The Resy Guide to D.C. Italian Restaurants For Every Mood

The vibe: Sensory overload, paired with some of the top pizza and pasta in town.

L’Ardente uses the word “glam” to describe itself, and that’s a pretty apt description of David Deshaies’ ode to Italianate maximalism. This carries through its multiple dining areas, including not just the dining room but the connected lounge and the pizza bar. Choose your spot to match your mood, order a spritz as you unwind, and if you’re game, go straight for the 40-layered lasagna, which typically takes two stomachs to take down. (If you’re feeling more modest, the seafood linguine is a winner.) Don’t skip on dessert either — the tiramisu flambé is a showstopper, in every sense of the word.

The vibe: The classics, with some fun cheffy interpretations.

This modern-style osteria excels with its housemade pastas. Family-share selections include Bolognese, cacio e pepe, alla vodka, and a quattro formaggi gnocchi — you’ll want to try them all, and appreciate the small accents, like goat butter in the vodka sauce. It’s also kid-friendly, with a designated bambini menu with options like chicken parm nuggets and spaghetti and meatballs. Sometimes it’s best not to overthink things, and lean into the hits with a bit of flair. Proprietor Hollis Wells Silverman, who worked with José Andres and Fabio Trabocchi, understands this perfectly.

The vibe: Power dining. Add pasta.

The regulars at Cafe Milano in Georgetown are some of the most see-and-be-seen politicos in Washington. Big shot or not, this Prospect Street restaurant remembers regulars down to their favorite dishes. Maybe that’s why it’s an any-day occasion spot. Or maybe it’s the braised veal ravioli — a dish that has remained on the menu for decades. Either way, chef Domenico Cornacchia is willing to be tongue in cheek (yes, the Linguine B. Johnson is a real menu item) but plenty serious about what’s on the plate.

The vibe: Neighorhood red sauce just across the river, with serious kitchen firepower.

Last year Thompson Italian doubled its footprint opening in Old Town Alexandria. Whether your diner here or at the original in Falls Church, you’ll find a distinctly local feeling, matched to Italian staples from fresh burrata to rigatoni, with some unexpected twists like brussels sprouts with lemon tahini dressing. You’ll also find the deep talents of Gabe and Katherine Thompson, who carved an impressive path through New York (L’Artusi, Dell’Anima, Del Posto) before coming back to the DMV. Pro tip: Order the squid ink bucatini.

The vibe: Your stylish all-day local, with lovely pasta.

Housemade pastas are the main draw at this Petworth osteria. Be sure to try them all —including pappardelle with mushrooms, mafaldine alla Norma, and a classic lasagna. A slice of tiramisu is also a sweet finish to this laid-back spot.

But there’s more: By day, San Matteo turns into Soleluna, a daytime cafe with fresh pastries and coffee.

The vibe: A downtown trifecta — sublime northern Italian cooking, a great market, and A-plus people-watching.

Amy Brandwein has truly found a 360-degree approach with her restaurant and market in the luxe City Center DC development. You can go deep on go deep on gnocchi with truffle or pappardelle with chestnut and white Bolognese, and a glass of Super Tuscan to match. Or sit at the bar and graze over antipasti. Or make a quick stop at her bakery and cafe, Piccolina, for Italian pastries and happy-hour cocktails and pizzas. Or even just run by the Mercato for some top-notch dried pasta. It’s Brandwein’s superpower to know how to offer something for all comers.

The vibe: Graduate-level Italian dining, for when only the sublime will do. 

And so we come to il dottore of Italian in the District: Chef Fabio Trabocchi opened his flagship restaurant over a decade ago. It has since earned multiple consecutive Michelin stars and resulted in several spinoff restaurants, including Fiola Mare, Del Mar, and Sfoglina Pasta House. Part of what gives Fiola itsstaying power is incredible hospitality, and dishes inspired by Italy’s Adriatic coast. But Trabocchi has also become one of the top chefs in town because he understands perfectly how Italian cooking can work in its most rarified forms. The branzino here gets two days of dry aging, turning the seemingly simple into the sublime. Gnocchi with butter and grana padano finds an unheard-of depth. And the wine list reads like an encyclopedia of Barolo.

