Jaleo Crystal CityOne of DC's finestThis is a branch of the excellent, independent, DC tapas restaurant with the same name. This was my first trip to the Crystal City location and the food, service, and atmosphere were just as great here as in DC. A definite step up the chain restaurants that predominate in Crystal City. Tapas are small Spanish dishes that you can eat as an individual (although you will want to order several), but are best eaten shared with one or more other people so you can try more things. Two of us shared 7 items and all were tasty some extraordinary (the signature ham dish, the flank steak, spinach with pine nuts and raisins, potatoes bravas in a wonderful sauce, and bacon wrapped dates). It is hard to go wrong at Jaleo.5/14/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat Mother's Day brunchWe had the special "chef's tasting" menu. It was amazing! The chef came out to chat with us several times during the meal and provided a great sampling of the menu. We were stuffed by the end and it was probably over 2 hours for our meal. Great wine pairings as well!5/12/2013 12:00:00 AMBirthday CelebrationsThe food was tasty, the variety great. I don't think I will ever understand the cheese platter that has 3 wedges of cheese so small, each person only gets the smallest crumb to try, but everything else was lovely. I was able to add a note in my Open Table reservation that we were celebrating a birthday and they were very attentive to that fact, asking quietly which one of us it was, the wait staff quietly talking about it amongst themselves, all in anticipation of surprising my friend. It was great.5/11/2013 12:00:00 AMAnother great experience at JaleoI have taken visiting friends here multiple times and its always been a hit. Food is great and the staff always makes great recomendations. New on the menu was the "Jaleo Experience", if you want a custom multi-course experience, definitely try this. The chef discussed our food preferences, allergies and anything we wanted to try on the menu. It was great. Everything they brought us was excellent and the staff really made us feel valued.5/11/2013 12:00:00 AMAnother wonderful eveningWe go to Jaleo three or four times a year and always have an outstanding meal, good wine, and excellent service.5/11/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat Night OutTook our son and his girlfriend to Jaleo for dinner...they loved it! They are vegetarian and had so many great options to choose from on the menu. We had 12 tapas between the 4 of us...just enough and we loved every single dish! Great wine list too!5/11/2013 12:00:00 AMAlways top notchOur first time at the Crystal City location. Big! Nice outdoor spot there. Food was excellent as always at Jaleo. Lots of great flavors. The two of us split 5 tapas - lamb chops, fennel/apple salad, garlic shrimp, grilled asparagus, and sauteed spinach. All were excellent. Our server was great too. Gave us lots of info upfront. Anticipated everything we might ask before we asked!5/10/2013 12:00:00 AMPerfect evening with friendsSix good friends enjoyed our feast at Jaleo. The quality of the ingredients and the taste of the food was amazing. The servers were very attentive and patient as they explained the menu to us.5/4/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat ExperienceI opted to turn the choices over to the chef and the waiter by selecting the chef's tasting menu. The waiter asked for my broad preferences and for any limitations, e.g. allergies. Eight offerings and each was excellent. The wait staff was attentive and very efficient. The meal flowed without delays. The portions were more than generous. Highly recommended.5/2/2013 12:00:00 AMI have been to Jaleo severalI have been to Jaleo several times and this visit was as good as ever. Our server was friendly, attentive and efficient and the food was excellent as always.4/26/2013 12:00:00 AMLived Up to ExpectationsWas very pleased with my visit to this gem. Had a variety of Tapas that were all excellent. Went with the quail and rabbit cobfit for meats and the sauce with the quail was perfect. The spinach was fabulous as well, maybe the best dish of the night. Highly recommend visiting Jaleo.4/25/2013 12:00:00 AMThe tasting menu and pairedThe tasting menu and paired wines were a great way to really sample the best of this fun restaurant.4/25/2013 12:00:00 AMWe shared the Chef's TastingWe shared the Chef's Tasting menu. Several of the dishes were among my favorites from previous visits. Some things I never would have ordered but were fabulous. I appreciated the opportunity to try them. One of my favorite restaurants.4/25/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat place to take out of towners!We had family in from out of town and we all loved it! We live in DC, but decided on going to the Crystal City location since they take reservations, and parking