YELLOW Union Market — Restaurant in Washington

There are so many places on my list & Yellow is one of them. I’d been wanting to try for a while after hearing fellow foodies rave about how good their food is for the past year. Finally got to see first hand what all the hype is about and it was a double-bonus because I got to try the limited-edition soft serve collab between Yellow & Dolcezza gelato, which I’ll come back to later.

Met a friend for lunch @ Yellow this past Monday around noon and it was PACKED! The line was out the door at one point. We were lucky to snag seats at the counter.

Yellow has seasonal menu with lunch specials from 11a-3p, so I ordered the smoked Amba chicken wood-fired pita, which is one of their most popular items. It’s warm, fresh pita, crispy batata, pali pickles and green shatta lebne, torn herbs, sumac onions and whipped tahini. It was delicious!!! Messy to eat, but incredible — smokey with vibrant flavors melding together into this incredible pita sandwich!! I normally don’t like pickles but they gave it a nice crunch and tang. I can see why people line up.

In addition to wood-fired pitas, you can order various mezza like pickles, lettuce salad with spices and corn; fattoush, and batata tots. There is also a lamb pie aka sfeeha with garlic toom + lemon along with various flavors of hummus including:

Classic

Red Chatta - fermented chili + pomegranate molasses + feta

Cherry Tomato - EVOO + feta

Lamb Awarma - pomegranate molasses + sumac onions

Charred Corn - labne + chili crisp + feta

For those with a sweet tooth, Yellow has got you covered with:

Various cookies traditional flavors with flavor plot twists like a halawa chocolate chip cookie or an orange blossom oat toffee among others.

Seasonal soft-serve ice cream flavors including this month’s limited-edition collab with Dolcezza only available at this Yellow location and Dolcezza on H St and I believe the Hirshorn location, but check their social media to re-confirm. The flavor combo is unique it’s a pistachio de Brontë sundae which was a preserved lemon honey topped with crispy phyllo and pistachio powder.

For the coffee and tea lovers, Yellow has separate drinks menu with various coffee, latte, tea and special, seasonal iced coffees available for your pleasure.

Yellow is definitely a hit in my book and I will happily look forward to my next visit.

One thing I want to note is that Yellow charges what they call a wellness fee, an additional 3% is added to your order to enable them to provide their employees with benefits. It...

I’ve been here a few times and overall most of the food is pretty tasty, but I find that the food for this kind of format is really expensive. The recommended tip starts on 18% (on top of the 3% service fee despite the fact that you have to find your own seating, get your own napkins and utensils (they are not even placed in the bag for you), bus your own table, and pick up your own coffee. Thanks to this restaurant I’ve realized I’m probably the only person that tips on take out orders and almost have completely stopped tipping on them.

On a weekend, our coffee was not ready until five minutes after the food arrived at our tables. The experience also deteriorates since it is super crowded and loud and people are REALLY rude when trying to beat you to a table. Also a lot of people bring their laptops and linger/work here despite the fact there are people who spent $20 on a pita and can barely find a seat. Perhaps they should also mention they are a shared workspace.

The pitas are about $20 each, and what is really frustrating is that the meat is at the bottom and the veggies are on the top, and if you’d like to have a bite of the pita with all the ingredients together, you need to rearrange the whole sandwich. Otherwise, any of the pitas or hummus options at lunch are great. I can’t say I recommend their pastries, but I do recommend pastries at Nino’s Bakery or Bread Alley.

Lastly, I think this restaurant just does try to do too much, doesn’t have enough space for all that it is trying to do, and suffers as a result. The food is not that good to suffer through this mid/bad experience. If the dining experience is nice, it’s worth the money. If I’m getting takeout or having to battle rude people, it’s about 20% more expensive than what other people are charging. But to each their own.

Side note: whoever is writing responses to the negative reviews about the dining experience is just blanket suggesting ordering take out. Take out experiences are SO bad compared to dining in, especially for fire grilled foods. They don’t even have great packaging! (While we’re at it, their tin can for their baklava is such a waste. They should offer a lower priced option sans tin can, bc I just threw that away.) That they keep suggesting take out for people who have bad experiences dining in is completely missing the point!!! (I also think paying that much money for all the kebabs take...

Chef Rafidi should be deeply concerned and frankly ashamed to have someone like this managing a high-end Middle Eastern establishment in the heart of Washington, D.C.

I will never return to this location. Georgetown’s branch is leagues ahead — warm, respectful, and professional. What I experienced here was the complete opposite.

I came in excited to try the dinner menu (specifically, the Mishawi). Having been to the Georgetown location, I assumed this one followed a similar counter-service style. I placed my order — spending over $100 — then went to find a seat. I chose a table and sat down.

That’s when it turned ugly.

The manager so aggressive, rude, and utterly lacking in professionalism — stormed over and shouted: “Do you have a reservation? These tables are for reservations only!” Not a greeting. Not a smile. No attempt at understanding. Just pure hostility, as if my presence alone was a problem.

Let me be clear: this wasn’t just a mistake in policy. It was like a personal, and it was laced with an energy that made me, a paying customer, feel unwelcome and disrespected. Her tone, her body language, and her words were not just extremely unprofessional… they were demeaning. Her attitude reeked of prejudice, and it does not belong in a space meant to celebrate hospitality, culture, and cuisine.

A manager who represents Chef Rafidi’s name should embody grace, not arrogance. She could have said: “Apologies for the confusion — since you’ve already ordered, let’s get you on the reservation list and seated as soon as possible. I’ll speak with the kitchen to ensure your meal is prepared for dine-in.”

But no. That would require tact and care — qualities she clearly lacks.

Eventually, after asking again at the counter, I was squeezed into a table so small it couldn’t fit my dishes properly. When my food arrived — it was packed to-go. As if they were trying to get rid of me.

This was intentional. It was dismissive. And it was a complete disregard for both the customer and the cultural significance of the food being served.

This isn’t just a restaurant. It’s meant to be a celebration of Arab heritage — the flavors, the music, the language, the history, Chef Rafidi introduced to the world. That manager behavior is immature and does not belong in this respected place.

Chef Rafidi, your food is authentic and delicious but your name deserves better...