Banana Leaves Asian Restaurant

Started with the Papaya salad, not quite a traditional Som Tom but was light, flavorful & a decent portion for the price. Satisfying & recommended if you like that sort of green papaya salad. Next up lemongrass chicken buns. Grilled meat nicely done. Satisfying even though the buns were a tad more dense than I expected. Lastly, Curry Laksa. I'm a fan of this dish so was eager to try their take on an old favorite. It was filling but the toppings (tofu, chicken) lacked flavor & would have been better served if pre-marinated in the curry or even salted. With that said, the coconut curry was light & fresh tasting. I was hungry & drained the last drop. I had a pot of jasmine tea which came in an ornate pot & wasn't overpowering or bitter. Overall a quick stop & since they had just opened for their evening service I was served very quickly. In & out in 40min or less early on a Monday even after lingering a bit over the last cup of my tea. Not sure what it would be like on a weekend or later in the evening but I'd make another stop if I was in the area to try their menu of dishes from all over Asia.

I got the Singaporean noodle. It was great. The server was really attentive. After ordering my food arrived quite quickly. Nice and steaming hot as i like it! The spice was on point and flavorful with big juicy shrimps cooked perfectly. All in all a nice place to have a quick bite or a place to chat for hours with friends.

The Food at Banana Leaves was very good. The layout of the dishes when they came to the table was great. If you like Asian food for a fair price, and want to support a Family Owned business, I couldn't recommend this location more! Their menu is quite vast as they have a whole side with many types of sushi, and filling meals on the other. There is a wide variety of drinks to choose from both Alcoholic and Non-Alcoholic. My dinner consisted of Grilled Chicken Satay and the General Tso's Chicken and Broccoli with a cup of rice. A tasteful and filling meal!

Small and quiet with amazing food. We ordered the Taiwanese Braised Pork Belly, Indonesian Nadi Goreng and the steamed broccoli, all of which was cooked to perfection.

The danzai noodle soup was excellent, as well as generously portioned. The fried banana dessert was decent if unremarkable. I would come back for the food, but the service was almost entirely self-service: order and pay via a website. When I had a question about the menu, I had to go find the server on a different floor.

While in DC for a conference, I was looking for a new place to try close to the hotel. This place popped up on the maps and I decided to give it a try as I wasn’t that familiar with Asian fusion. The large menu was a little intimidating, but decided to try something new. So I settled on the crispy tangerine beef. I was pleasantly surprised when the meal showed up it was a generous portion and looked scrumptious. The flavors lived up to the visuals and I was treated to a nice citrus flavor with the beef. This is a great little place, with Little being a keyword. The service is pretty much digital you order and pay all from the app. Worked out well and everybody in my group was taking care of in a timely fashion. The place was good enough that I decided to come back the second day and try a different dish. I decided to try the mango chicken. Wow good, it wasn’t as flavorful as the tangerine beef from the previous day. A couple people in my party tried the General TSO chicken and it was really good. During both visits, everyone in our party, enjoyed their food, and felt like it was a good value and had excellent flavor.

They offered a great 2-for-1 deal on DoorDash. I was able to get 2 Chicken Pad Thai for the price of one! The food was pretty typical but no complaints for the value. I would order again

Ordered take out. 2 pad thais, 1 red curry, and an order of chicken satay. The red curry was missing. The pad thai and chicken satay had NO flavor at all. The most bland food I've ever eaten. Pieces of chicken in the pad thai seemed to be undercooked. Will never be ordering from here again

The pad thai was plain, dry and doesn't taste like original pad thai with tamarin sauce. Drunken noodle was OK even if it should be spicy with herbs and noodle should stir fry with the sauce instead of separated by pouring the sauce on top of white wide noodle. I ordered with Uber eat, haven't experience the service or feel the ambiance there.

Walked in, party of eight. We had a reservation. They separated us and put us at two tables of four. They then left us alone (not once in our whole experience did anyone come to check in with us at all) to discover that there were no paper menus offered, only a QR code. I asked for paper menus and we were given two, which we looked at and decided what we wanted to order from. We then realized that, since the waiters didn't check in with the tables, there was actually no way for us to order even with the paper menus. So we ordered our food with the code after wasting ten minutes. We then waited another 50 mins for our food to arrive, as we watched two parties who arrived after us be served first. When it finally arrived, it was on dishes that hadn't been washed well, and it was mediocre. One of my friends ordered an appetizer that arrived halfway through his meal. I ordered brown rice that I couldn't eat because it had been cooked into a grainy lump. I truly hope that the owner of this restaurant sees this and works to change these things. I really wanted to enjoy this restaurant, it just didn't do a single thing well, to be fully honest. Also: the app that they have you order with applies a default 25% tip that one must opt out of. This with nonexistent customer service.

