Foreign National

"Your boss told you it’d be dark, but you never expected something like this on your first mission—you can barely see a foot in front of you. You nearly turn around and head back to HQ, but then the door swings open, and before you know it, you’re walking through a curtain of chains and into a bar where tropical cocktails are flowing, a disco ball is spinning, and there’s someone in the corner eyeing you up and down like they know something you don’t. Focus—you’re here to get your hands on those clandestine documents. Actually, we hate to interrupt this highly entertaining espionage fantasy, but you’re really just here to drink alcohol and eat some cheeseburger bao. But feel free to let your imagination run wild, because Foreign National on Capitol Hill is a perfect place to do that. This spot is dark and kind of sexy, and generally feels like somewhere a spy might use to rendezvous with a source—in a highly stylized movie, at least. But don’t let the interior distract from the food and drinks. The menu has excellent cocktails and bar snacks, like a cheeseburger bao that tastes like a beautiful cross between a Chinese pork bun and a Big Mac, and crispy potato wedges dunked in creamy sriracha hollandaise. Foreign National is the sister bar to Stateside, one of our favorite upscale Vietnamese spots, so we’re not surprised the food is so good—we only wish there were more options to choose from. Since Foreign National is small, don’t come with a group. Sit at the bar with a date, order cocktails and bites, and take it all in. If, by the end of the night, you’re either brave or buzzed enough to admit that this place makes you dream about starring in an espionage thriller, and your date agrees, you two are clearly meant to be together. Food Rundown Cheeseburger Bao & Special Sauce Ridiculously good, and one of the best bar bites in the city. On the outside, this just looks like a bun with sesame seeds on top, but inside there’s a ball of savory seasoned ground beef, plus cheese and pork floss. Be careful not to get molten cheese all over yourself—you don’t want to waste any of that goodness. Crispy Fried Potatoes, Sriracha Hollandaise Get these with the bao for a burger-and-fries kind of thing. Malaysian Spiral Cut Chicken Curry Puffs This is a crispy horn-shaped pastry filled with chicken in a creamy curry sauce, and it’s a great drinking food. An order comes with two. Phở Cuốn, Nước chấm Phở-braised beef with Vietnamese herbs and crispy shallots in a rice noodle wrapper. The beef is tender, the dipping sauce is sweet and spicy, and it’s a lighter bite than the other things on the menu. The rice noodle wrapper can get a little gummy, but otherwise, this is a great appetizer. Smashed Cucumbers In Strange Flavor Sauce Cucumbers can be so boring. Not these, which come in a spicy szechuan pepper sauce. They’re a great thing to munch on if you're in the mood for some plants." - Aimee Rizzo

"Peel back the curtains on this unmarked door on Pike to reveal a bar with psychedelic wallpaper, a disco ball, gold tchotchkes, and lots of tropical cocktails. You can’t help but feel like you should be carrying out some kind of secret agent mission, only you’re not trapped in a spy movie dream sequence—you’re drinking alcohol and eating cheeseburger bao at Foreign National. Bring somebody you’re trying to impress here and order some excellent drinks and snacks—like the expat punch with passionfruit and rooibos or a cheeseburger bao." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley

"This dark, cavernous, mahogany-hued bar is the perfect place to let your imagination run wild, since it feels like an alternate dimension in which you’re the protagonist in a secret agent movie. Only, instead of somersaulting across the bar to avoid your sworn enemy’s attacks, the only real obligation you have here is to order delicious tropical drinks (the passionfruity, apple brandy-packed Expat Punch is our favorite) and stand-out snacks. Specifically, the cheeseburger bao with a special sauce dip that should be sold in bottle form." - aimee rizzo

"The only thing that gives this psychedelic Capitol Hill spot away is the line outside that starts to assemble after 8pm on any given Saturday night. Otherwise, this nondescript door along Pike would probably go unnoticed. There’s a lot to notice inside—chain curtains that may or may not smack you in the face on the way in, a room that buzzes with conversations, excellent tropical drinks, and rorschach shadows that project from a mosaic-tiled disco ball. Between that and their cheeseburger bao, Foreign National is one of our favorite places for an exciting night out. " - kayla sager riley, aimee rizzo

"You might not have access to a hot air balloon on short notice, but that doesn’t mean you can’t plan a cinematic night your date will remember. That’s where Foreign National comes in. This spot on Capitol Hill is a psychedelic cocktail bar that could feasibly be featured in a spy heist movie, specifically the scene when two enemy agents rendezvous and fall in love. Grab two seats at the bar for a few rounds of sparkling passionfruit punch, and add the cheeseburger bao if things start to get serious." - aimee rizzo