San Matteo — Restaurant in Washington

I was so excited to try what I thought would be a great new Italian restaurant in DC. From the beginning to the end, everything was subpar- and this restaurant for being new has a LOT of room for improvement. The food itself tasted good. We ordered the following dishes: Beef Carpaccio, Salumi and Cheese, Angliotti, Seafood Mancotti and the Zuppa de Pesce. First of all, every dish arrived room temperature or cold. I am not sure if this is because they had the overhead fans in the dining room at full blast in a completely windowed room in 35 degree weather, or because the service and expo are so behind that they just can’t get food out in time. Either way, everything was cold. We sent the Angliotti back because the cream sauce had firmed due to the temperature. The Zuppa de Pesce was also cold. Honestly, lets be honest - a soup should be hot, and for $32 for a soup, it should be HOT. Totally unacceptable! Continuing on- the Beef Carpaccio and Salumi Antipasti were both great- but probably because they didnt require cooking. Service-wise: extremely slow. For 2 people we spent over 2 hours in the restaurant and were surprised we were not ushered out as we witnessed the host pressuring servers to turn tables. Honestly- not a good look. Atmosphere- the place is well decorated, but the temperature control is completely lacking and the staff had the overhead fans running at full blast the entire time we sat. I had to wear my jacket the entire time- totally uncomfortable. We felt that because of this the entire meal was cold due to the lack of adequate temperature control in the restaurant. Finally- it was totally obvious that whoever manages this restaurant is completely unqualified and unfit to run this restaurant. When we actually spoke to a manager about the issues we experienced it was the first and only time we saw this person on the floor in the entire 2+ hours we dined, someone who claimed to be a manager. Not sure what he was up to the entire time the restaurant was roaring with displeased customers- but as an owner I would be questioning that. The last thing I will say is our server wasn’t bad. He obviously was trying. Unfortunately, it seemed like he was overwhelmed and forgot that we asked for a candle for a birthday. He made up for it with comped lemon drop shots- so all good. Honestly, for what ended up being a $400 meal, It felt like from start to finish, this restaurant is “trying” to be a “nice Italian place” but cares more about profits than their customers. Quite honestly, in this day and age, restaurants need to actually try, and this place fails. It is very obvious they need to get back to basics and fix fundamental issues like service, food quality, temperature control, and basic customer friendliness. Basics in my opinion this restaurant cannot achieve. I will not be returning, ever. There are much better places on the map and until this spot fixes basic problems, I would be surprised if they remained...

Husband and I decided on an impromptu date night to check out the newish local spot. Host was pleasant and decor was beautiful. We were promptly seated at a table that made us feel like children because the seats were not tall enough and the table hit us at chest height. Very uncomfortable. I think they are the same tables from the previous bar which had built raised booths so they were proper height.

Service was quick. House white tasted cheap but meh it’s the house white. Husband ordered a peroni that tasted a little odd - thinking maybe it was detergent smell still left in the glass?

Our server came over and was great we asked his recommendation between a couple of options. My husband asked whether the lasagna or carbonara was better and he told us he thought the carbonara could be a little too salty sometimes. My husband wasn’t worried he said and loves salt and pancetta so much he went with it anyway. I asked for his opinion between the mushroom pasta dish and the spinach and ricotta ravioli and went with the latter on his recommendation.

Shortly after, they brought out my ravioli and the lasagna (wrong dish). They apologized and quickly brought my husband another beer on the house. I slowly started to pick at the ravioli while we waited for his correct meal. The ravioli had the consistency of being pan fried in oil that was too hot and was very undercooked (and I love me some al dente but this was something else). I could’ve gotten around all that but the spinach inside tasted like fishy frozen spinach and I saw no ricotta to be had anywhere. The sauce was heavy but fine. I couldn’t get more than a few bites down.

My husband’s carbonara comes out and the pancetta looked like an undercooked half rendered pork belly. The whole plate was basically an off white mush. My husband said the server was right: It was so salty it was inedible and again the pasta was rock hard in the center. Should’ve listened. He coaxed me into trying one noodle and I almost vomited at the table the pork just tasted so off.

The service staff seemed to notice we weren’t enjoying our food and promptly dropped off a complimentary tiramisu which was a nice gesture but we don’t really eat dessert. I ate a few bites to be polite then we paid and left. They also took the carbonara off the bill which was appreciated.

We left and my husband puked on the sidewalk outside. I had to pull over several times for him because he kept getting sick. We’re back home and I don’t know if it’s food poisoning but it sure seems that way.

TLDR: service was great, food was the worst I’ve had in a long time and we might...

Only came here late for wine , cappuccino & dessert — but given that I searched the reviews for recommendations and wasn’t finding anything, wanted to leave a review:

I had a chocolate tooth - and the chocolate lava cake was hands down the best I’ve ever had - I’ve had far too many in my life that were let downs, but nope, I am SO glad I got it. The cake itself melted in my mouth and was overflowing with a delicious ganache filling - and was the perfect level of sweetness. It was on the smaller side and came with a small scoop of gelato.

Our group also got the crostata di mele — definitely a unique variation of this based on my expectation from google images. It is fried and a is croissant like pastry with a fresh apple filling interspersed within it — you can see the crispy croissant texture in my pictures — and it had a fried oily flavor to it that I was not expecting, and quite honestly took away from the flavor from the apples some. My partner really enjoyed it, though. I just wasn’t expecting the heavy fried flavor — not for me, so wanted to make others aware.

My espresso drink (cappuccino) was great and they were able to make it with skim milk.

Our wait staff didn’t realize we weren’t eating a late dinner at first and had brought out bread btw, as well as a mixture of olive oil, vinegar and spices. I ended up eating it anyway and it was delicious. Bread was warm and so soft and fresh. Service was great - waitress was friendly and attentive. The back patio / greenhouse like room is very big, echoey and loud, just FYI. If you’re looking for a more quiet, intimate or romantic place for a date, for example, would be more apt to recommend the main/front dining room or the bar in that main/front dining room.

I def look forward to coming back here for...