Rater Comments
These comments express the opinions of individual Restaurant Raters, not those of Washington City Paper.
Review by nsdiblasio on August 26, 2009
Good beer great veggie options!
Review by techfoodie on December 11, 2007
The Elephant and Castle is the closest things to a real British pub in the Washington area. That they have real English ales on tap did not surprise me, but they also have a good selection of smaller-brewery American craft beers. The food is good--not great, but the menu includes a long list of typical British pub food: shepherd's pie, bangers and mash, ploughman's lunch, Yorkshire pudding filled with beef, even a curry. We all had fish and chips. The cod is cheaper than the halibut and has more flavor. Curiously, the selection from the front of the menu (pick either cod or halibut) was half the price of the selection from the back (includes both types) but had the same amount of fish. The chips were, alas, soft and floury, not the crunchy kind that goes with malt vinegar. Service was prompt and pleasant. Overall, a Brit would feel right at home here, and so should we Americans.
Review by fieldy06 on November 15, 2007
We go here every week for trivia and the food is consistently good. It's not terrific, but it's perfectly decent bar food. The turkey club is great, as are the bruschetta chicken sandwich and the sweet potato fries. They have a pretty good deal of three "sharing plates" for $16, which is more than enough food for dinner for two people. We have eaten there as party of approximately 8 every week for the last 8 or 9 weeks and have had consistently good service (we only had a problem once). If you're looking for simple pub fare, I'd recommend it.
Review by mradequate on November 5, 2007
For a chain, this place is great. The food's delicious, well put together, and there's a great selection of quality English and Irish beers. The service can sometimes seem a little skimpy; only one server working both the bar and an area of about 40 people. However, our waitress was courteous, diligent, and though didn't always get to us quickly, was perfect in her execution.
Review by Gerholdt on October 5, 2007
Pub style decor, nice selection of brews. Large patio. Service was lackadaisical and we had to grab the waiter to place our food order. Apparently he knew something we didn't. Bangers and mash consisted of Jimmy Dean style sausages with nondescript gravy, Bush's style beans, unseasoned mashed potatoes topped with greasy batter-fried onions and thyme twigs so well concealed that the first one got caught in my teeth before I realized they were there. Apple chutney was savory, but had so much heat I had to grab the water. Not bad enough to nominate for Kitchen Nightmares, not good enough to bother going back to.
