DC

The City

Everyone was so friendly! Pay it forward and keep DC friendly 🙂
The Metro was surprisingly reliable (every time I used it). During the day, there was a train every 5 minutes, and it was clean and quiet. Some locals have complained that it's never on time during rush hour, but I can't comment on that.
Apparently the city is mostly busy on Tuesday through Thursday because of commuting patterns. Many people who work in DC don't live close by and choose to work remotely on Mondays and Fridays, and travel to DC on the other work days.

Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken 🍗	The fried chicken on Bay donut... W O W.. and their creme brulee donut...... oh man.. I don't know. Just get it.
Captain Cookie and the Milkman 🍪	Soft and chewy cookies that I would happily eat in place of a meal. Their ice cream is whatever, but try their cookies
Amsterdam Falafelshop	Great falafel. I don't know how they do it-- the falafel isn't made to order, but it stays so crispy!! But the best part might be all the accompaniments and sauces
Puddin'	Sweet and soft bread pudding 😋10/10 would eat again
The Fainting Goat	I stopped by for a quick churro waffle with sweet potato ice cream. The flavors were on point, but it could have been executed better. No regrets tho
Chicken + Whiskey	Not bad at all. We grabbed some chicken for our flight, so it's our own fault it wasn't fresh
Milk Bar 🍦	Can you blame me for grabbing some pricey cookies so I could freeze them and toast them any time I wanted a hot cookie? I may be basic, but I plan for the future.
Sudhouse	Perfect place to grab some late night tots
&pizza	Perfect place to grab some late night pizza

When I tell people I've been to DC, everyone and their mothers ask if I went to Le Diplomate and Ted's Bulletin. Idk... people may shame you for not going but I wouldn't recommend

Hazel	Really fun brunch plates. The flavors were mostly American, but there was a lil Asian here and there. We got one of everything on the menu, and it was a bit much for 4 people..
Le Diplomate	Absolutely mediocre food and very high prices. Both dishes I ordered were so boring I couldn't finish either of them. BUT, the bagette in the complimentary bread basket... that was A+. It was soft and chewy, and the crust was thin with a hearty crunch. Luckily, you can buy bagettes to go.
Ted's Bulletin	Ok slightly-fancier diner food. But this place gets crowded. You can call ahead to get yourself on the waitlist.

Everything is free!!!!!!!!!! Also, browsing through museums is a great (friend) date activity.

US Botanic Garden 🌼	If you're in DC when it's cold, go here, because it'll feel nice and tropical inside.
National Air and Space Museum 🚀	I think I would've liked this museum more as a child. It was a lot of "look at this ancient thing and read 4 sentences about it". I'd have preferred a more interactive experience or science-y education
National Gallery of Art 🖼	I spent hours here. It's humungous and features a wide range of art styles. The moment I ran into art I didn't like, I could take a turn and quickly find an exhibit of art I did like

14th St / U St Corridor	This stretch is poppin at night. There are bars, clubs, and food everywhere
Kramerbooks & Afterwords Cafe 📖	Definitely a more touristy bookstore (like Powell's in Portland, or City Lights in SF), but fun nonetheless
Second Story Books & Antiques	Discount books yay!

Rose's Luxury 🐔	I loved this restaurant! Their fried chicken was so juicy and crispy and the restaurant staff is known to randomly comp your food. Be prepared for a long wait though-- I was a single diner on a Friday at 8:30pm, and I was seated at the bar in 20 minutes. The couple that sat next to me had arrived at 5:30, but was not seated at the bar until 9pm.
Tail Up Goat	This place has delicious and creative food (but not weird creative where all you eat is a "foam" "reduction"). I found myself smiling after every bite and wondering how their food could taste so happy. I've been twice so far and would be excited to go again.
Lapis	Cool place with solid food. We had fun ordering many plates to share among the 4 of us
Nando's PERi-PERi 🐔	Who cares that this is a chain?! This place has dope chicken. It's reliably good and fast, and their sauces are dank.
Founding Farmers	Decent comfort food. Everything was tasty here, but I had so much better food in DC that I can't in good conscience recommend this place.
Farmers & Distillers	^ Same. Also, same company as Founding Farmers

Copycat Co 🍹	Incredible drinks in a cool bar. The bartenders are great and will make a custom (and delicious) drink for you (and I'm not talking about when you tell a bartender you like gin and citrus and they make you a gin and tonic 😒). They also have relatively inexpensive bar snacks! I had so much fun here both times I'd visited
Archipelago	Delicious tiki drinks!! Who doesn't love a good tiki cocktail
Bresca	They have a signature cocktail with gin, citrus, honey, and..... truffle oil?! If you like gin and truffle oil (probably independently), you'll like this. If that's not your jam, they have other tasty and creative drinks that'll picque your interest
Service Bar	Great fried chicken (lol). You can order single pieces (thighs all the way wooooo) even though it's not on the menu. I also had a decent blood orange cocktail here.

SnoCream	Probably the best Taiwanese snow cream I've had in the US. It's so creamy and smooth, and the flavors are bright and pronounced. Our friends got this catered for their wedding, so we got to try black sesame, almond, strawberry, and pandan
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams	As long as there isn't a Jeni's in SF, I will stop at every one I see
Ice Cream Jubilee 🍨	Thick and custardy ice cream
Dolcezza	Very sweet gelato (what else to say)

The Wydown Coffee Bar ☕️	This was my favorite coffee shop. The staff was friendly and my lattes were pretty good and fast.
Swing's Coffee	Got a solid latte here too
Slipstream	Coffee was ok I guess
Compass Coffee	This coffee tasted burnt AF
Teaism Penn Quarter	Sit-down tea shop which also serves comfort Asian-American food(?)