The setting is compact, with 2 levels of seating and a cute bar on 1st floor. Attractive space overall, if a little tight. Sells some Asian dry goods, condiments, etc., off to the side. The menu offers up lots and lots of different Asian cuisines/dishes, and, frankly, that gives me pause. The meal that I went with, luncheon bowl special, is simple, and that's A-okay, but it's also bland. The Saigon fried spring roll that comes with it is unrecognizable, spongy. A middling beef & broccoli is so tame as to be flavorless. Service is efficient. Staffers are courteous. Food is average, prices competitive for the Dupont Circle area.

I found a big spider drowning at the bottom of my Thai iced tea. It was gross. When I brought it up to the wait staff, they shrugged and said, "What do you want?" I would avoid

Swung by here on a lunch break and would definitely do so again! Tucked into this old townhouse is an excellent restaurant. Note that those with mobility difficulties will not be well-deserved here. The stairs inside and out are steep and plentiful. If you can climb stairs, get in here! The menu and ability to pay individually is available via the QR code at each table. If you're old school, full printed menus are available and there was no issue splitting checks. The food was extremely good and service was quick and helpful. Importantly for me, they brought big bottles of water to the table for filling. Ambiance wasn't much to speak of, but the building is very nice in and of itself.

We went to Banana Leaves because it had good reviews and my mom was in town staying at a hotel nearby. This is a hidden gem in the city- not terribly expensive, kind workers, and absolutely delicious food. I live about 10 miles away and am specifically going to go into the city to return. We ordered the vegetable spring rolls, pork dumplings, chicken wonton soup, chicken pad see ew and vegetable tempura. The vegetable spring rolls were crispy, chock full of veggies, and delicious. The dumplings were perfectly fried and had so much flavor. I will dream about the chicken wonton soup- it's not like what I grew up eating in NY with just broth and a wonton. It was so much more flavorful, had multiple wontons, pieces of chicken, and vegetables too. By far the best wonton soup I've ever had. The shrimp tempura also may have been the best tempura I've had- it wasn't greasy at all and super crispy, and came out piping hot. The pad see ew had lots of chicken and broccoli- definitely wasn't a cheap helping. It was a tad salty and a little bit too saucy but that's my personal preference. I'm looking forward to returning for date night! I want to try their cocktails! Thank you for an amazing lunch.

I liked the ambiance for a solo meal with a book. It's a small restaurant with a few tables and a counter. The crab rangoon was fine, but the unagidon I ordered was way too saucy. The sauce was a bit syrupy and sweet. Others might enjoy it, but wasn't my cup of tea.

We intended to go to Bucca Di Beppo across the street and that was a mistake. We couldn't get seated despite reservations, so we left and walked over to Banana Leaves. So glad we did. Service was attentive and quick. We ordered various dishes: edamame, chicken pad see ewe, string beans, Chinese fried rice, tofu with vegetables. All were yummy. Drinks are not refillable and come in bottles. Will be back.

I drive by Banana Leaves every day on my way to work, it was finally time to try it out! I ordered for take out the other night, and was pretty satisfied with my experience! I really liked the hot and sour soup! The pad see ew was a bit dry, but I still enjoyed and felt like I got a hearty portion size. I would love to come back and try more of this menu!

I have enjoyed carry out at this place for at least twelve years. I'll still love them but tonight was not their best show. Pad thai was very dry. I assumed peanuts would be in there but didn't find any! Crab rangoon was nowhere to be found. Bummer. They gave me a credit. I don't know which family member housed the entire philly roll but I have a pretty good idea! I'll try the laksa soon, fingers crossed that it tastes as good as it has in the past! I'm looking for a winner! The ambiance does not apply (delivery) but generally it is an attractive place.

