Iron Gate

The restaurant has the whole experience down... Well, almost. We thought the food was very good and well-developed but, for the reputation and price, not great. As a mezze-style menu with small plates, we could have ourselves structured the order to come out over time, but we also wished the staff had thought of this for us and sequenced delivery of plates, as our food was all served at once and got cold sitting for us to get to it. But it was still very tasty, the place is beautiful, and everyone who touched us was actually exceptional. We were celebrating a birthday and had warm wishes at every minute, a special dessert comped on top of the one we had ordered, and a really special birthday surprise at the very end that we really loved. I won't spoil what it was but just note that we are not VIPs or anyone special at all and were actually emotionally moved at the gesture. In the end, top-notch experience and really happy with Iron Gate.

Excellent food served in small portions, a bit tapas-like, refined and unique. Lovely patio for outdoor seating (heated in winter) and cozy space with two fireplaces inside, plus a stylish bar area. Excellent service and not noisy.

Miss the Mediterranean cuisine. My lobster was the only older then me. I was in Maine 2 weeks ago, got spoiled. Disappointed.

The waitress heavily sold the "Chef's Table" which is whatever the chef wants to send you. We tried it, but it was big on volume and low on tastiness. The focaccia was the first dish, before we even received our wine, and it was the biggest gut bomb. It was followed by hummus. I started to wonder if we had accidentally walked into Olive Garden. Those two dishes must be removed from the menu along with the two feature dishes we received...tiny hen and some pasta dish that was underwhelming.

Thank you to the Iron Gate crew for an amazing experience! The wine selection, tasting menu, and service all culminated in a fantastic evening. I will definitely be back next time I’m in DC

Tremendous Food and ambiance. My only beginner comment is that the waitress was not providing up to par service considering a $250 dinner for two.

Very romantic place with excellent, attentive service. Fireplace is particularly nice in winter.

The food and drinks were amazing. The fact that our waiter only showed up to our table 4 times ruined the experience. I sat for over 20-25 minutes to order a drink, at which point I was no longer interested. We seriously could have spent another 100$ easy, but we felt so dejected that we didn't order dessert.

This sucks since the grill mix we ordered was spectacular, especially the lofts kabob. The quail was unnecessary, as it was barely any meat for the amount of bone.

The drinks were great, showed results of effort and proper composition.

Lovely venue with choice of dining indoor near a large fire our outdoor under heaters and next to fire pits! Good, friendly service. Interesting menu. We will be back!!!

A lovely dinner. We love sharing small plates so this was perfect. Our table was next to the fireplace which became an issue after awhile because it was so hot. Ambiance was lovely, service attentive but not doting. Food was excellent. Each dish was well proportioned for two. We started with bruschetta followed by carrots, gnocchi, mackerel and scallops. We were stuffed. Could’ve easily gone with 4 dishes so we could enjoy dessert. Had to skip it.

Restaurant didn't hold the table in front of the fireplace that I specifically reserved for my girlfriend's birthday (even though I requested it and got confirmation from hostess a week prior). Reservation was at 5:30 (just when they open) so holding the table should not have been an issue. Disappointed and made our experience much less special

Such a beautiful and aesthetic atmosphere!

Great food and great ambiance, would totally come back and 100% recommend it!

The food was excellent, as was the service and the patio is SO BEAUTIFUL.

The food itself and the service was fabulous but the portions, particularly for the tortellini, were smaller than anticipated.

I was surprised to learn that all the dishes listed on the menu (online and on paper) were actually not full entrees. This is something that should be clear on every menu and online - as it profoundly affects the price of the meal. The food was fabulous, the ambience is wonderful, but the pricetag induced sticker shock. . .

Birthday dinner

Food is kind of bizarre for brunch. Small plate randomness. The venue could be described as "cozy", "quaint", or "wow someone decided to put a restaurant in my grandma's house also why is there a space heater literally next to the toilet."

Also, incredibly loud.

Incredible date night spot. Ask to be by the fireplace! Also very gluten friendly with wonderful service. Celebrated a birthday and anniversary combo here and had a great time!

The chef sampler was a good way to sample different things on the menu and was a reasonable price for the amount of food we got. Everything is mezze style so you would pay about the same to be filled up anyway.

