Receiveing the check was slow - an issue b/c we were attending a show at the KC

Excellent choice, for food quality, service and ambiance, particularly if you are on your way to a performance at the Kennedy Center.

Food and service were good; menu limited and over priced

I went with a group of four to have dinner before a show at the Kennedy Center. The restaurant itself is kind of hidden behind the hotel lobby and down a flight of stairs. The staff were all courteous, and the food came out quickly after we ordered. But for the price we weren't blown away with the food, service or ambiance. With the number of options in the area we will probably look somewhere else next time.

Food was quite good, but due to restaurant design, it is very loud. Tables for two are crowded together along the wall, thus it is very difficult to have a conversation with your dining partner due to conversations on eirher side. We do not plan to return, too bad as the food was quite good.

Meh. Honestly not worth the price. Food honestly wasn't as favorable as it should have been for the price that it was.

Most awesome dinner ever! Right sized portions, perfectly cooked to your specifications!
Excellent and attentive service. Cozy, comfortable and charming. The rooftop lounge overlooking the Potomac and the GT waterfront caps off your evening!

I have to admit that we didn’t have real high expectations. However the food was really fresh, delicious and well prepared. The Pea risotto was the best I’ve ever had. The Mussels were delicious. Frites were crunchy and delicious. Service was attentive and professional. Recommended.

We made reservations for 4 and were seated in the bar with two tables squished together. Bartender was our waiter and even though our reservation was at 6pm, the show we were seeing at KC was at 8pm and we were not served our food until 7:40. The manager apologized and said he would help on our ticket. Our waiter then said drinks were on him. They did not take anything off our bill, we had to leave plates half eaten. Too bad, food and drinks were delicious.

They didn’t accept my reservation. Ended up having bar food. Waitress was very nice.

Okay, but not great. Our appetizers we're delicious, but entrees were a little dry and bland. For the price I expected better.

Lovely Sunday brunch for 4. We each ordered a different entrée, and all of us were very pleased. The ambience is great, and our server (I'm sorry I don't recall her name!) truly superb - professional, friendly, efficient, and caring. The "bottomless" option for mimosa, bloody marie and sangria very nice! We'll be back.

Mediocre food, high prices

Server was awful. Very inattentive, slow, rude and unhelpful. I was shocked quite frankly. This was a special treat for my sister and seven year old niece who were in town. I had not yet been there for tea and wanted to try it. I am not sure if the Travelzoo deal turned him off or the child in attendance. No idea. He flung one menu on table for the three of us. Took ages to finally take our tea order. When sandwiches and patties finally came, he ran through what the options before us were so fast, and without making eye contact then zipped off so we had no idea what we were readying to consume. Service improved after I spoke with the manager who was a delight and rather appalled I do believe as well. Food was okay. We have been to many tea experiences around the world. Here they do not even do the basics such as pour the tea for you nor do they refresh it once it cools unless you ask. They did refill our champagne which was nice. I was readying to bring my mom here on a separate occasion but I could not have her endure this same experience. Frankly, I was stunned. Even with a “deal”, it was still a pricey proposition and I always tip on the full value of any deal everywhere I go — and more if service was great. We tipped — just because that is what we do. 18 percent but I felt that was more than was deserved. Everyone has a bad day I know but the odd thing was he treated other tables very differently than ours. Friendly, full explanation of offerings, quick order and retrieval of tea, sandwiches, etc. Groups who arrived after us were served first. Overall, Quite a disappointment.

Overpriced and underwhelmed...sat down for service at 6:08 and a server didn’t acknowledge us for several minutes. We asked a server to get our server and after five minutes the same server shows up to take our order. It was baffling because she could’ve easily said she was our server and will be with us shortly. I ordered the lobster risotto as an appetizer, which was good, and the trout for my main course. The trout was awful! The skin was not crispy and it lacked flavor. For $32 I expected a lot more. I had high expectations for this place and it was definitely disappointing. The service was extremely slow (and it wasn’t crowded) and the food was subpar. Will not return.

Easter brunch - high price - good food - need more variety for price . Why no shrimp?

Disappointed this year for Easter brunch compared to last year. Much less food variety for the same amount of $. No pasta, no cheese station raw seafood limited to oysters and clams . Wondering if there’s a new chef but probably won’t go back next year for Easter

Extremely expensive for what we got. I had been here for lunch before about a year ago a couple of times and I was impressive by quality of food an service. This was experience was underwhelming by both the quality of food, service and terrible value.
Egg sandwich was 16 dollars, arrived cold and had a small amount of cheddar, side was literally 5 pieces of home fries.
Eggs Benedict were accompanied also by 5 pieces of potato and had a very small amount of hollandaise sauce and was also underwhelming.
We got a side of potatoes and the waitress failed to mention that those were the same sad potatoes we would get as a "side". Overall lackluster experience for a total of 73 dollars! (had one coffee and tea which were excellent, yet hardly would justify that price tag)

Vegetarian options lacking.

Very good food and romantic restaurant

Portions were very small but prices were very high. Felt like an old Vegas hotel that had passed it's day.

We had a pleasant brunch. A little noisy with children jumping behind us. The service was better but the food a little less tasty. Otherwise ok

Overpriced for what they offer, atmosphere is a bit sterile and generic.

