Gerard's
Gerard's, web site, 915 15th Street NW, Washington, DC, 202-737-4445 (Metro Trip Planner - opens in new window) [Washingtonian | WaPo | City Paper | Don Rockwell | openlist | Yelp | wcities | Gayot]
Update June 8, 2008: See Gerard Pangaud Bistro.
This place is accused of being inconsistent, so make sure Gerard is cooking that night. If so, it is phenomenal. Get the sweetbreads, the duck (or maybe the lobster, but $58 there), and the brioche. This meal will blow you away. Not cheap, but at its peak one of the two or three best places in this area, along with CityZen and the Inn at Little Washington. Did I mention that Gerard ran a Michelin two-star back in France? Sadly, the décor of this place is ugly, but I don’t care.