| Address | 1847 14th St. NW, Washington, DC 20009 |
|---|---|
| Hours | 5 p.m.-1:30 a.m. Mon; 11 a.m.-1:30 a.m. Tue-Thu & Sun; 11 a.m.-2:30 a.m. Fri-Sat |
| Phone | (202) 265-7839 |
| Website | http://www.saint-ex.com/ |
I just ate here a couple of weeks ago. At first the hostess told my friend and me that she couldn't seat us and then add my sister, who was coming later, to the table. So my friend and I were seated at one of the outdoor tables, in the shade, thank goodness, because it was still warm outside.
My friend ordered a burger and a salad, both of which she enjoyed. I shared some of the delicious sweet potato fries that accompanied her burger.
I ordered the steak with mushroom "foie gras" and barley. The steak and mushrooms were quite tasty, and the portion size was just right for a petite woman. The barley wasn't great--no real flavor that I could discern.
Our waitress that night was very nice and described the portion sizes accurately. In addition, when my sister showed up for dessert, the waitress was kind enough to let us move to a larger, vacant table so we could sit together. She earned a large tip for doing that!
We ordered the Pear Caramel Cheesecake for dessert, and it was heaven on earth!
My only major complaint is about the restrooms, especially the handicapped one--P.U. I almost threw up my meal in there! And why do restaurants think it's "cool" to have unisex restrooms? That could explain the P.U. and the trash all over the floor. I'm all for equality, but when it comes to restrooms, don't want no stinky dudes in mine!!!
It was a great experience! I can't wait to go back for dinner-it is such a cozy place! I highly recommend it :-)
Great ambiance, great menu, best coffee in the neighborhood, cute bartender!
Saint-Ex is a good neighborhood place. I went with a friend to get some beer and some food. Its a good place for that. They try to be more sometimes, but I find that the simpler items on the menu are done better. Same with the beers: the simpler the better. We both got burgers with salads and ordered a side of sweet potato fries. The burgers were a good size, the salads were tasty, and overall the dishes looked good. The fries were tasty, but, kind of soggy. Too bad, but it won't stop me from going again.
their house muffin during brunch hours is delicious. not heavy, light on the inside with a crunch on the outside, like a well-executed corn bread. the service is always lacking, either the servers never comes or they don't do a good job of checking on drinks, etc.
My recent brunch experience at Cafe Saint-Ex was very average. The menu is interesting and there are options to satisfy a number of different tastes. However, the food was just not very good and we had the feeling that the restaurant was cutting corners. My omelette was tiny and the fillings were very thin, and we wondered if they were starting to run out of things but decided to keep serving anyway. The only accompaniment to my omelette was a salad, which consisted solely of greens. I had to pay extra for toast, which turned out to be lukewarm bread. All in all, it was just not very good.
We brought a client and his wife for dinner and they LOVED it! Very lively bistro-cafe atmosphere makes you feel like you are dining in the Latin Quarter. Decor is very cool, with vintage aviation themes and original paintings of namesake Saint-Exupery. Staff was very knowledgeable. Ingredients incredibly fresh and flavorful. Great wide ranging wine selection, with some excellent reasonably priced options (we enjoyed a lovely Sauvingnon Blanc from NZ). Downstairs lounge is also very nice with eclectic mix of DJ music. Place is always crowded, so they must be doing something right!
I love this place. My only complaint would be that one of our dishes came out to us seconds after we ordered it, which leads me to believe that it was a mistake off another table. And it was cold. Yuck.
Good, though fairly non-traditional, brunch menu. I was pleased overall. Crowded though!
This establishment is not equipped or prepared for larger parties. Service was slow by the waiter and kitchen. Menu- interesting; the attempts to be different only seemed to disguise bad concoctions. For instance-homemade ketchup- poor choice.
Server seemed to attend to us at his convenience, after figuring he was putting auto- gratuity on the bill.
Will not return for brunch, but will continue to support the nightlife experieince here.
Great service, outdoor seating, and beer.
This is the first time I had dinner here, but at night it transitions into a great bar.
I went for dinner and ordered crab quesadillas, however, the waitress admitted she forgot to tell me how small the portions were...it was smaller than an appetizer for a $8 quesadilla. I ended up ordering a hamburger for $12 and finishing it.
Despite the small portion size, it was still a great place mainly due to the service and outdoor seating. This is a great choice for friends to eat, or better yet for a happy hour. Wouldn't suggest this for a date.
One of my favorite restaurants in the city, hands down, and a great place to bring friends or family visiting from out of town. Cafe St Ex never fails to disappoint, whether sitting down for dinner or hanging out for drinks after work. A little on the pricey side, and on the weekends the wait can be well over an hour (they only take reservations for parties of eight or more), but the food is well worth both the price and the wait-- and save room for dessert, you won't want to miss the creme brulee (my personal favorite). Highly recommended.
Arrived at Cafe St Ex around 8 pm on Saturday night with two others and was told there would be about a 45 minute wait for an outdoor table. A table opened up immediately and we sat outside amidst the humidity and street action of 14th and T. Sometimes it did get a little noisy (loud cabbies and inept drivers) but then what do you expect when you sit on a street corner in DC on a Saturday night.
This is a great neighborhood bar/restaurant that serves excellent food and has a great beer selection. The service was good. Our waitress was a little on edge but all in all very friendly (we are restaurant people so we understand). It actually added to the ambiance of the place; with her alternative city chic wear on, it added a little personal flavor to the decor. The fact that the waitstaff does not wear uniforms adds to the already relaxing climate at St Ex.
The food was excellent and fairly priced. Mussels, Frites, Brisket Wrap, Softshell crab sandwich, Crab and Brie Quesadilla. It was all very good and served in a very timely fashion. I can't wait to go back again.
