LIA'S

The scallopini was so tough that I had to send it back. The swordfish was ok, but slightly overlooked. Very disappointing.

We went during DC restaurant week. Overall food and service were good. The brussel sprouts appetizer was very good as was the calamari. My wife's NY strip was too well done but they provided a new steak medium done without hassle or too long of a wait.

This was out second visit and second time we opted to sit outside. The service was good, timely and we enjoyed good food in great environment.

Always love the service and food is inventive, plentiful and delicious. Got seated in the back room and being a designer myself, I can say with authority that they need to re-think the decor in that room. It never was "cool" and I always feel like I am dining in a box car. Server was great and food delicious but the decor in that room us just a graffitti nightmare.

Restaurant week

They should consider adding pasta and more Italian food to their menu if they'd like to be considered an Italian restaurant. 5 burgers and not 1 pasta on their brunch menu? Understandably there wouldn't be pasta on a breakfast menu, but neither would burgers. That being said, it was pretty delicious, the bread under my eggs Benedict was pretty difficult to cut but the actual poached eggs, perfection.

First of all, the food is excellent. Absolutely exquisite. Based on just the food experience, I would recommend Lia's to anyone. Lia's is located in Friendship Heights which is not typically known as a foodie destination, unlike nearby Bethesda. For that reason, it seems to be less crowded and quieter. The prices are a bit steep for someone my age, but reasonable given the quality of the food. I went there recently for DC's summer restaurant week, and the $35 dinner deal is very much worth it because you get three courses for that price when regularly, some of the entrees alone approach that price. I would recommend it for anyone who has the means to go and who doesn't mind not being in a trendy spot, and would highly recommend during restaurant week.

Fantastic BD dinner.

We eat here often and really love it! We especially love eating outside.

We went for restaurant week and found the food and service to be wonderful. Parking isn’t a pain either which can be rare in the DMV area. I would highly recommend this restaurant!

We very much enjoyed our lunch at LIA'S. Everything was excellent except the poached eggs were a little cooked. We definitely recommend going to LIA'S!

Great food and great service!

Great food with many different options and we loved the ambience. We were looking for somewhere new and this was the perfect choice!

The food is always outstanding. The risotto balls are the best I have every eaten.

Food is good and service is one of the best.
We asked for a particular table that was being cleaned and the greeter went and finished the clean up on outside table for us.
Waiter, Carlos, was friendly and attentive.
We go to lia’s often and enjoy this neighborhood place.

Great outdoor seating, expansive restaurant week menu was a tremendous value. Highly recommend.

Best place for lunch in that neighborhood. Good food, good service.

We really liked our meal, very nice interior surroundings. We will be back.

Lia's seemed even better this time than the last time we were there. I am an enthusiastic fan of anything they do with wild mushrooms, like the wild mushroom raviolis I had again this time. My husband had the scallops and pronounced them "perfect". My son chose and had high praise for the "shrimp burger". Great food and a very pleasant evening together!

A comfortable place for a date or a large family gathering. Attentive service. Nice atmosphere. A menu that accommodates a range of tastes.

Attentive service, great quality food, agreeable atmosphere. Only negative was the noise level which even though we were seated in the corner required straining our voices to hear and be heard. Would enthusiastically recommend to friends.

Just nothing special about it, everything was mediocre to ok. My wife and I both left with the same feeling, that we had just taken in a bunch of calories for a meal that was nothing to write home about. Too many options out there to go back and wouldn't recommend it to others without limiting their expectations.

If I didn't live near Lia's, I'd move. That may sound like an exaggeration, but it's true. Imagine a neighborhood restaurant that offers great food, terrific service and a management that actually cares about its customers! That's Lia's. This is a restaurant where the staff welcomes you when you walk in, remembers your favorite table and produces food that is both innovative and beautifully prepared. I feel lucky to live nearby!

