District Taco — Restaurant in Virginia

Man, we really want to like DT but at every step they seem to have deliberately made their product and experience as generic and robotic as possible. First, you order at the kiosk so as to avoid any interaction with staff. The kiosk works ok I guess but the interface is clunky and tedious. We checked "eat in" but our order, like every other, was packed to-go, with everything double-wrapped and in a big paper bag that we just threw away after walking 5 feet to our table. Even the soda machine is one of the touch-screen "we have every soda in the world" deals, which I know exist elsewhere but it makes the experience of just getting a cup of water into a computer operation.

The food is -fine-. But it lacks any sense of character. The original location had a fun salsa and fixings bar that I guess has been gone since Covid, but even at Chipotle they have some hot sauces around that you can add to your meal. "Generic" is what came to mind most when eating. If you changed some signage and squinted just a little you could convince yourself that you were eating at a Chipotle.

I have no beef with Chipotle, but they have this market covered, at a somewhat lower price point. So what is DT doing that would compel me to come here instead? At Chipotle you at least get to interact with a person as they build your order - DT felt like something almost dystopian with how little human interaction you get. Everything seems to have been designed to minimize labor costs and any possible sense of humanity.

We won't be back here most likely, which is a damn shame. We would much rather support a local company over a national chain, but there's just not much to recommend...

I placed a mobile order -- two orders of tacos and one order of queso. Customizing the order and placing it was easy. The confirmation indicated our order would be ready within 13 minutes.

My daughter arrived to pick up our order after 15 minutes. It wasn't ready, there were no orders on the shelf, and there was a line out the door for people waiting to pick up their orders. She asked about the order and was told someone would call my name when it was ready.

After another 30 minutes (total of 45 minutes after the confirmation said it would be 13), she asked again. Someone said because she asked, he would make the order right then, which he did. She reported that other people were just sitting at tables or standing in line and "no one" had food.

When we got the food home, it was bland and uninspiring. Her tacos were okay and she rated them overall "fine, but not something I want again."

My tacos (three different ones) were damp and somewhat sticky. There was so little filling that I wasn't even sure there was protein or sauce or more than one piece of any other item I chose (tomatoes, for instance). I asked for chipotle mayo and each taco seemed to have one small dot at one end. Basically, they had little flavor and the consistency was unpleasant.

The queso was delicious, but the bag of chips marked "large" was only about 1/3 full. For the cost of a large order of queso and chips, there should've been more of both.

Basically, despite positive reviews from neighbors, we won't be back. The pick-up experience was a disaster, staff seemed to be clueless about what was going on, and the food was boring and bland. Definitely not worth the wait or...

This location is not ready for prime time. I’m a big fan of the District Taco locations in DC so I had high hopes for this location near my new home. The first time I went, my wife ordered online and the food was ready right after I arrived. As I walked out the door, I realized they’d forgotten my order of churros. I went back to the counter, the worker checked my receipt, grabbed the churros, and seemed to double check that I had everything. I got in my car and decided to check for myself and sure enough they’d forgotten my order of chips. I went back in, they studied my receipt again, checked my bag, and gave me the chips. I figured there’s no way they could have missed anything else but I get home and my wife asks where the kids meal drinks are (which I didn’t know came with the meals since she ordered them). So they literally forgot to include more than half of my order on our first visit. I chalked it up to an off day and tried again the following week. This time I just ordered two bowls online. I ended up waiting 30 MINUTES for 2 bowls! The food here is fine but just not worth the wait or subpar service. I hope it get better. May try again in a few...