The crab Rangoon and Korean Kimchi Bacon Fried Rice were sooooo good. I wasn't expecting much since it's like a fusion type of spot but I will probably go back for this rice every time I'm in DC. The prices are reasonable, too.

I went to this place twice in one day to try out the different menu items and boy do they have variety. They have Chinese, Japanese, and Thai cuisine, and do a great job of showcasing all three menu types. The service is extremely quick, and was crowded for lunch and dinner which was great to see. The food was a little bit bland, but some menu items (spicy chicken wontons) were extremely spicy. Overall, I'd come back here again just to try out their Japanese cuisine and see how their sushi rolls are, but definitely a great sit down lunch/dinner spot for any occasion :)

Average food spot Pros: - great location - lots of food - they make their own chili oil - nice waiters - easy to have separate checks Cons: - empty on a Thursday night - mediocre flavor

Clos to that awful Washington Hilton and the Walgreen's on Connecticut Avenue. Affordable option if you are stuck at the Hilton with its way overpriced options. The drunken noodles were very tasty. The fried rice and pad thai were just OK. The summer rolls were decent. Very small dining room. They do a lot of takeout delivery orders. And yes those stairs are very steep.

I haven't written a Yelp review in a long time but had to do so about Banana Leaves. I hadn't tried them in all my years in DC due to the 3-star average review score, but after seeing a lot of positive reviews on another site, I decided to give them a shot -- and I'm glad I did. It looks like a lot of the poor reviews skew toward years ago, so it's possible they've improved. I ordered 3 things for delivery: the drunken noodles, the crispy beef, and the chili chicken. All of them were better than I expected, and unlike many Asian restaurants in the area, the portions were hefty. I have two very minor quibbles: 1) I like the way the drunken noodles are done with a lot of minced chicken on top, but the downside is that the noodles on the bottom aren't well covered in sauce. It's a little hard to mix them up. No big deal. 2) The chili chicken is not even close Sichuan authentic. I didn't expect that here, of course, but if you're looking for the classic chili chicken dish with lots of peppers, this isn't it. All that said, it was very good. I'll definitely order again.

So wanted to love this place- great restaurant name, solid looking menu and a good 2-for-1 offer on Uber Eats. We gave it a shot, but making other food for the fam now. All pretty bland... even the panang chicken (which has five pieces of chicken and the rest is potatoes and a few green beans)... and the 2-for-1 is pretty much one order total. The order was late and we walked to the main road to find the driver- no worries as it's a beautiful night. Overall, wouldn't order again, but wish the restaurant well, assuming we just got an "off" order and hope this helps them make improvements. Thank you for the effort! :)

Amazing customer service experience!! On a rainy Saturday night when deliveries were backed up, an employee who doesn't usually deliver decided to drive our delivery directly to us to avoid it being late. We so appreciated it! Food is always great too with a wide selection.

Food is good, but a tad bit salty due to too much soy sauce in some of the dishes. Good service. Vietnamese spring rolls were a bit bland.

This is an incredibly well priced restaurant in Dupont Circle. The food is tasty, and the service is fast. It's an underappreciated gem in the neighborhood.

Picked up some late night take out from here with my friend. The General Tso chicken was actually pretty good, definitely typical Chinese takeout style. The pieces of chicken were large and well seasoned. I just wish it came with more veggies. It only came with a few pieces of broccoli. We split one order for the both of us which was good enough. It did leave us feeling full and tired. The spring rolls were large, but were too oily for my taste. You can really taste the grease on the outside. The area around the restaurant is a bit sketch, so just be alert when walking around at night. I don't see myself going specifically to this restaurant to eat, however, if I'm really hungry and want something easy and close by I might get it again.

Really good Curry Laksa! Nice staff. Great prices. Nice place to sit and eat. Portions are big but that's great for taking some home. Great place to eat on my first DC visit!