Thanks St Ex!!
Two words--dry cider. If you have never tried to find it in a bar, you know how difficult it is to find something other than the sweet as sugar American ciders. The atmosphere is welcoming and the food is great too. I sat down at 5 and don't think I left until at least 4 hours later. I even made some new friends! I can't wait to go back and check out Gate 54.
I walked by Saint Ex for months without going in, and now I can't imagine why. I think I thought it was hipster paradise, but it turns out just to be a neighborhood bar in hipster clothing.
Two things stand out: the excellent, amazing, miles-above-average service and the very cool patio. There were a lot of hipster moms and dads with their small babies on the patio, seeming to enjoy themselves despite the presence of smokers.
Our table enjoyed good, thick-cut fries with sweet, tangy house-made ketchup, as well as a couple of salads. Their salad selection is good and affordable, including one that features fried oysters. A nice, juicy burger with many trimming options is available at lunch and dinner.
Cafe Saint Ex has the appeal of a French bistro without being overly pretentious or expensive. The staff could easily run a record store by day, and a restaurant by night, which gives the place a more casual atmosphere. Eating out on the patio is great for those looking to dine close to the action without the frenetic sounds of U Street sirens. Plus, the neighbors start to complain about the noise after 10 pm, which makes you feel like your having dinner on someone's front porch on Elm Street. Breakfast and dinner are equally appealing, and management was smart to keep the menu small; better to excel at a few dishes than stretch yourself thin. For a bistro, the wine list could use some improvement, but I usually order Chimay bottles.
Great- Although they sat us downstairs for diner which was really a bar with super loud music and smoking. I think if I go back I will wait for a table in the no smoking nice-atmosphere upstairs.
Great food though- original.
Nice outdoor seating available and dogs welcome on peripheral tables. Particularly because of the patio and the hip bar downstairs, ambience is definitely this venue's highlight. Saint-Ex has two menus in one, a moderately priced pub-like menu and then a higher end restaurant one. I ordered a pork loin sandwich with warm goat cheese and roasted red peppers which came with a side salad for $9. I wasn't particularly happy with the quality of the pork (a bit gristly) and it was slightly overcooked. My friend ordered mussels ($12) and was not thrilled about the broth. Overall we weren't dissatisfied with our meal considering the price, but I don't know how I would have felt if I'd sprung for the more expensive items and had similar results.
Previous to this visit, I had visited St. Ex for the libations and was impressed with the early 20th century aviator decor and the casual coolness of the staff. Being a big fan of mushrooms I ordered the wild mushroom tart appetizer, which was good but slightly greasy. I also tried the goat cheesecake, which was outstanding, and convinced me that I had to return for dinner. When I returned, it was a busy Friday night. Surprisingly, we got a table within 10-15 minutes, despite not having reservations. Our corner booth seat near a window overlooking the street, in theory, was very cool. In reality, it was only cool in the sense that cool air was blowing straight through the glass and left us with our coats about our shoulders throughout dinner. Fortunately I was with a loved one so I didn't mind schooching a little closer for warmth. We ordered the apple, blue cheese and walnut salad, which sadly was overdressed with a vinaigrette that was more vin than grette. We never quite finished the salad, and now noticed that the bus person was hovering about, desperately wanting to clear our table. We figured our dinners must be sitting in the window, so we appeased the poor guy and let him take the salad. Our dinners thankfully did not come out right away, and we had a chance to talk to the server, who was very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. While the veal shank in my dish was deliciously tender and falling off the bone, the brown sauce with blackberries it was served with was pretty much what it sounds like -- a brown sauce with some blackberries in it. The side of pureed chestnuts were just a little TOO interesting -- the texture was similar to that of mashed potatoes, hummus and paste. So was the taste. My date's dish, a rockfish wrapped in proscuitto and served with a creamy corn and tomato salsa was outstanding -- the fish was cooked perfectly, the proscuitto crisp and salty and the sweetness of the corn and tartness of the tomato rounded out the dish. And of course, all during dinner, we continuously noted the bus person, waiting, waiting, waiting for one of us to put down our forks so he could spring on our empty plates and whisk them away for cleaning. Dessert we could've skipped -- it was a disappointing gray-colored, supposedly tea-infused, creme brulee with a thick, brittle sugary coating on top. We were happy to find the bus guy, again lurking about for our plates.
I thought the ideas were good, and that with a little more attention to execution these dishes could be excellent. I'll give St. Ex another try again.
Great environment, but I wouldn't get the burger. The bun was cold & the cheese wasn't melted. The burger was overcooked & didn't have much taste.
Otherwise this is a great neighborhood bar/restaurant. I'd definitely go back again, just won't get the burger next time.
Cafe Saint-Ex is a cute and comfortable restaurant. Best suited for small parties (fewer than four people), it was still able to cater to our large group. The service was exceptionally good. The host did not flinch when our party came in on a Friday night, demanding a table that would fit all eight of us. He set up the table with meticulous care. Our waitress was also very accommodating, and did not mind that two more people joined our party after the rest of us had already ordered. In general, the restaurant had a laid back and pleasant atmosphere. Other than the service, I especially liked the beer selection, which includes a few good Belgian beers. The food was good but nothing to rave about, especially at their prices.
My only disappointment with Cafe Saint-Ex is that it didn't open 10 years ago, when I lived 100 yards from its front door. I imagine I would have spent more than one evening a week there - whether eating or drinking alone at the bar, as a place to meet a few friends, for a date, or downstairs enjoying the terrific and eclectic DJ work. The food is shockingly good for a cafe with enough atmosphere and friendly folks to thrive comfortably on those traits alone. And don't miss the spicy fries - best in the city.