was SO much easier. Same great food, same great sangria, what's not to like?4/20/2013 12:00:00 AMLoved the Paella!Although it is a "tapas" restaurant, we were not blown away by the tapas. We ordered the 3 different tapas: chicken croquettes, cod salad and garlic shrimp - I thought the garlic shrimp were a little oily for my taste; I liked the cold cod salad best. We shared a chicken and wild mushroom paella - delicious. We both ate the paella, then took half of it home in a doggy bag.4/19/2013 12:00:00 AMJaleo was what I expectedJaleo was what I expected and didn't disappoint. It is very loud and the space is wide open so it is more conducive to celebratory gathering than it is a romantic night out. The food was very good but for a tapas place with small plates, I expected more on the menu.The service was outstanding. The server was very attentive without hovering. If you don't speak Spanish, some of the menu will need a little more explanation than the short description. It doesn't matter if you understand the description because it will be good.4/19/2013 12:00:00 AMAlways reliable both at ourAlways reliable both at our neighborhood location (Crystal City) and in the DC and Bethesda locations. Reasonably priced for such outstanding food.4/18/2013 12:00:00 AMfantastic food! We had a greatfantastic food! We had a great farewell dinner for a friend.4/16/2013 12:00:00 AMI went to dinner with friendsI went to dinner with friends and two weren't keen on going to a tapas restaurant because they had never been and typically like more traditionally American cuisine. Once they tried all of the different dishes we ordered they LOVED it! All of our small tastes were delicious. I've been to this restaurant numerous times and it never disappoints.4/16/2013 12:00:00 AMSuccessful Client DinnerI was entertaining a party of 8 clients. To avoid tapas ordering pandemonium I dropped by Jaleo early with a print out of the menu and the items I wanted highlighted. They checked to make sure they had the wine I wanted, and took care of everything after that. We arrived, sat down and within 15 minutes the dishes started coming. The food was fantastic. One thing we missed was hearing the dishes described in detail in an audible voice.4/15/2013 12:00:00 AMOur server really made ourOur server really made our night. She helped us through the large menu and navigated all of our courses. We had a great night all around!4/15/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat as always! Just theGreat as always! Just the right amount of good food.4/14/2013 12:00:00 AMalways reliable. my kidsalways reliable. my kids love the small plates and the ability to sample lots of different tastes. the service was spot-on and helpful when we had questions. definitely a go-to when we want a fun dinner.4/7/2013 12:00:00 AMFantastic food and excellentFantastic food and excellent drink selection. The food came out reasonably fast depending on the complexity and it was more of a constant stream instead of everything at once. That also means everything was nice and hot when it came out instead of sitting on your plate cooling off until you get to it. You want to be careful about how much food you order. They recommend 3-4 plates per person, but if you don't eat a lot, like my fiance, you will be bringing home a lot of leftovers. I'd suggest start with 5 options per pair of people just to be safe.4/6/2013 12:00:00 AMbest ham in life....have eatenbest ham in life....have eaten around the world.
everything was excellent...quite pricy....$7/slider.. $22 skimpy cheese plate. most of the food was worth the price.
loved sangria and desserts too4/5/2013 12:00:00 AMGood TimesThe atmosphere is relaxed and stylish. The food is thoughtfully prepared and very good. The portion size for the price feels a bit small but makes sense given the style of cuisine and the quality of ingredients in play, and unlike most places. . . you can pace yourself to have room for dessert :-) Our server was very knowledgeable and helpful, and their business model allows the servers to act more as consultants - it seems they know the menu inside and out, they answer questions, and then other folks do the actual serving.4/5/2013 12:00:00 AMConsistently excellent diningConsistently excellent dining experience! Great new tapas selections and an always reliable wine selection!4/1/2013 12:00:00 AMChef's Tasting Menu was INCREDIBLE!I had a spectacular meal. Dining alone (in DC on business), I ordered the $55 chef's tasting menu. I expected it to be six or seven plates. Instead, they fed me until I couldn't eat anymore. They just kept bringing out dishes for 90 minutes straight. In addition to every bite being absolutely delectable, it was an outstanding value. In all, it was 15 plates plus dessert, and three of the plates were large vegetable dishes and another three were pretty significant sized meat portions.