Food was very good and wall art added interesting touches to the ambiance. We started with a round of Thai iced tea that was sweet and refreshing. Papaya salad (named "Tropical Salad" at this restaurant) was tangy and delicious. Vietnamese Shrimp Summer Rolls were good and the accompanying peanut sauce was thick and tasty. We got a 4-in-One Sushi Roll loaded with 4 types of fish that slices were too large for a single bite. The Pad Thai was also good, but our favorite entree was the Thai Basil Leaves Chicken. The rendition at this restaurant was scrumptious with a thick savory sauce and a medley of perfectly cooked peppers including a few jalapeño slices for some zing. We enjoyed the seemingly deconstructed (and possibly incongruous) Thai Banana Leaf--rice cooked in in a banana leaf with coconut and pandan giving it a pretty light green color. This accompanied a mound of peanutty chicken curry with bits of potato and a separate pile of breaded shrimp in a different curry and a crispy fried egg. We finished this meal off with2 desserts: Mango Sticky Rice--their rendition had finely grated toasted coconut atop the rice for added flavor--as well as Honey Fried Banana--4 mini egg rolls with banana drizzled with honey and generously sprinkled with crushed peanuts. We enjoyed all the food. It was interesting that the place is still operating in pandemic mode. Orders and payments are all done via QR code and a single server took care of the entire restaurant on a Saturday night. While he managed to do so efficiently, we felt that this was not ideal and a bit disappointing-- kind of like self check out in the grocery store.

Worse Thai food I've ever eaten! Waste of money. Ordered chicken pad Thai and got what looks like fried tofu pad Thai! Maybe 3 pieces of chicken. Then I ordered dessert, sticky rice with mango. Wow, how can they mess this up! Don't even know why I bothered digging in. Toppings were brown(sugar?) and questionable. Some kind of purple topping!? WTH! Don't waste your money!

Great lunch. Quick, tasty and good service. Hot and Sour soup was some of the best I have had.

After eating from the Hilton's restaurants for 3 days I decided to walk a block and try this place out . Very small in a old house but good service and food

Good food Sushi bar with two tv's with the news going. Good mix of locals and conventioneers. I generally get the vermicelli and peanut/honey sauce. Dumplings were great. Not too much mango in the mango sticky rice and a cold Center if the rice but still good.

Really awesome restaurant- my company caters lunch from here, and I've been able to try the Malaysian mee goreng and the Taiwanese pork belly. and DANG both of those dishes are awesome! The mee goreng is a generous helping and lasted me for two meals, and it tasted delicious. They are thicker flour noodles, similar to lo mein, with Malay flavors. The Taiwanese pork belly has soo much flavor as well, and was served with bok choy!

Banana Leaves is a great takeout spot! I love their sushi. Sushi around this area isn't super affordable and I feel like Banana Leaves has a competitive price for really fresh tasting sushi. The crab rangoon and pork dumplings apps are great. I have also tried the Curry Laksa and the Taiwanese Pork Belly dishes which are both delicious. Takeout orders are ready pretty quickly after you call them in. Usually 10 minutes after an order for 1 person. About 20 minutes when I've ordered for 2 people. They are always packed really well.

The venue is nice in the inside. Very cozy spot! The Tom Kha was very good! It has a nice flavor and quite likely one of the better ones I've had. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the Pad Thai. It was okay. I was thrown off because there were a lot of tofu pieces in it. They tasted good and added a chewy texture since the chicken was dry and a little tough. It was on the sweet side but other flavors didn't come out as much. The customer service wasn't the best so I would say overall it was alright. I may give it another chance and go back because the fried sushi rolls that a couple were eating looked delicious!!

Horrible! What a ripoff restaurant. I ordered the Tom Yum soup for $7.98 and paid extra $3 for shrimp. And they gave me literally only 2 shrimps for $3. Are you kidding? Plus foods are so bad. Don't waste your money to order foods here

3 stars because small portions for peanut chicken plus I got a to go order and they didn't pack any utensils or napkins... this should be standard. Barely any chicken and the noodles looks and taste like Italian angel hair pasta.

i don't know what's up with all these terrible reviews..... EVERYTIME i come here they serve me fresh and delicious sushi! I've taken all my friends here and they all love it. The entrees are great too a crowd favorite is the red curry .

My family wanted some sushi, I am not particularly into sushi but they have other really good and delicious options. We all have different dishes and all of them tasted really good..I really recommend this place if you like Asian food or if you wanna try something new it's definitely worth it. I would have giving 5 stars but they never mentioned that the sodas were not free refill, and for almost $6 per glass of soda it can get expensive, they should explain that as soon as you order any sodas that it is not free refill. But besides that we had a great time.

The food is not good! The service is so so at best! Maybe it's an off day, but the sushi is not recommended.