My wife had the best hanger steak of her life. Super flavorful and tender. I had the half chicken. Delicious. More than I could eat. This is not an extensive menu (good) nor inventive flavorwise, however, what they accomplish is high end mainstream cuisine. BTW, outstanding hot chocolate cake desert!

Not a good experience, the service was slow and not welcoming.

Exceptional service from the time I entered until I left for the short walk to JFK Center for a show. My cocktail and meal were superb, and had I not had a show to catch, I would have enjoyed a leisurely dessert and additional cocktail. I highly recommend dining at the Kingbird if you have the chance. I will return next time I'm in DC.

My daughter and I dined at The Kingbird before a Kennedy Center performance. The atmosphere was elegant, albeit a tad bit loud/hard to hear each other at times. The food was exceptional, especially the foie gras appetizer. We split the salmon and risotto and it was a perfect combination for the two of us. The service was attentive and our waiter made sure we got out in time to make the performance (and showed us the short cut to the KC).

Service is superb, especially Mariella at the Bar. Her efforts made the evening special.

Extremely overpriced. Open Table notified us that there was a pre-fixe 3 course menu during the time we were dining. We had experienced that when we dined there in January and were looking forward to it. It was reasonably priced. When we arrived on March 22, we were told by our server that the restaurant stopped offering that. Therefore, by the time we ordered al la cart, our meal was extremely overpriced. Although it is convenient to the Kennedy Center, surely there are other restaurants in the area that are reasonably priced. Will not return.

Anniversary

Nice decor-- try to get a booth by the windows. If you're trying to reduce salt, this is not the restaurant for you. All of the dishes we tried were definitely aided by generous amounts of salt. The appetizer menu doesn't offer much for nibbling & sharing, but we shared the scallops & the asparagus and they were excellent. I was a little worried about "jumbo" asparagus when thin is often so much better, but these were just the right amount of tender & very flavorful. For the main course, we split a side of spinach-- again nicely prepared and flavorful. And had the brook trout and the steak frites. The French fries had to be shared-- thin, crisp, and with truffle oil. The steak was great-- but again, very salty as we realized when we ate the other half at home. The gelato was good-- but nothing too extraordinary. The service was a little anxious, a little pushy, which was odd in a nearly empty restaurant, but absolutely professional and responsive. An after dinner drink on the roof was worth the whole visit. We agreed we'd go back when we felt like the investment was worth the occasion-- at $150 per person with tip...

Anniversary dinner after the symphony—early evening on Sunday. Service was great, food was wonderful as well. Retro decor keeps you intrigued. Pricey, but that was expected.

Lovely atmosphere. Really limited and inflexible menu. Overpriced menu options.

The food was fair and the menu seemed pretty limited on choices. The atmosphere is good but our server was not up to par for the pricing. For the two of us, the price was $174.00. A bit pricey for what was received.

Didn't get a steak knife with my steak. The steak was overpowered by the ginger. I heard a service staff member tell a customer they could not close the blinds because it would disrupt the view even when the sun was shining directly in the customer's eyes.

Food and service were not up to expectations for a restaurant in the Watergare Hotel with prices at the level charged.

Notices on Open Table and on the Watergate website stated that between 5:00 pm and 6:30 pm only a three-course, Pre-Fixe menu priced at $58 per person was available. Upon arrival, we were presented a menu with la carte pricing that yielded higher costs. The explantion from our server was courteous but inadequate.

The restaurant was unable to control the glare from the setting sun and its reflection in mutiple mirrors around the dining room. So, four of us squinted our way throught the second half of our dinner.

Service was passable but less attentive than one would expect in restaurant of this calibre.

I hope that other diners have a better experience.

Our second time to Kingbird, and this time was just as great as the last. Staff, food and drinks were all amazing, and its a stone's throw away from the Kennedy Center.

Beautiful architectural design! Average food. Out of sight prices! Sloooooow Service. We made reservations at 1715 to make it to a performance at the Kennedy Center at 1900. We let both the receptionist and our server know we had a performance to attend. Even though it wasn’t crowded and we ordered salads as appetizers we weren’t served till 1815. This put us in precisely the kind of rush we tried to avoid. The main courses—trout, salmon, and pasta bolognese—came fairly quickly after the appetizers. Inappropriate pacing for a place of this caliber. Portions were average size and good, but not great. The timing barely allowed us time for coffee and dessert—which we shared. We barely made the curtain call.
Worse, while the restaurant advertised a fixed price pre-theater menu, we were told that was no longer available. Overall, extremely pricey ($90 steak!!!!). Great ambiance and could be a superb pre theater option, but the quality of service and price point would have to be significantly improved to recommend it wholeheartedly. So few dining options within easy distance to the Kennedy Center. This could be a gem. As is, it’s a disappointment except the beautiful setting. Good wine list though very pricey.

This was our first time at Kingbird and we'll certainly return.

Where do I start? Superb in every way--delicious octopus appetizer, trout and filet mignon entrees, even the bread and wine are outstanding. Great view too of the Potomac basin!

We had an amazing dining experience at this hotel restaurant! We booked reservations for after the theater crowd so I think that helped our overall experience. Our server, Peggy, was super friendly and very knowledgeable. While we dressed up due to it being my girlfriend’s birthday, the restaurant was not too stuffy and there was a wide variety of dress throughout the restaurant. The food was great but the menu is somewhat limited, so beware. Overall, great experience at a DC landmark hotel.