The Capital Grille — Restaurant in Fairfax

It Wasn’t Just a Fantastic Meal…It Was the Whole Experience! We could not have made a better decision than we did to celebrate our anniversary at The Capital Grille in Fairfax. I should rephrase that by saying that the gracious management and staff celebrated with us, making it the best anniversary dinner we have ever enjoyed. Even after heading home, we couldn’t stop talking about the people we met, the delicious food served and how fine-tuned every person we encountered was. We knew that we were in a remarkable establishment from the earliest moments. Each staff member knew that we were celebrating a special day and congratulated us. We were beyond amazed. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Right from the start we were pleasantly surprised upon walking to the entrance, the valet kindly opened the front door for us and wished us an enjoyable evening. Your thoughtful hostess, Elise, greeted us with a genuinely kind, and welcoming smile and chatted with us as we were led to a table that she had especially chosen with a nice view. Seeing the beautiful long stem red rose, a thoughtful card and heart sequins on the table cloth made us smile even more. Our waiter, Brian McG, was remarkable. He was beyond kind with the complimentary tastes from the kitchen, champagne, and anniversary dessert. He pulled out all the stops with his service and made the evening incredible over and over again. (He is also a great cell phone photographer.) I must say that everything we chose from the menu tasted absolutely delicious. It also goes without saying -- kudos to the chef. The manager was very personable lending a hand at every table, greeting patrons and making doubly sure that everything was perfect and up to our expectations. We noticed how well connected all the team members were. Everyone was in sync and focused on their task of providing the optimum dining experience. Truth be told, The Capital Grille surpassed all our expectations! I feel that the staff at The Capital Grille truly enjoys what they are doing and each member is top notch in my book. The establishment makes each patron feel welcome, respected and valued. You make people happy and create positive, lasting memories. You are all greatly appreciated. It was our first time visiting The Capital Grille and most certainly will not be our last. It has taken the Number One spot on our favorite restaurants of all time...

Now that I know what a real 5-star restaurant is like, I may have to adjust some other reviews downward. Capital Grille is above and beyond. It's not just a fancy atmosphere and dressed-up staff, they make sure you leave feeling like the food was worth it.

Our waiter, Miguel, was fast and friendly, comfortable chatting, and stayed on top of everything. He was quick to make spot-on suggestions when we were trying to decide what to get. And he handled some mildly fussy requests with cheerful professionalism.

The food is unreal, and makes you realize how badly other places prepare their meats. The steak au poivre was coated in a delicious layer of peppercorns, you can taste distinct flavors. The juicy center and courvoisier cream tones it down, so you don't feel overwhelmed with spice.

My friend's had a filet mignon with the kind of soft, perfect texture that makes you understand why this is the stereotypical 'luxury food'. The temperature for both dishes was absolutely perfect. I noticed the kitchen staff seemed chatty and unstressed even when the place filled up. They're clearly good at what they do.

We were convinced to try the smoked bacon with tomato jam. If you've got an odd mental image of breakfast bacon with red jelly, scrap that. The description doesn't do it justice. These are thick bites of ham, with a flavorful and smoky seared outside, and the jam is more like a tomato puree, but only a thin layer. It adds a mild tart sweetness to cut through the saltiness of the ham.

The dessert was very good, it seems like everyone's already recommended the coconut pie.

What I appreciate about this place is that they nail all the little details, not just the obvious stuff. The pre-dinner bread is varied and delicious on its own. The knives are solid and weighted perfectly to cut through a thick steak. The restroom stalls are perfectly clean and sealed behind heavy doors with indicators so you know they're occupied. When there's a birthday, they prepare a nice little card and bring out a dessert, but no tacky singing or candles.

I really can't think of a bad thing to say. Right now the place is so new, you can almost smell sawdust. I hope they keep this high standard for...

SAVE YOUR MONEY AND DON'T GO HERE. I decided to take my dad here for his birthday. And it was a huge mistake. Horrible experience. Service was slow, not very attentive. The waitress was clumsy she spilled the food everywhere on the table. I ordered sparkling water, but the waiter served regular water and we just decided to stick with that. Meh service. And the, the food... My dad ordered The $70 steak and it was the worst steak I have ever seen, not even at the cheap restaurants that charge $30. It was BURNED. Not charred. BURNED and flavorless. At first I convinced him that might be the rub or the sauce. But after I tried a piece, it was definitely burned. And there was no side included. So $70 is just for the burned steak. Please looked at the pic I attached. He sliced out half for my mom. And she couldn't eat either. He didn't want me to complain and tried to finish it, but I didn't want my Dad to eat charcoal as his birthday gift. So I complained to the manager, he took it out of the check, bribed us with 3 free dessert dishes. They were too sweet so we just packed them all. My veal chop was ok. Nothing amazing. At this kind of price I'd expect something "WOW" or "OMG". Everything else was just ok. So basically you come here and pay for the ambiance and to impress everyone that you have a lot of money. That's all. The food is painfully overpriced and mediocre. the service needs to be improved in order to trick more people into thinking this is a fancy restaurant. So. It was a waste of money, waste of time, waste of the extra calories my body had to burn, and even waste of 2 sprays of my expensive perfume that I save for real special occasion. Fortunately, we will have a real birthday party with real good food for my Dad at home this weekend. A nice suggestion: change the restaurant's name to "The capital Burne". It...