Gravitas

We have now been twice, once in the dinning room and most recently for the tasting menu. If you only eat at one restaurant in DC I highly recommend Gravitas. The food was phenomenal, absolutely out of this world spectacular. Chef Matt Baker put together a menu that really stood out in my mind for its creativity, flavor, and presentation! We also did the wine pairing and I still talk about how amazing it was today. The staff as a whole was incredibly kind, welcoming, and knowledgeable. All in all 10/10 highly recommend

One of our top Michelin choice in DC as of Jan 2024 bc restaurants quality fluctuates! I’m giving this rating for the food only, which was well crafted and delicious. Many hits and just a few misses. However the ambiance and the staff seemed off. It’s located near Union market and it’s very rugged, definitely not a spot for pretty pictures. It’s more like a nice dinner inside a warehouse… and the staff was just ok. Though they’re all very friendly. I noticed there’s a drastic difference post-Covid where high end restaurants no longer have knowledgeable staffs that speaks about the crafts of their dishes, and it just takes out the experience overall dining at a Michelin. Will I return, probably not. But I’m pleased I got to try the food bc it was impressive. If they relocate and train their staffs to share and appreciate the food background, hands down I’ll return.

I have to say I am so disappointed in our experience at Gravitas! I went with my husband for New Year’s Eve dinner on Sunday and have to say the dinner was not worth the price- and I don’t say this lightly as my husband and I are not fussy customers. First, the vibes in the restaurant were just off as soon as we arrived. We had to wait about 15 minutes for our 8pm reservation, and the lobby was not arranged to be any sort of waiting room, it seemed. There was another couple of two already waiting when we arrived, also uncomfortably. Our host was kind but seemed frazzled, kind of already giving us a non-chill vibe. When we finally sat down things seemed to be better. Our waitress was very kind and attentive. We received our amuse bouche which was delicious and probably my favorite course (ironically). However, I have a severe tree nut allergy and when the food came, they gave me a nut free replacement for the lamb meat ball. This information was not presented to us as we received the food (not form our waitress). I had to flag our waitress to ask her why ours looked different after a few minutes. This could have been deadly if I tried my husbands food! Other mishaps included fairly undercooked seafood, cold food, large delays in between servings, the toffee pudding was extremely dry and crumbly, and the manager tried to serve my husband the same dish twice for two different courses accidentally. Overall the restaurant atmosphere seemed stressful, not sure if this related to the delays in the kitchen. The bathroom was also disgusting. We were there for three hours in total and I got sick the very next day (I suspect food poisoning to be honest). Overall for the price, it was not what we had hoped for.

Gravitas is a wonderful 1 Michelin star restaurant, complemented by an incredible seating area, good service, and decent food. We visited Gravitas during restaurant week, and selected their 3-course menu. Right from the start, the hosts were kind and welcoming. They showed us to our table. It took some time for the waiter to appear; however, no big deal. He was very professional and polite. After selecting a few drinks and the menu, we got the bread. It was well made. Nothing out of the ordinary but we were happy. The heirloom tomato appetizer was a better option than the Thai-inspired shrimp dish. It’s delicious basil oil worked perfectly and the tomato appetizer looked beautiful. The shrimp was a bit too raw for my liking and there wasn’t enough sauce. Yet, it had merit. The mains were a bit disappointing. I have yet to find a good DC Michelin starred restaurant that serves incredible mains. The roasted chicken was stew-esque. Their supplemental wagyu was unbelievably tough. I could barely slice it with my knife. Felt a bit like a rip off - never tasted such terrible wagyu (not for its flavor but for its lacking tenderness). Otherwise, their wagyu dish had some positives: I loved the panisse and you can’t go wrong with chanterelles. I wish their sauce didn’t look like grey mush, but it was tasty nonetheless. Overall, there was no uniformity in the dish - a bit of flavor shopping by combining ingredients that did not unite into a single, meaningful dish. The desserts were great though! We thoroughly enjoyed their coconut-chocolate mousse and peaches and cream. I forget the name of our cocktail but it was also an incredible choice. Overall, Gravitas fell short of expectations on some key dishes. However, the flavors were good, service was on point, and the dining room was gorgeous.

I have been to Gravitas 8-9 times total since 2021. I dined last on September 28,2023. I have to say, a lot has changed. What once used to be one of my favorite Michelin restaurants in dc, is now further down the list. They have changed out a lot of staff , which is to be expected in restaurants. However, the new manager and some staff fell short of my expectations for a Michelin restaurant.The man who I presume is the manager stared a bit too much at one of my girlfriends throughout our whole duration at the restaurant. Even stopping to check her out as she walked to the bathroom. Mind you, we were one of the only ones in the restaurant and the last people in there. We also felt as we lacked privacy during our conversations. We were having a random conversation amongst ourselves where I casually stated to my friend maybe I should have done the wine pairing. A guy in a braided ponytail heard me from across the restaurant at the bar and offered me the pairing mid conversation with my other guests…. He could have waited a few minutes, just really odd. The best person was our waitress Rebekkah. She was on point and very nice. The guy shaving the black truffle for us dropped the black truffle on my friend, I don’t think that’s very sanitary. He should have also been wearing gloves while holding the truffle. Spoons were not brought to eat butternut squash foam soap thing, big mistake on their part as a Michelin restaurant. As far as the food, it was pretty good but not excellent. The presentations were gorgeous. Nothing really wowed me but it was decently good. The duck was way too chewy. The flavors were good. The portions seem to be getting smaller and smaller each visit. I used to leave gravitas so full. I used to get to course 4 out of 6 and not be able to eat anymore. I felt very hungry after leaving and so did my guests. We paid 1k for 3 guests which isn’t bad for a Michelin, but we definitely could have gone somewhere else and had a better experience. Not to mention there was no one else in the restaurant at all, which used to not be the case. Again not a horrible experience by any means, just not up to par. Could have been better all around besides our waitress who was great. Note: I have left them another review about a year ago on an email I no longer have access to with 5 stars. A shame honestly, just has changed.