Shaw

A U St mainstay and city landmark since 1958, it's been patronized by President Barack Obama, Martin Luther King Jr., Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Cab Calloway, Nat King Cole, Bill Cosby, and every last city mayor. In fact, you might find future mayoral candidates bivouacked here, in hopes of showing that they are "of the people." It's a down-home, low-maintenance, diner-style restaurant known for serving D.C.'s best half-smokes and for its friendly staff. If you want to say you've been, but want something fancier, look next door for Ben's Next Door, which is a nice bar/restaurant built by the owners looking to capitalize on their ever increasing fame.

Florida Avenue Grill

Quite possibly the capital's most famous diner, a no-nonsense soul food diner since 1944 it survived the riots by grace of the vigilant owner's shotgun. Make no mistake, the food here is good, but it's not the best—it's popular enough where they don't try as hard as some other lesser-known establishments. But still, you will want to be able to say that you've been here, and its a good place to spot politicians national and local.

Henry's Delicatessen

Now here is some good down-home cookin'! Despite having been here for about 50 years, this is one of those hole-in-the-walls that even locals seem to have missed. They're missing out—Henry serves up some of the best smothered pork chops, wings, and yams you will find anywhere outside of the South. Mostly take-out, but there is a small, barebones seating area.

Sumah's

Easy to miss among the large apartment buildings, but offers huge portions of very tasty Sierra Leonean food. An entree is $14, but will easily feed two–three people. If you ask Sumah, he'll let you sample everything before you order, since you probably won't otherwise know what to get. Whatever you end up ordering, make sure to wash it down with delicious homemade ginger beer.

Zenebech Injera

Little Ethiopia's dive restaurant. Has only two tables, but does a thriving carryout business among the cab drivers. It's cheaper than most of the options on 9th St, and spicier too—while the tables won't impress a date, the food here is unbeatable. Kitfo raw beef is probably their number one dish.

A nice, trendy Mediterranean restaurant/lounge, with a successful menu most notable for its fish and small-plate dining. The retractable-glass-enclosed rooftop deck has a great view, and is a pretty perfect spot on U St for cocktails.

Some of D.C.'s best Thai food served in the city's strangest "restaurant." There is one cook, Taw, and this is basically his house. Fortunately he's expanded a bit to include his front yard, where there are a few tables on the street. Since it's a one man show, and everything is cooked to order, expect a long wait—bring good interlocutors, a book, or a laptop free wifi!. Safe to say, this has been discovered by D.C.'s foodies, and the prices have gone up, and you'll need to make reservations relatively far in advance for weekends. Taw has also changed the weekend menu to a noticeably more expensive chef's choice prix fixe, which has allowed him greater creativity—and that's decidedly a good thing.