My favorite neighborhood bistro does not have a lot of competition! Food is consistently good or better, service variable. Ambience (indoor) becoming a problem; very loud at times; difficult to talk.
I have recommended Lia's to friends in the past. Based on food quality and value I would like to do this again. But something needs to be done about noise level.

Our server was very pleasant and welcoming. The food was fresh and tasted outstanding! I will definitely be back!

Great selection of menu items - seems to be updated. The three of us each got something different. The beet gazpacho was absolutely amazing. The bacon wrapped shrimp salad and the mushroom ravioli both were exceptional. The Friendship Heights main dining room is a very pleasant place to dine. Thanks Chef and staff!

A good, dependable bistro in a neighborhood that offers little variety of dining options. Food of consistently good quality. sometimes better than good; quality of service not as consistent.

My wife and I went to Lia's for our anniversary. Service was great, food was great, drinks are always great.

Birthday. Food was way too salty

My lady and I had our anniversary dinner at Lia’s and it was fantastic. They took great care of us. We will definitely be back again.

Spinach salad with salmon (and seared tuna) was good though salad dressing was pitifully skimpy. It could also be little more generous than the few stingy pieces of beets & cheese. But salad was tasty and both salmon & tuna were good too. But pineapple sangria was very disappointing - presentation was pretty but it tasted like drinking just pineapple juice. Not good.

Always good

Good service and food. Tried the ribeye special, shrimp scampi, and salmon. All were cooked properly, flavorful, and ample. Server was very knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly.

Great food excellent service but pretty loud hard to hear people at the same table

I am visiting Bethesda and feel so fortunate that I found this wonderful restaurant to take my son to dinner. The wait staff was so patient and accommodating with my many food allergies. The chef made the salmon dish special for me, and I can honestly say that it was one of the best dishes I have ever had. When I come back to the DC area, I will definitely eat at LIA's again.

It was really unfortunate the one evening the weather was pleasant to sit out as soon as we sat down the public DOT started construction immediately in front of the restaurant. The noise was awful. I know that’s not the restaurant’s fault but it’s unfortunate they didn’t offer to reseat us or inform us ahead of time that this would be going on.

Diminished the value of a Friday evening relaxing dinner.

We reserved a table for four inside. We had eaten at Lia's before and the inside dining room was pleasant. We unfortunately discovered the second dining room. It has exposed plywood walls with spray on stencils. Worse than the appearance was the bathroom like acoustics. Every voice was loud. The noise caused everyone to speak up, making it unbearably loud. Other parties were reseated, but we apparently didn't ask in time. One of our worst dining experiences ever. In addition, the waiter was inattentive, the food was ok if it had been Bennigans, fortunately the bus boy was willing to bring the bread we had asked for repeatedly. If you dine here, do not accept a table in the back. Wait. Also, on prior visits, the male bar staff have been quite inattentive.

We had a very disappointing trip to Lia's last night. We find the restaurant to be hit or miss, and last night was a definite miss. Our server and the rest of the dining staff were pretty bad. The interior space was not crowded at all; we had an 8pm reservation. The exterior space was packed. It took a while for our drinks to arrive. The appetizers came out fairly quickly and were good. We sat with the "finished" plates in front of us for about 10 minutes. The entrees arrived with the appetizer plates still on the table. We had to clear the plates so that the food runner could give us our entrees.....bad!!!! The entrees were not good. The monkfish special sounded good on the menu but the entire dish was a mess. The penne pasta dish was not good either. As with the appetizers, we sat with the "finished" dinner plates in front of us for about 10 minutes before they were cleared. At this point in the evening, there was only one other table occupied inside...what was the staff doing?? We are done with giving this restaurant another chance.

Good food, served pleasantly We enjoyed our dinner.

I was very satisfied with the meal at Lia's. I introduced the restaurant to friends who had never eaten there. When we arrived it was relatively quiet, but by the time we were eating our entrees, it was quite noisy. We all liked our food very much and the service was outstanding. I will always recommend it to people who would like a very high quality meal.