I was absolutely psyched when I left the restaurant. It was so much fun, the food was so great and the value so tremendous that I couldn't get over the experience. Totally awesome job by the chef and waitstaff.4/1/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat food and service. IGreat food and service. I like that the tables are not too closed together.3/31/2013 12:00:00 AMWe really enjoyed the evening.We really enjoyed the evening. Huge menu of Tapas, all of which was delicious. Great Sangrias and the service was friendly. We'll definitely be back.3/30/2013 12:00:00 AMUnfortunately the power hadUnfortunately the power had gone out at Jaleo and we were not able to dine there on March 27. I believe the power failure was out of control of Jaleo3/27/2013 12:00:00 AMThe staff was great but theThe staff was great but the paella was not up to Jaleo's usual level. The rice was overcooked and the non-seafood paella was bland.3/24/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat dinner! The food wasGreat dinner! The food was delicious and the service was wonderful, will definitely return!3/24/2013 12:00:00 AMIt is my third time visitingIt is my third time visiting dinning in the restaurant. Every dish is extremely tasteful.3/22/2013 12:00:00 AMLove this placeGet the scallops and endive. Both were fantasic. There a lot of good choices but those two are a must. The shrimp were just okay and unremarkable. The service was outstanding and atmosphere was wonderful3/22/2013 12:00:00 AMService was excellent. ChardonnayService was excellent. Chardonnay wine terrific. Food was - some of it was very good, some (the chorizo) lousy.3/22/2013 12:00:00 AMOur server was fantastic andOur server was fantastic and the food was delicious. This was our first time going and we will definitely be going back for more!3/22/2013 12:00:00 AMCrystal GemThis Crystal City location is by far the nicest of the Jaleos. The raised ceiling gives the place a fresh open energy and livens the mood. The wait staff were excellent. We had one of the sweetest waiters I've had in years in the States. It was so refreshing after a decidely downward spiral in wait staff quality in the DC area over the years. The food was yummy from start to finish. Some dishes were better than others as is always the case, so nothing terrible to report. We ordered the veggie paella after we'd already enjoyed several tapas. I loved the natural fresh ingredients. Nothing says fresh like a leafy herb stalk poking out of your food. Two thumbs up, Jaleos Crystal City!3/22/2013 12:00:00 AMBrief Honest reviewI'm fairly new to the hood so this was my first time dining here. Love the exterior appearance and the free spirited contemporary appeal. I walked in to find a brief line where my date and i were greeted by very friendly and helpful Hosts & Hostesses. Our Server was a little short and unhelpful in the beginning but opened up to become quite cute and cheerful to both of us. Food was very appealing along with its presentation. We were constantly being watered, which is a-ok with me. Ordered a special creation of the "olive" and it was quite interesting. My date thought the orange zest didnt work, but i really enjoyed it. So grateful it was only 1dollar each.3/20/2013 12:00:00 AMVery accommodating to ourVery accommodating to our group . Allowed us to stay as long as we wanted with no feeling of being rushed.3/16/2013 12:00:00 AMMy husband and I had the chef'sMy husband and I had the chef's tasting menu and it was wonderful. The chef came out to talk with us about restrictions, allergies etc and he did a great job!3/16/2013 12:00:00 AMExcellent tapas, with traditionalExcellent tapas, with traditional Spanish favorites and creative modern creations.3/15/2013 12:00:00 AMTry it- you'll like itJaleo never disappoints. We took friends who have never experienced Tapas or Spanish fare. They were skeptical about all the ordering, small plates, and price. The experience made them believers. We were all stuffed and with dessert, wine and sangria, we got out of there for $40 a piece.3/14/2013 12:00:00 AMOur party enjoyed the tastingOur party enjoyed the tasting menu. We really appreciated that the chef came to talk with us about what tastes we liked, what we definitely wanted to sample on the menu. He went above and beyond by checking up on us multiple times. Absolutely worth $55 a person. It was a ton of delicious food.3/13/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat first experience at JaleoThis was our first time dining at Jaleo and, although we've dined at Tapas restaurants before, Jaleo's menu was quite large. Our server, Ethiopia T recommended the Chef's Tasting menu so that that we could experience a variety of dishes. The selections were terrific, the chef came over to visit our table, and Ethiopia explained everything about our our dishes. It was a lovely experience and, if we travel to the area again, we would definitely dine at Jaleo again. Be sure to try the Sangria!3/12/2013 12:00:00 AMJaleoThe Sangria was excellent, the best I've ever had at a restaurant (not too sweet). The place seemed very busy, however the staff was quick to accomidate any of our needs. I loved the style and decoration. They offered some very unique dished and I want to come back to try them all!2/15/2013 12:00:00 AMI absolutely love this place.I absolutely love this place. There is something for everyone and food in small plates is a great way to try new things. Thanks for fantastic service and delicious meals.1/1/0001 4:00:00 PM