Convivial

While our food was decent, our overall experience with service and ambiance was very poor. Our waiter disappeared between the time we ate our appetizer and the time we finished our entrees - never asked us how our food was or if we wanted other drinks. Tables are so close together that we could overhear the conversation of the 4 men next to us talking about their dating and sex lives. Unfortunately, the food wasn't good enough to make up for the service and ambiance mishaps.

We went there for birthday dinner, service was great it was fast and the food was delicious. It got a bit noisy after couple of hours but there is nothing can be done about this.

Dinner has always been good, but brunch was lackluster. Bland food and sour coffee.

Great ambience & wonderful seafood dishes eat at bat enjoyed boulibase & skate fish both wonderful @ fresj

The chicken for two is incredible!

Wonderful from start to finish. The service, the food, the atmosphere, everything....outstanding. We loved it and can't wait to go back.

The appetizers and entrees were mediocre, especially the salad mixed greens and wedge lettuce not fresh.

Crumbs all over the windowsill next to our table and a broken chair made for a mediocre experience.

Food was great and so was the ambiance.

Great food. Service was okay as our waiter wasn't very engaged.

Four of us loved our food, our server and even talking to the chef who, at one point, walked through the restaurant.

We were seated in the bar area which was very very loud. You might like that...we're going to definitely ask for a table in one of the quieter dining rooms when we go back. And we will go back!

Sat at the bar. Was well attended to and the food was delicious. Chic decor, too!

Interesting menu, excellent food, great service!
A real winner!

It was very good.

We had a party of eight this evening and the service was outstanding. The food was excellent as well. Everyone was sharing because we all thought we had the best item on the menu. Also do NOT skip dessert. We tried 3 different desserts and they were all heavenly. Lastly, the table was not crowded at all which can sometimes be an issue with larger parties. Highly recommend!

Food was excellent, service was great, and they were very accommodating

First time diner at Convivial. Excellent! All four people in our group were delighted.

The food, atmosphere, and service were all excellent!

Terrific neighborhood spot with parking! Interesting menu and, best of all, not to noisy to hear across the table.

Food was pretty good, though the place is not that pricey the price that you paid for the dishes, did not make a good value. Salt and Oil were some of the strongest flavors, and when asking the waiter about several dishes before we ordered, he was seemingly clueless on the preparation and basically recited what was listed on the menu. You would expect your servers to be aware of how each dish is prepared.

Had the steak tartare appetizer. Tasteless. Should have sent it back.

Fun delicious restaurant. The server's food and drink recommendations were excellent. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal.

I went to Convivial for dinner with a co-worker. It was our first time at the restaurant. Everything was wonderful. There was an excellent selection of happy hour specials. We shared the escargot small bites. I had the roasted cauliflower appetizer and the vegetable medley entrée. These were the best vegetarian entrees I have had in any restaurant in the DC metro area. They were absolutely delicious. My co-worker had the steak tartare appetizer and the dorade. He said both were delicious as well. I am recommending this restaurant to all my friends and look forward to visiting again soon.

Chose to just share appetizers which were plenty filling. They are tasty and rich/filling. We tried tartare, roasted cauliflower, salmon among others. All were unusual in presentation and mix of flavors. Attentive wait staff. Did not feel rushed. Made reservation - weekday - seated promptly.

This is the 2nd time I have eaten at Convivial. Thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Food is fabulous and the staff is friendly and knowledgeable.

Cocktails were poorly crafted. Food was very typical French bistro—not imaginative nor particularly well prepared.

Staff was very pleasant and helpful. Service was slow.

We went for brunch and it was awesome! Food and service was excellent!

Our waiter recommended us only the best dishes off the menu! My family and I enjoyed the unusual fusion of appetizers along with the wonderful presentation of main courses followed by a selection of tasty desserts :) PS: they have an awesome birthday candle!

The chicken for 2 was insanely good. Food, service and ambiance were all great.

The manager at the host table was very rude. The reason why I will not be returning.

Convivial is always my "go to" for brunch, but I love it for dinner as well. The cuisine is fabulous and the restaurant is very "convivial" indeed. Recommending it warmly.

I ended up going with a small group for Restaurant Week. The food was really wonderful, and imaginative. The bar continuously pumped out really wonderful drinks. I also want to give thanks to the staff who were working tirelessly even though the place was super busy, and to the chef who was walking around and making sure that everything was running well. It was a really impressive effort by everybody, and I appreciate the effort and dedication by everybody.

Excellent cuisine, service and ambience at reasonable prices -- practically a giveaway during their extended restaurant week. Bravo to Cedric and all the Convivial team.

Sadly, my experience this visit was terrible. I booked a reservation for a party of four; we were going out for my friend's birthday. We arrived early, spoke with the hostess, and still weren't sat until over 30 minutes past our reservation time. We would have gone somewhere else, but Shaw is a busy area and it was a Saturday night at 9pm, so it would have been difficult to get a table anywhere.

The food was okay. Our minds weren't blown but it was all cooked properly. The server was less than attentive and my party would have ordered more cocktails, but the server was nowhere to be found.

It was sad that it took forever to be seated at our reserved table, while we were pushed out by the server who was all too eager to drop the check and then disappear again. I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone, and I certainly won't be going back.

What a lovely dinner! Our waiter, John, was wonderful, and the food was fantastic. I loved the ambiance and the decor. I’ve already recommended Convivial to friends and family.

Excellent service portions were very large for restaurant week but we really enjoyed all of the options

We had a brunch for two, and it was very nice - food, as usual, was totally excellent. Ambiance is fabulous. But I took off a star because food took a bit of a long time to come - so in the meantime, after at least 20 minutes, waiter brought over small plate with ketchup for the fries we had ordered. I think he was trying to show it's all in process and they haven't forgotten about us, but still a bit strange to be served ketchup while you keep waiting and waiting for the main dishes...Also they use Compass Coffee and the coffee itself is good - but it felt lukewarm, not hot. Seems to be a recurring issue here - I remember that coffee was not exactly hot last time I came here for brunch as well.

Great to have another option for weekend lunch. Lively crowd, delicious food, attentive service. Win/win/win!

Awesome brunch. We especially love the chicken and waffle. One thing to note is that the gravy (probably the best gravy I have ever had) does come on the chicken, which somehow stays crispy, but if you are not sure I would recommend ordering it on the side.

Mimosas carafes are bomb as well!

It is true that it was restaurant week but the food was great and of course an absolute steal. The feel of the place was buoyant and welcoming. As a bonus the lighting is perfect - comfortable and flattering, which is rarely the case in these restaurants. It is one of the best crossover places in DC, not too casual and not too stuffy - just right.