Glover Park Grill — Restaurant in Washington

Opened during the pandemic, Glover Park Grill is an example of a new way to fine dine. Located inside Glover Park Hotel, the restaurant is a bit more formal. However, to meet city regulations, they set up a large outdoor heated patio for their patrons. As you walk up, the lights strung along the patio give it more of a casual vibe. Then a hostess greets you starting service that is more formal. It's a tension that wouldn't work outside of the pandemic, but is refreshing during it for those who miss a step up from takeout and fast casual.

After dining at Glover Park Grill on a Saturday night with my house (my wife, toddler and housemate), I recommend making reservations. Here's why:

1. Safety: You reserve an outdoor table online to help with contact tracing. The moment you arrive, a masked hostess gives you hand sanitizer to use before sitting down. The patio is open-air, spacious and tables are spread apart appropriately. Every staff member is masked and keeps their distance as they take orders, bring food, etc. Menus are scanned using a smart phone and the bill is settled online to minimize touch.

2. Food: The menu is large without it being overwhelming. They have small plates, entrees that are accessible, entrees that are a bit more fancy, dessert and a generous kids menu. Each dish we ordered we enjoyed- Caesar salad, crunchy fried chicken sandwich, homemade cavatelli, pasta with tomato sauce (from the kids meal) and warm chocolate chip cookies. The standouts were the crunchy fried chicken sandwich (now on my top five best fried chicken sandwiches in the city thanks to the jalapeno honey) and chocolate chip cookies (one of the best in D.C.).

3. Drinks: They have a diverse menu with cocktails, beer and a generous wine list. I ordered a glass of riesling for $11.

4. Atmosphere: For a pandemic outdoor space, they did a great job. The set up is simple, but still inviting, elegant and welcoming. In addition to tables, they have cushioned outdoor sofa for small groups. There are enough heaters throughout that you stay warm even though the patio has no walls. There is a roof to keep out rain.

5. Service: Staff strike a good balance of being attentive and friendly, but still professional and on point.

If you miss dining out, but want to do it safely, make a reservation at Glover Park Grill. If you have kids, there's a large playground at nearby Guy Mason Recreation Center that's...

When we arrived at Glover Park Hotel, it was unclear how to get complimentary parking for dining in at Glover Park Grill since there was no valet person outside, the unloading/waiting area was full, and the garage required a passcode. Luckily, after driving around for ten minutes, we found street parking a short walk from the restaurant.

When I called the night before, I was told we could order Little Prince Pizza while dining at Glover Park Grill. After sitting down, I was told Little Prince Pizza not available for order due to ongoing renovation.

We were able to catch the last 5 minutes of Happy Hour where we enjoyed Mules and Steak Tartare. The Steak Tartare consisted of seasoned raw minced beef mixed with pickled golden gooseberry, shallot confit, and capers, topped with bearnaise aioli, and served with grilled white bread. It was a good portion and quite tasty.

For dinner, both of us started with a Caesar Salad, which consisted of chopped romaine hearts tossed with shaved parmesan and garlicky bread crumbs in a Caesar dressing that had an anchovy flavor. Brendan thought the salad was too cheesy and too anchovy but I didn't mind it one bit.

Brendan had a Margherita Pizza, which consisted of a pizza brushed with tomato sauce made from San Marzano tomatoes, topped with fresh mozzarella, and pepperoni. The pizza was cut into four large slices. The pizza was average, nothing exciting or out of the ordinary.

I had the Rainbow Trout, which consisted of a pan seared rainbow trout served over potatoes confit, ramps, and English pea puree. The rainbow trout was fresh but the dish was overall too salty for my liking.

We finished our meal with Old Fashioned and a slice of Raspberry Swirled Cheesecake, which consisted of a graham cracker crust, cheesecake with raspberry swirl on top, topped with fresh raspberries and whipped cream, and served on a thick raspberry sauce. I liked how the cheesecake was crumby. It was delicious but we were so stuffed we could not finish it.

In addition to the Raspberry Swirled Cheesecake, I got an order of their gooey Chocolate Chip Cookies to go to enjoy throughout the work week.

If the restaurant continues to have outdoor dining on a deck, they need to invest in Citronella plants and candles because the mosquitoes had a nice feast on my legs. When we finished dining, I left with 16 new mosquito...

I rarely give 5 star ratings to restaurants, not because I'm a "foodie" or snobby, but simply because many of them are nothing to write home about. They overcharge and underwhelm you with the quality of food and service. Not so with Casolare! I have eaten at this restaurant three times, and each time was impressed. The first was when my father came to visit and I booked him a room in the hotel (Klimpton Glover Park/Glover Park hotel). We had breakfast together at Casolare and very much enjoyed the ambience, music, and service. My next visit was with friends and I was very impressed with the quality of the food I'd ordered (lamb with lentils, baby carrots, and brussel sprouts). Pricey though it was, our experience from start to finish was wonderful. The way it should be when you're catching up with old friends and don't want to worry about late or bland food, rude staff, etc.

Then, there's tonight. We started at the bar because the restaurant doesn't open until 5 o'clock. No problem. We had a leisurely glass of an Italian house wine and wound down. Eventually making our way to the restaurant, my friends and I were served by a very professional staff. Our waiter, Dominic, 2 or 3 or staff members who helped to clear away dishes, refill water glasses, etc, and the manager, who stopped by our table at the end of our meal.

I'm going on and on about this because 1) Our food (Margherita pizza, pizza of the day, and the grilled octopus) and dessert (Semifreddo, Cannoli, Pana Cotta) were delicious. 2) The service was impeccable. Our waiter, Dominic, was very familiar with the menu and gave excellent descriptions of each dish, as well as others on the menu. His recommendations were spot-on! 3) It's clear that everyone here really wants to do a good job and offer you an experience that is difficult to find (I think) in this area of time.

Casolare is well worth the price, given the quality of the food and staff. Oh, and whoever chooses the music has excellent taste....