I had food delivered, so can't say anything about the actual establishment. But the food is definitely some of the best Chinese and other Asian cuisine I have had in DC, both in quality and taste. The general tso's chicken has the darker sauce that actually has multiple flavors, not the standard orange/red one you get in 99% of takeout places that is just bad. The crispy peel beef had a good flavor, wasn't amazing and wasn't very crispy by the time I got it, but still good. The curry puffs were really nice, a little different from ones I've had at Thai restaurants, but a really nice crust and great flavor. The spicy chicken wonton was probably the least impressive for me, but was not by any means bad. If you're craving that it will more than do the job, just wasn't as elevated as the others. I have been looking for good Chinese in DC for a while now and have been really unimpressed so far with anywhere, as many places had 1-2 good dishes but none that I enjoyed everything overall. Will definitely try more from here in the future, and the dinner entree portions were easily enough for 2 people to share.

$8.95 lunch specials - pad thai, honey peanut noodles, pad see ew, curry laksa, and some more. Not the best I've had but pretty good. Very convenient if you're in the area.

The ice cream has a bit of freezer burn and is slightly chalky but the crispy beef peel was great and the service was awesome.

My company group ordered from this restaurant today. I figured you can't go wrong with an order of eel avocado and spicy tuna rolls (this is my go-to in NY). I was horribly mistaken. When the sushi came, I was struck by the fact that the spicy tuna roll did not use spicy mayo. Instead, there were these weird spicy flakes and it tasted pretty horrible. The eel avocado was not much better. The rice was way too thick and had a weird after taste. I know you can't expect sushi deliveries to be perfect, but this was just downright bad. I would highly recommend ordering elsewhere.

This place is awesome. I read through some of the old reviews and to be frank, people on Yelp can suck real bad. Banana Leaves is an awesome restaurant, if you give it a chance. It is very close to the Washington Hilton, which on a cold winter night makes it a prime restaurant. It's walkable from Dupont Circle, and there are a number of other hotels within walking distance, so it is well situated. It's not flashy from the outside, but the sign is clear and the place is perfectly welcoming. I went there four nights in a row for dinner. It was just me, so I sat downstairs. I ordered through Toast, and presto, my food arrived - no fuss, no problems. Each night I tried something different, and each night I was pleasantly surprised. Night 1 was Singapore Noodles, then Laksa, then Thai Fried Rice, then I went back to Singapore Noodles on my last night. True, the food was toned down for spiciness, so I asked for a spicy sauce on the side, which solved matters. True, the price is slightly on the upper end, but the food is quality, and the service is excellent. The service was totally excellent. Each night, either the primary server (an Asian lady with very kind eyes and a very kind voice) served except the first night, when I think her daughter served. No matter - the service was excellent. They were friendly, but not too friendly. They were attentive, but not all over you. They were quick and efficient, and no fuss. Overall, I repeated three times for a reason. As such, the next time I am in DC, I will be going here for sure. I strongly recommend Banana Leaves to anyone in the Washington Hilton or in the Dupont Circle area.

I stopped by here one day for a late lunch with the lowest of expectations. Not only had a read a lot of "hit or miss" reviews on Yelp, but it's located on a semi-shady corner right on Florida Ave., just off of Connecticut Ave. I walk into the red - ablaze dining area which was rather quite small. There was soothing music playing to set the mood that was just a bit more upbeat than music you might hear at a spa. Definitely "journey" music. I ordered the Vietnamese Shrimp Summer Spring Rolls w/ shrimp, shredded papaya, mango, lettuce and basil, wrapped in rice paper. Although the basil was a bit overpowering, and the rice paper could have been a little more moist, it was pretty good. A side of plum sauce topped with chopped peanuts accompanied it. The rich sauce was a perfect compliment to the light and fresh flavors of the roll. I was then served my Dragon Roll - crunchy tuna, topped with avocado, one of my favorites. Despite all of the negative reviews about the sushi, I really enjoyed it! It was just perfect for me - nice portion, crispness of the tobiko and the softness of the ripened avocados played well together! I was more than pleased. The quality of the sushi was comparable to Nooshi, who seem to get much better ratings on their sushi than Banana Leaves. I'm going to go ahead and give this experience a rating of 3.5 and round up to 4, because I love a good underdog! Plus, there was nothing really that turned me off and I was in and out in less than 35 mins.