The food samples ranged from pretty good to excellent. The apperitifs were a combination of apple and cashew salad, cheese and mushroom arancini, and the most incredible deviled eggs i've ever had. Second round was a plate of grilled Kale (they insisted it was broccoli) and feta as well as their delicious focaccia. the main course was chicken and another salad. The main course was a little lacking, the chicken was well prepared and tender but not spectacularly flavorful or novel. I have to admit that was slightly disappointing from the chef. Finally, the dessert was a butternut squash pie with cream and a cup of Greek donuts. It may have been that we were full or that the sweets didn't pair with our oaky red wine that was still flowing but I personally found the donuts too sweet while the butternut squash was delightfully creamy and soft. Again, good but not excellent.

I will say the ambiance is the mainstay of this location. We were seated in the back indoor house that has that cozy yet authentically dim feeling you imagine saloons in the 30s had. the Tavern-like decor and low ceiling added to the intimacy of the space and an attentive but conspicuous staff makes this the perfect date spot.

Overall a great experience! I look forward to trying out the outdoor dining area with fireplaces and taking a more involved approach to sampling the menu. I highly recommend this as a date spot, make sure to get a bottle of red, and ask for the deviled eggs and mushroom arincini.

The fireplace, the ambiance is beautiful. Food preparation is done with care. The outstanding wine list and the services is excellent. Outdoor seating available too. The bison tartar is stunning. Very nice place dinner.

Iron Gate is an upscale place but not totally unattainable. However, my friend, when she asked for a Happy Hour menu, was met with a disgruntled bartender. As if IRON GATE would have happy hour. Food was good, waiter was great. I think the bartender needs to get over themselves.

We went for our anniversary. Nice atmosphere and food was fantastic,

Iron Gate represents the finest, warmest, and best example of what distinctly DC fine dining should be! I and two friends, who are avid restaurant-goers, met for lunch ... from the lovely bar, to the gorgeous garden space, and finally to the warm, cozy dining room with fire, Iron Gate missed nary a note. The ambiance of this DC old carriage house has been optimally featured - and then, the food and service almost exceed it. My two friends were raving the whole time - we had a lovely Italian pinot grigio, and one friend (a wine aficionado) was stunned when so many new and lovely wines were in their list. We shared two appetizers (the deviled eggs should not be missed), and then had lamb keftede, shrimp scampi, and gnocchi. I couldn't get over the marvelous blend of flavors in the keftede, and my mates raved equally about their entrees. We spent a glorious 2 hours there, and they are excited about coming back. All I can say is the Iron Gate makes you so grateful to be a DC native - it is quintessentially a Washington place, and I can't put my finger on why. But everyone was gracious and welcoming, the food simply was superlative, and the ambiance ... well, it's one of a kind. I'm known to be picky, and a tad judgmental. None of my friends will believe I wrote this! Run, do not walk to the DC treasure!

We went to Iron Gate to celebrate our one year anniversary. Looking at the reviews that showed that for anniversaries you were celebrated I decided to surprise my fiance and take her here. We were greeted with a warm welcome and given the option to sit in or outside. And we just told her to seat us where she thought was best. She agreed and took us to the beautiful patio and sat us next to the fire pit. When i made the reservation I added 2 notes ,one was that my fiancé is allergic to walnuts and the other was that we came to celebrate. I just hoped that they communicated better between the host and the server regarding the notes that were noted in the reservation.

We ordered the Chef's Menu for each of us and everything was superb. The courses were perfectly made and I will be back again.
I definitely recommend getting the Chef's menu bc you will spend the same amount putting your own small plates together but when I go back, I may have to try some of the regular menu items bc they looked amazing as well.

thanks for the welcoming service and the delicious food, plus the complimentary dessert and staff card for the birthday we were celebrating. my only suggestion would be for the corner part of the patio where we were seated (against the entryway to the rear dining room) to be equipped with a heater, as it got cold by the end of our meal. the timing between plates also varied, but I understand there was a sizable wedding party dining too

Great cocktails -loved the Mule Report & hot sangria could have added some fruit though. Mushroom appetizer & skirt steak were perfect. Apple cake ok. Service was spotty with initial server abandoning me midway during meal. Possibly due to table change. Ended up with with better server.

