Palena
Row 1
Palena is known as much for the cheeseburger on the café menu as for the more elegant, seasonally driven food that is served in the dining room. After a stint as the White House chef, it was an interesting move for chef-restaurateur Frank Ruta to set his restaurant in Cleveland Park, far away from the glitzy, lobbyist-packed K Street dining scene. Though the restaurant’s dining room offers sophisticated menu items like a guinea hen ballotine, the café really shines as a low-key neighborhood spot, turning out a simple roast chicken from the wood-fired oven and homey pasta dishes like spaghetti with cauliflower, pine nuts, and egg.
The burger at Washington, D.C.’s Palena Café is certainly a fancy-pants one, but that doesn’t mean it’s at all precious. Chef Frank Ruta’s burger starts with a loosely packed 7-ounce patty of Angus beef (mostly chuck and trim from aged steak cuts) that’s got a 60:40 fat ratio, about double the fat of your average burger. He gussies it up with a slice of a truffled Italian cheese called Sottocenere al Tartufo and a smear of powerfully garlicky mayo, and it’s served on a big fluffy bun that compresses nicely once you get into it. Make sure you have napkins handy, and be ready for a flavor bomb. — Dan Myers
Foursquare Tips
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A solid neighborhood standby, Palena offers both your typical upscale dining room experience plus a more casual cafe where the cheeseburger has a national following. [Eater 38 Member] -
*** 1/2 stars in Tom Sietsema's Fall Dining Guide 2011. (Tom's tip: Try the orange-scented, lemon-glazed donut.) http://wapo.st/oeeJgQ -
Palena is two restaurants under one roof: a softly lit dining room with some formality and a casual cafe where the smell of the wood grill fills the air. The cafe has the areas best gnocchi. -
The Palena Cheeseburger is the must-order here. With just truffled cheese & a garlicky, mustard mayo, it doesn't sound, or look, like much, but it's one of the best burgers you can get in the DC area. -
The chef at this intimate cafe used to work in the biggest-name house of them all: the White House. Garlicky mayo and truffled Italian cheese on a delicious patty - Reagan and Bush must've been happy! -
Sit at the bar & order cheeseburger & fries! -
Palena was one of the worst dining experiences i have had recently Our food arrived two hours after ordering. The burger we order medium rare was well done and an order of ravioli was soaked in oil. -
Better yet, Ruta has expanded the caf menu, adding little snacks, more pastas and even an all-beef, nose-to-tail menu for groups of six or more. -
When you go (and you should) sit outside and order the fries -
Get the burger. Chef Frank Ruta uses Angus beef laced with dry-aged steak, truffled cheese and a brioche bun made in-house.
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The roast chicken really -- really -- is the best deal in town. -
Get the cheeseburger. Palena uses Angus beef laced with dry-aged steak, truffled cheese and a brioche bun made in-house.
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The Uptowner 2.0 dessert is incredible! Save room for it -
Frank Ruta's Palena is three things at once: a formal dining room, a more casual caf and an artisanal market. Don't forget to pick up Ruta's popular lemon-glazed doughnuts while you're here. -
Ask @drink_shaker (aka Jeff Faile) to make you a Manhattan. -
The burger is one of the best in town. -
"Tastes of the Season," an enticing four-course sonnet from chef-owner Frank Ruta, deserves a big audience.
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Get the chicken. It's life-changing. -
Countless have said it, but you will not find a juicier roasted chicken. -
From the burger to the housemade pasta, everything about the food is good. Great place for a relaxed dinner. -Tamesha Warren, Top Chef
