Restaurant Finder

Brasserie Beck

Cuisines: Belgian French Neighborhood: Downtown

Based on 7 reviews.

Address	1101 K St., Washington, DC 20005
Phone	(202) 408-1717

Rater Comments

These comments express the opinions of individual Restaurant Raters, not those of Washington City Paper.

Review by eae430 on September 21, 2009

I finally got myself to this place - had been wanting to go for ages. Lots of stuff on the menu looked intriguing, but I was firmly committed to ordering mussels. We had a friendly and knowledgeable server, who described the first 4 types of mussels, then announced her personal favorite, mussels done with veal and fried capers in a tomato white wine/garlic sauce. All the varieties sounded good, but I decided to go with her recommendation, as did one of my 3 dinner companions, and were we ever glad we did. It was one of the most wonderful meals I've had in DC. The aroma of the dish hit me in the face (in a good way) when the lid was removed at the table. It was served in the huge wok-style skillet in which it was cooked - consequently, it stayed piping hot for a really long time. It had so much veal in it and lots of mussels - this was a very substantial meal. With an appetizer or two, it could easily have fed two. The mussels that our companions ordered were very good also - but we all agreed that the veal one was the standout. Mussels come with a large portion of crispy frites and 3 types of flavored mayo, which were fabulous. There was also a huge basket of wonderful, hot bread for soaking up the sauce. The Belgian beers we had were an excellent accompaniment. I can't wait to go back, but it will be very hard to force myself to order something else, I loved that dish so much. I highly recommend Brasserie Beck.

Review by cacooper123 on August 26, 2009

I love this place! Best fries in town. Friendly, knowledgable bartenders. The lamb sausage with lentils is a favorite dish, it's a perfect meal even though it's appointed as an appetizer. Love the mussels. The rabbit is also a nice change from the usual menu fare of dining out.

Review by emiliesubra on February 11, 2008

We went there with my husband for dinner last friday.
The bar was crowded and it was very noisy, it was very unpleasant to wait without space and all this noise.
We had our table for 2 very close to a party of five, we were lucky that these people were a nice quiet family, but no privacy indeed.
The waitress was nice but lost any credibility when she exclaimed 'fabulous! excellent' with any of our choices on the menu...
I think they have forgotten about us for a while because we really had to wait 20 minutes to get our entrees. But we didn't regret the wait: the food was great! I had the rabbit in kriek sauce, very good, big portion with excellent sauce, perfectly cooked. My husband had a carbonnade, wich was very good also, but not as original as was my entree. We shared a side of fries, they were among the best in town (just after the ones of Circle Bistro). I had a waffle with cranberry compote and cinnamon ice cream for dessert, very good but maybe too much compote. My husband had a plate of 3 cheeses, the epoisse and the chimay were good but the last one wasn't that exceptional. I highly recommand to have a dessert rather than the cheese as the portion of the cheese plate is really small...
To conclude, he had a excellent meal, with good wine and beers (very expensive though) but the atmosphere of this restaurant doesn't fit with a romantic dinner...

Review by raporter on November 9, 2007

What could be a cavernous, industrial-warehouse kind of space is cleverly divided into many small seating areas, which keeps the noise reflected off the stone floors and interior hard surfaces down somewhat and makes you feel a little more standout than one of the lobbyist herd at the bar in front.

This place is known for well over 100 Belgian beers, but we were presented with a wine menu on being seated and had to ask for the beer menu. Our waiter couldn't tell me much about any of the beers but offered to read the descriptive menu with me over my shoulder. We later ordered a good, reasonably priced bottle of red, which was easier to choose relying on our own expertise. The food all looks delicious as listed, and the smell of mussels poached in garlic at neighboring tables nudged our hunger all the way up the scale to 11. However, on hearing the specials - one was priced at 95 dollars - we steered away from the entrees and composed a sort of tapas meal from sides and starters. This confused our waiter, so we had to break it down into "courses" for him. We also had to eat off our bread plates when the dishes we intended to share arrived. But no matter.

The mussels were excellent, the country pate tasty (though its rind of seemingly boiled bacon was a definite remove-and-discard), the escalloped endive was delicious, the frites are thin and hot and come with three mayonnaises for dipping, the Bibb salad with beets was good, and a smoked salmon arrived with some crisp squash chips. The bread for our cheese course arrived hot after we asked for bread twice, and the cheese - though presented as an awkward lump of cubes heaped on a plain plate - ranged from unusual to outright great. Wish someone had told us what we were eating.

I'd go back and have a more conventional meal if someone would foot the bill. How do lobbyists following the gift rules afford to dine here in such droves? Don't answer that.

Review by nandito88 on August 9, 2007

Excellent food. The mussels with fennel and sausage were great to share, I enjoyed my monkfish entree, and loved my dessert, which was a pear tart with ice cream. What really makes the place though, is the service. Our server provided excellent recommendations on what beer to have with each item. All the beers were unique, delicious, and paired perfectly with the meal. If you're a beer fan, you can't miss this place. I wish there was more room at the bar, though.

Review by earenwick on July 16, 2007

Review by ladyt63 on July 6, 2007

Brasserie Beck is sweet oasis in an otherwise quiet area of DC.The host staff is friendly without being overbearing. Brasserie Beck offers an admirable slection of imported beers on draft and by bottle. The wine list is extensive, yet has affordable and delicious wines available by the glass. Servers and bartenders encourage customers to ask questions and willingly provide samples of beverages (draft beers and wines by the glass) to ensure patrons find the concoction that suites their fancy. On a recent visit for a late happy we nibbled on on frites (crisp and tasty shoestring french fries) served with three types of mayonnaise accompaniments and lamb suasage served with lentils and frisee. Beck is worth the visit whether alone , as a couple or in a group.