Pro tip: Fiola’s much-loved pizza pop-up is back this month, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. It features a rotation of chef Chef Antonio Mermoli’s Neapolitan style pies, like the Radice, with fior di latte, grana padano, and Australian black truffle. Look for the link on the booking page.

The vibe: A tribute to Emilia-Romagna with NYC amplitude, adapted to the D.C. waterfront.

After a decade in service on the Southeast Waterfront, Osteria Morini — our own version of the AltaMarea Group’s Manhattan original — has established itself as a destination for high-quality Italian fare, including an epic antipasti selection. Chef Bill Dorrler oversees a menu that draws on Bologna for inspiration, including the squiggly traditional pasta known as gramigna, here with sausage ragu and black pepper, and a dazzlingly good burger with scamorza cheese.

The vibe: An iconic neighborhood spot (if your neighbors happen to be Kind of a Big Deal).

It’s been on the menu since day one. It’s the dish POTUS and FLOTUS double-ordered on date night, to much chatter. Of course, we are talking about the mezzi rigatoni with fennel sausage ragu, which has become chef Mike Friedman’s signature. Yes, this hearty pasta dish is a long-time favorite whether you’re the commander-in-chief or a regular, but don’t overlook the Hen’s other charms, including simply perfect grilled bread with butter and radishes (you’ll thank us later), and an epic pork chop Milanese.

The vibe: A lesson in Southern (Italian) charm.

Chef Matteo Venini and co-owner Antonio Matarazzo have quickly expanded their pizzeria with locations in Union Market and Mount Vernon Triangle, as well as Shirlington and another location coming soon to Tysons, Va. Their success is simple. This pizzaiolo duo serves up the full roster of their homes in southern Italy:  Flavorful Neapolitan pizzas with a distinctly crispy crust in addition to Sicilian-style arancini balls, fired artichokes, and squid ink chitarra pasta made fresh daily. We’re partial to the Piccante pizza, because, two words: ‘nduja jam.

The vibe: That red-sauce joint of your dreams, if it were run by ‘gram-savvy offspring.

Consider Grazie Nonna the more freestyling counterpoint to L’Ardente’s upscale buzz. Certainly chef Gerald Addison understands how to make dinner into a party (cooking at Maydan and Bammy’s will do that), and here the take is very much Italian American. Dishes are served family style, including chicken or eggplant parm, plus an assortment of wood-fired pizzas that reflect Addison’s fascination with East Coast pizza styles. Did we mention the whole section of the menu designated for Negronis? Or the candelabras? Or a lunch menu that’s one of the great secrets of downtown dining?

The vibe: Petworth’s user-friendly trattoria, with more than its share of surprises.

Little Coco’s delivers big on family-style Italian fare. There’s  pizza, pastas, and entrees like chicken Parm and a balsamic marinated sirloin steak — all the elements for a neighborhood local. But the dish that has people in Petworth coming back for more — the Green Lantern. It’s a wood-fired pesto pizza loaded with confit chicken, cherry tomatoes, and carmelized onions and topped with fresh mozzarella. It’s great anytime, but doubly when spring — aka spritz season — hits, and you can aim for the best seats in the house, on the roof deck.

The vibe: Brunch, but make it Italian.

While brunch is a decidedly American pastime, it has gained popularity in Italy. Quattro Osteria is following in these footsteps, with offerings worth a Metro ride. Find three varieties of overstuffed focaccia paninis, breakfast pastas including bucatini carbonara, and Mediterranean-style frittatas. One section of the menu — for, at brunch, lunch or dinner — focuses on fried street snacks found in Naples. This includes frittura di pesce, featuring golden-fried calamari, shrimp, and cod, or the all’Italiana platter, stacked with fried arancini balls, potato croquettes, fried dough, and taleggio cheese. We’re always hesitant to choose, and they get us.