BISTRO DU JOUR — Restaurant in Washington

MAY 2023 UPDATED REVIEW: I go here pretty regularly between work days by the Wharf. It is pretty darn good. Food quality has always been great. My regulars are the plain croissant with a cappucino and it is just SO heavenly. Bistro Du Jour seriously has some of the best croissants I've ever had: really flaky, but super soft on the inside. Their cinnamon buns are still divine. Their Vanilla-filled donuts are devilishly delicious. I've even sat down for lunch/brunch some days, and their Croque Madame sandwich (added pic) is absolutely amazing, as well as their breakfast menu item, the Americaine (added pic). Their menu is always so tempting and satisfying.

Service, however, still could use some work: their servers, despite there often being plenty of seating during the day, don't like when you want to sit at THAT open table and prefer that you sit at THIS table, regardless if THAT table was never reserved. This happened last brunch visit I went to where, after my meal, I asked the waiter if the table I 'd originally asked for was reserved or something, because no one ended up sitting there at all. The waiter replied that they just didn't want to serve me at that table. I didn't quite understand the rationale but, whatever. I thanked him and went on my way.

In short, my food and coffee here has always been amazing. The service has been spotty at times. 4.5 stars from me.

ORIGINAL: The "Cinnamon Bun" and "Vanilla Choux" (pronounced SHOO) were delicious.

That's all I got (plus a black coffee to go), as I was trying this place for the first time.

• The Cinnamon Bun I had to ask them to warm up, right as the server was boxing it up. Remember: always ask them to warm up your food; you never know when the cashiers/servers/baristas will just box items up or serve them cold from the behind the counter.

Anyway, it was really delicious: soft, gooey, and yummy. I hope my attached photos show how delicious they were and make you salivate enough to entice you to try them.

• The Vanilla Choux was yummy, too, if not oozing its custard innards outward with each bite. Another tip: careful when you bite into this, as you seriously risk spilling the vanilla custard onto your shirt or lap by accident.

The establishment itself was pretty. Very atmospheric, from its location by the waterfront/Wharf, to its enclosed "outdoor" seating, to its Frenchy interior. I liked the tiles, too; very pretty design choices, so kudos.

One downside, in my opinion, despite going at around 1:30pm on a Tuesday afternoon, is that they were apparently all sold out of croissants. All of them. I understand it might have been very popular, and it was after noon, but this is a French-style bakery and café after all... croissants shouldn't be all sold out. The old lady in front of me was even irritated, as I heard her ask for these, get rejected, and then she said something like "well, that's really all I wanted and came for"... then turned right back around and left, put out onto the streets, croissant-less. I felt bad for her and for me, because I walked up to the order counter afterward as the barista sadly placed little "sold out" signs in front of the display croissants. It was a sad afternoon...

...at least until I bit into my warm Cinnamon Bun--then I decided to give Bistro Du Jour a rain check on those croissants. I'm coming back for them at some point which, I suppose, you can consider a recommendation from me to go visit this place yourself. Try the Cinnamon Bun (ask them to warm it up) and the Vanilla Choux... if they aren't sold out.

4/5 stars...

My friends from Minnesota came to visit me last week so we made breakfast reservation for Saturday, Feb 18 2023. We spent an hour driving to the restaurant Saturday morning. We were excited for this breakfast. We dressed really nice and hope we can take some good photos as a reunion souvenir. Unfortunately what we have gone through were terrible: We were told that they were not serving full menu due to some issues. (The host said he tried to call me but my iPhone showed no missed call at all) He said it is ok if we choose to leave to another recommended restaurant. However we decided to stay after viewing the limited menu. While we are waiting for seating, we saw one of the guest at the nearby table ordered a hot chocolate with a marshmallow on top in a real COFFEE MUG. So we decided one of us will try one like that. There are many vacant tables available. The host seated us the table next to the restaurant door where unseated guests were waiting. My girlfriend asked him if we can change to a table in better location. The answer was No! A while later I realized we were the only guests seating in the entire section with a host working desk less than 3 feet away. All other guests who came after us were seated at much better locations. It was 10:45 am on Saturday. We ordered hot chocolate, cappuccino and latte and other breakfast dishes. Shockingly the drinks were served in paper cups. Those paper cups are small size. I asked the waitress why. She said they do not serve them in coffee mugs due the issue related burning. It made absolutely non sense to us. I asked her why the other table had their hot chocolate served in a coffee mug. She said She can change it for us. In stead of bringing a new cup of hot chocolate she brought back an empty coffee mug. So we poured hot chocolate into the coffee mug and it spilled everywhere. No toilet paper in rest room.

It was terrible experiences in my life. I feel sorry for my friends who came thousands miles away, had to go through this horrible dining experience. We were the only Asian faces in the restaurant at the time and I can’t stop thinking that might be the reason we were seated in a dining section alone. The restaurant charges up-scale restaurant price but serves paper cup at the Macdonald’s standard! Although the host offered to take care of the cost of our breakfast, we still think it is necessary to provide our honest feedbacks. So my recommendation to the others...

Had a lovely lunch here on a brisk Tuesday afternoon. We missed breakfast but decided to dine in anyway, and we were totally blown away not just by the food, but the overall experience with the service. The host was super friendly and had us seated on the patio near the heaters, which was welcome since we wanted the view without getting too chilly. Our server was also very kind and helpful in helping decide what we should order since it was our first time. He recommended the Croque Madame while our host recommended both the cheeseburger and the French onion soup. We went with both their recommendations, along with a kids cheeseburger for our kid and a cappuccino and iced coffee for the adults.

The cappuccino was served in a glass, which was a bit unusual but it came out with a very nicely done tulip latte art. We requested the iced coffee to be served with almond milk, which they did not have but opted for the oat milk. Coffee is provided by Le Colombe, which we are fans of, and we were not disappointed.

Apparently the French onion soup is their number one item on the menu, and I would believe it. The soup is very flavorful with the perfect amount of seasoning. It was savory, rich, and perfect for a cool January afternoon. It has chunks of bread inside, and it's all capped with a beautifully melted cheese on top. I have to tell you, the cheese pull was epic, I wished I had a video of it but I was just too eager to devour the entire thing at once.

The cheeseburgers were also amazing. If I had to be a bit critical, the patties were just a touch over-seasoned, but it wasn't that bad. It was good enough for my kid, so it's good enough for me. The fries were exactly how I would like my fries, perfectly seasoned and crispy.

The Croque Madame was divine. It's basically a ham sandwich with an egg and gravy on top, but you would think you're eating a gourmet meal. It's rich, decadent, and was delicious. The salad was a great accompaniment.

Finally, for dessert we had the menage a trois, a trio of cookies from local bakery Mah Ze Dahr. These cookies were actually amazing. The chocolate explosion is basically a crinkle, the chocolate chip had some finishing salt on top, and the last cookie was like some snickerdoodle. It was the perfect ending for our little lunch.

We would totally visit again, and would love to try their breakfast and dinner...