Pleasant first time experience. The waitress (Asian woman with long black hair- I wished I had asked for her name) was very attentive despite her being the only server. Her professionalism and effectiveness made the experience even better. She was very kind to my mom whilst serving us, total bonus!! The food was also delicious and freshly made. Didn't get to take photos due to hunger. Will return for sure!!

I have been coming here since I wrote my first review in 2014. This is my go to for tasty & afforable pan Asian cuisine. I have hosted a few events now at Banana Leaves because the owner Yeni and her staff make you feel like part of the Banana Leaves family. The staff go above and beyond to provide the best level of service. The dishes will make your guest wanting more. My faves are the shrimp dishes, crab rangoons, and the thai rice. Thank you to Yeni and her entire staff for always taking good care of me and my guest whenever we visit. I can't wait to go back!

Food was so good. Tom kha soup, kung pao tofu, and pad Thai were delicious. Nice portions for the price.

Portion size is big here, which is plus. The mojito was great too. I tried vegetarian tempura here and I get it that tempura is supposed to be fried but I found those too oily and did not enjoy after taste experience. The service was good and the place was quite enough to enjoy long talk with friend.

Was basically my go to during Covid. Had it at least once a week and it was always well made, fresh and delicious.

My fiance hyped this place up, but I found it pretty average. We came in on a weeknight and were the only patrons in the place, which felt odd. The service was very spotty--the waiter seemed extremely attentive at first, but then disappeared for long periods of time. The food was mediocre; my favorite item was the rice.

Drinks/atmosphere 5+++++ stars. Food/service 3 stars. I wish the bar area was bigger and livelier because if it was, it would absolutely be our neighborhood bar. We really like it here because it's not as if Banana Leaves is trying to be something it isn't. They don't make mediocre food and charge a fortune for it. Rather, their sushi and entrees are suitably priced. The drinks on the other hand... First, they have Hpnotiq Martinis--my absolute favorite drink and so very hard to find. And the price? $8.50. Yes, you read right. NO ONE in the area has a regular drink list as inexpensive as Banana Leaves. And they are not watered down in the slightest--VERY generous pours. The cocktail list is pretty extensive with a wide variety of unique martinis, many as low as $6.95. Food prices were reasonable as well. Sushi was less costly than at most of the other restaurants we've tried. Not the best we've had, but still good and at a justifiable price point. I ordered standard shrimp Pad Thai, which was just okay. I liked that it had chunks of tofu, but didn't like that it only had a few shrimp. However, given it was only $9.95, I'm not sure I should expect much more. The servers are friendly, but there seems to be a bit of confusion as to who is responsible for what. We walked in and stood there for a few moments, not sure if we should wait to be seated or seat ourselves. (Later, a couple coming in after us faced the same dilemma.) A few staff members walked by us and smiled a lot (frankly because I don't think their English is very good.) Finally we seated ourselves at the bar, were given menus, and waited. And waited. Staff members were very busy, rushing around, but the bartender seemed to have many jobs that night: bartending, serving, seating... Love the decor and atmosphere of Banana Leaves. It's Asian-inspired throughout and clean. There is an expansive second floor dining room and a bar and seating area with a street-facing picture window on the first floor. In conclusion, I think you get what you pay for. It you want the best food and the best service, go someplace else and pay twice as much. If you want good enough food and excellent drinks at way lower than market rates, go here.

This place is a hidden gem in Washington DC. Great cocktail menu, delicious sushi, not terribly overpriced like some of the other sushi restaurants closer to Dupont. I came here for dinner on a Friday night by recommendation from a friend. I was a bit skeptical when were walking kind of far from downtown, but it was definitely worth it. I ordered the sushi special (california roll + assorted pieces of nigiri). The sushi was very fresh and I would have ordered more if I wasn't full. Their cocktail menu looked amazing, and they were GREAT prices ($6-8, even for martinis made with Grey Goose!!). Unfortunately, they were out of the two cocktails I wanted to order so I didn't end up getting one. Hoping to try this place again in about a week. They better have their bar restocked by then!!

Delicious!!! Love the ginger salad - so refreshing. The two who ordered sushi were happy along with 3 vegans - nice job Banana Leaves!!! We ordered through grub hub and the food came earlier than promised (which is always welcome). We will definitely eat here again!