. I would be, too, if I got to be the host of this warm and softly lighted Penn Quarter watering hole.

Four-course tasting menu per person: $56.

Average Reader Rating

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An outdated Sietsema review

Posted by weidads | Nov 09, 2011 | Mark as Inappropriate

Tom said in his chat today: "Hate to type it, but my last meal at Proof was not great. Everything tasted a little tired, and I didn't notice much that was new on the menu." – November 09, 2011 11:49 AM. He also said never to trust a review that is more than a year old, which applies to LOTS of his reviews on this Web site.

Food and drinks without service

Posted by crete | Oct 06, 2011 | Mark as Inappropriate

I have stopped going to Proof. Love the wine selection, enjoy the menu but odd service, especially at the bar, negates the rest. My last two trips to Proof bordered on the surreal. Both times sat at bar, after 5 minutes had to ask the bartender for the wine list and menu. Then had call him over to order my drink. Last trip I was chatting with young woman sitting next to me, she had finished her glass of wine and was timing how long it would take the bartender to come back. He didn't talk to her after I called him over to order my drink nor when he brought mine. I finished my drink, called the bar tender over again, asked for both checks and took my new friend next door to Zaytina where the food, wine and service were great.

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