Good experience

My family and I have been going to Iron Gate for brunch for years, but our latest experience will likely be our last. Service was slow and lackadaisical despite the restaurant being mostly empty. Food has gotten less imaginative, overall an uninspiring experience.

This was our first time coming to Iron Gate. My girlfriend and I were pleasantly surprised! We learned of Iron Gate from another couple, and we knew it would be a great experience..just didn’t realize how wonderful it would actually be! We arrived a few minutes early. so we sat at the bar. Drinks were amazing (old tom newgroni—definitely worth it) and the bartender was attentive and also respectful. Often times my girlfriend and I are asked if we are sisters/related in the bar scene, it was nice to just be ourselves and not feel like objects. The wait staff was amazingly friendly and helpful navigating the menu and providing recommendations. We were asked if we were celebrating anything and when we responded that we were just having a date night, we had a warm and welcoming response. I would definitely pass on to others to check this place out. The ambiance is eye candy, and it feels like a a getaway to disconnect from the typical dc-scene. It is a romantic spot and exceeds expectations.

Service was slow towards the end - I waited 30 minutes for the check even though I asked for it when I ordered dessert. Food was delicious, but was hoping for bigger portions. Overall good experience though.

I was really excited to try Iron Gate as I heard it was one of the most romantic places to have dinner in DC. It did not disappoint. The lobster and squid ink bucatini that my boyfriend and I had was amazing. The staff was attentive and the ambiance of outside was truly memorable. The heat lamps and fire pits kept the fall chill away and made it nice and toasty. I will definitely go again!

My wife and I had the family service. the food and service were excellent. One of the highlights of the meal were the baby eggplants.

An amazing little gem my wife and I found while on vacation in DC. We loved the outdoor dining area.

We had eaten here a year ago but this year was frankly a complete disappointment. We opted for the chefs tasting (as we had last year) and were eagerly awaiting the reveal. The antipasti selections were terrific, but the entrees were not. We were given polenta ravioli, roasted chicken (very small portion) and a kale salad. When we questioned this (wondering where the meat or fish selections were, as promised), were then given a very flip remark by our waiter. (A kale salad is not a main entree). Given we had made a substantial purchase of wine as well, we felt we were given the shaft & were treated as an afterthought. Totally unacceptable for the price charged. Will not be back.

Overall our lunch was enjoyable - not excellent. My dish - the shrimp scampi - was delicious. However, prior to my receiving it, our waiter mistakenly brought the Cesar Salad - and was gracious in leaving the salad on the table for us to enjoy while my correct order was being prepared. The cesar salad was average. The squash salad was acceptable - not great. My husband's dish - the gyro -was cheered with happy surprise. In summary - not every dish was a home run. Very pleasant atmosphere....nice place for lunch if you are in the neighborhood.

Our anniversary was recognized very nicely though we had forgotten having mentioned that on Open Table. Glass of Bubbly and a lovely dessert! Attentive service, possibly a tad rushed. We would have preferred to enjoy our apertif before the food started arriving. Food delicious, atmosphere cozy with a fire lit for the chilly evening. Wine list is not cheap but once again we struck gold with a very nice red from Sardinia.

Great service and delicious food! We loved the chefs menu.

This was one of THE most unusual experiences I have had at a restaurant. We went for brunch, there was a wedding happening in the back courtyard area which seemed to have absorbed all competent service staff. The two ladies behind the bar did not seem to work well together (like oil and water) and the one lady seemed to be having a VERY off day. She was not able to articulate answers to questions and when I asked how something was prepared, she said "I don't know; I am just trying to help out." She and the other lady bickered behind the bar. When we asked for the last item we ordered, it came out after 10 minutes (I don't think it was ever ordered) and when it did come out, we did not get a chance to eat it all and THEN, the woman having the off day said, "Don't tell anyone, but I am going to eat the rest of your pancakes." And she gave us one glass of wine "on the house" since we had to wait for the pancakes, so there's that... This was the first time eating here, and have always wanted to try the restaurant, but this...this was not someplace I would return to after the experience.