RARE Steakhouse & Tavern — Restaurant in Washington

I've been to Rare before and had a wonderful experience pre-2021. My new experisnce was quite different. The venue doesn't state it has a dress code, and from the look of the patrons it doesn't, but I was asked to remove my fedora before walking to my table. I was wearing a dinner jacket, something few other customers appeared to be, so ti was a little jarring to be asked to comply with a dress code that had not been previously communicated and did not appear to be enforced in any way for other customers. The wait staff was attentive, but had little knowledge of the wines on the wine list. When I requested a wine with a full body I was recommended a wide variety, and asked if these price points were too low for what I was looking for. I responded that I was looking for the most full bodied wine that they had. I was recommended an expensive California wine that I would rate as at best medium bodies and highly acidic, though I had asked for something fruit forward, low in wood and with notes of fig and berry. I mentioned this to the server, but my comment was basically ignored with a simple statement that the wine was considered to be full bodied, though there appeared to be an indication that it was not the fullest bodied wince that they served. I was later told that the sommilier was not working that night, so I'm not sure who it was that recommended the wine I ended up purchasing.. I've had medium bodied wines. such as a chateauneuf de pape, with greater body. I also asked for the steak to be prepared medium rare, but was served a very rare steak with the center not even warm. So, I'd say if you are looking for a steak house I couldn't recommend Rare anymore, but if you are looking for a place with some flavorful side dishes I would say the restaurant did well. The whipped potatoes and mushrooms were very flavourful, though similar to the steak the mushrooms were almost raw. After my last experience my current was very disappointing and I'd be inclined to go to another steakhouse rather than return. I also found ti strange that though the restaurant has a beautiful first floor everyone was being seated in the upstairs area with low ceilings and more of a hotel ballroom decor. I was told that they needed more than 100 people before they would open the downstairs, which had not appeared to be the past practice the previous time I was there. After trying several DC steakhouses I'd have to say that if your are serious about a good steak you need to travel to NYC to visit Wolfgang's, Keene's, or Peter Luger's. The waitstaff was attentive, but the lack of knowledge of the sommelier and the inaccuracy of the chef in preparing a good steak has me recommending people go elsewhere if steak is the important part of the meal. I only give two stars because of the flavor of some of the sides. The steak itself was also overly salted. Overall a rather...

I wont give 5 stars to the restaurant due to the fact that I had a bad experience during my first visit, and that experience was made up on their end during my second visit. After contacting the mangers and writing reviews on google about our first experience , the managers reached out to my girlfriend and I and invited us back on them, even including an Uber Black to pick us up and drop us off.

Upon our arrival we were greeted with champagne and escorted to our table on the second level, in the corner, next to the window. Probably the best seat in the house. Our table was assigned the most knowledgable waiter at the restaurant. He was very thorough. It was clear they had staged a plan to make sure we received the best service and selection of food for the night to make up for the first experience.

Our waiter brought out some awesome bread knots that tasted great along with our first selection of drinks in which the bartender made custom. Our starters were a dozen house oysters and garlic fries. We loved the garlic fries from the first visit.

As for our main course, the waiter suggested that I try the A5 Wagyu Strip steak. I had already tried the $65 Bone-In Ribeye which is one of my favorite cuts. My girlfriend ordered a salmon dish and I ordered 8oz. of the A5 Wagyu Strip steak and was instantly wow'd. The steak itself was the best steak I'd ever tried many cuts and been to numerous steak houses.Wagyu steaks reputation definitely proceeds itself. I made the 8oz stretch all the way until it was time for us to leave. Something you should savor and enjoy, not eat fast. For the price, its a steak to try at least once in your life lol.

The night continued with more food and top shelf drinks. We stayed until the restaurant closed and was taken back home in an Uber black. Overall my girlfriend and I enjoyed the night and were grateful of the experience they offered us. We just wish we received this type of service on our first visit and wouldn't have needed the second visit with the bells and whistles to rate the place 5 out of 5. We are simple and expect excellent service from any establishment that holds themselves in such high regard.

Thank you for having us back. Through all of this I hope that you give your very best service to all new comers of your establishment and that it remains consistent regardless of the individual and what they may look like. Everybody should be treated as if your establishment's goal and focus is to make the first impression your best impression...every-time. A million dollars could have been spent on us and it still wouldn't replace the feeling of being thought lesser of than the...

3.5 stars

TL;DR: overall decent experience; expensive for what you get; a few good bites

Came here because we were going to be in DC and were craving steak. The interior is nice. They have 2 floors. The bar/tavern has an additional menu is downstairs. Upstairs is a little brighter and for full dinner service.

SERVICE (4.5/5): Service was very friendly and attentive. Only thing was our server was explaining some of the specials and pricing, but it was a little difficult/confusing to understand him, so one of the items we got ended up being 2x the price we had thought it was

FOOD: ~Complimentary bread and butter (5/5): Bread was crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The butter was whipped and so good (maybe because I haven't had real butter in forever)

~Calamari (3.7/5): the flavor was really good. However, the breading fell off very easily and was a little soggy. Portion was very small. For $25, I would have expected it to be either the best calamari for that portion, or a larger portion with the dish we got.

~Caesar salad (3/5): was very underdressed. Had mostly red leaf romaine, so since it wasn't dressed very well, most bites were just bitter lettuce. Eventually asked for more dressing, which helped.

~Porterhouse (3/5): 24 oz. With the bone, the mean portion was small. Texture was a little strange (as if it was sous vied too much). But it was soft. Flavor was just okay.

~Japanese wagyu (overall 3.5/5): They had a special of a 6 oz filet. It was very tender and seasoned well (4/5). This was the dish that ended up being 2x more expensive than we anticipated. Value (2.5/5). I think they also added some additional oil to it, which was unnecessary and ended up being overly greasy.

~Garlic Parmesan fries (5/5): Nicely seasoned and crispy shoe string fries

~Roasted mushrooms (5/5): great flavor (I think red wine vinegar and a little bit of truffle). Cooked very well.

~Loaded Potatoes (5/5): They use fingerling potatoes, so the cook was great, and the mouth feel was fantastic. The potatoes themselves were also very well seasoned.

All the sides were expensive for what they were, but they were tasty and the portions were decent, so I didn't mind.

Overall, this place was decent but...