The Capital Grille

2005 Fall Dining Guide
By Tom Sietsema
Washington Post Magazine
Sunday, October 16, 2005

Take a cue from the restaurant's show window of dry-aging beef and pick a cut from within: If there's a better sirloin or porterhouse in town, I have yet to slice into it. The Capital Grille is as manly a steakhouse as you can picture, from the dark wood to the stuffed animal heads to side dishes that arrive in small barges (nutmeg-laced creamed spinach) or as edible mountains (four hungry customers merely put a dent in a voluminous plate of onion strings and cottage fries). Still, it's a civilized oasis, where steaming, jasmine-scented towels are sometimes brought between courses. To start, there are a bold French onion soup and, unfortunately, bland crab and lobster cakes; to close, consider the decadent flourless chocolate espresso cake or the dreamy coconut cream pie. From beginning to "check, please," the Capital Grille is a meat market with great appeal.