Hard Rock Cafe

This was the first time I’d been to a Hard Rock Cafe in a few years. I used to frequent them whenever I could; collecting pins for my kids and me. This experience did not live up to expectations. We were seated right away, which was nice, but then had a delay in being served. The food was decent. My wife got nachos and I got a pulled pork sandwich. Not bad at all. However, we received very poor attention. I flagged our served down once to get refills but she only listened long enough to get my wife’s order. I and the others in our party got no attention at all. The capper was that I had to wash my hands after the sandwich but the bathroom was completely out of soap. I won’t be back to this Cafe. I have always liked the brand but it seems to be fading and this is a reflection of that.

We had a great time for dinner on a Monday night. Our kids really enjoyed the atmosphere. Our daughter bought a shirt. I got the chicken club and my meal was very good. My husband got the tacos and they were amazing. We got a cherry crumble with granola for dessert- the cherry festival special. We sat on the main floor. There is a second floor that mainly seems to be used for groups. While we were there a few school groups came in but they went upstairs and we never heard from them again. The bathrooms are in the basement, which is typical for the area. They were nicely done and clean. The service was good and friendly. My daughter left her shirt on accident and an employee ran out to give it to us. We were touched by that act of kindness. When I walked outside I noticed it's right next to Ford's Theater where Lincoln was shot. History is everywhere in this town. There's also a big gift shop across the street. They have something for everyone.

Very busy. Nothing too crazy and nothing worth bragging about. Had live music. Went on the 4th of July. Very busy. Was able to get seated quickly though. Tried “DC’s finest burger,” probably should have just gotten the BBQ burger. Good fries.

I wish I could put 0 stars but I can’t. Food was mediocre at best. I ordered the Mac’n’cheese, and I think they actually forgot to put the cheese. It was basically oil and bell pepper. Not creamy. Oily. The chicken was fine. Cocktail also. The cutlery was not clean, the ground, was sticky, trash everywhere. There was a fork on the floor, two servers kicked it and never picked it up??? Same as all the things on the ground. The place was empty, lots of servers « working » so it’s not like no one had the time to at least broom. One of the server talked for at least 15 min with someone sitting at the table behind me. Honestly, I am afraid to see how the kitchen looks like. Positive note, our server was kind.

Stopped here on our walk to the White House. Food ad service were both excellent. Troy took good care of our family during our mid afternoon visit. The atmosphere is typical of all hard rocks with the music memorabilia. Restrooms were clean. All of the employees seemed nice. I'd go there again if I were in DC.

Stopped in for lunch, the place was ridiculously busy. Overwhelmed with the service, has three servers on top of each other. Shout out to Willuam for making a great cocktail, off the menu. Stardust wings were good, Cobb salad was well received. Caesar salad was not fresh or crispy. Typical chain food, Sysco style. It felt like the place was dirty, sitting in the bar area. Used the facilities before leaving and the women's room was a mess, garbage all over and again felt dirty. Fun to see the memorabilia but not the best experience.

This wasn’t the best dining experience. I felt bad for our waitress, as it seems she was extremely busy with many tables and also the bar. That caused us to have pretty poor service. The food was average and the music was so loud that you couldn’t have a conversation at your table. I wouldn’t go back.

Classic place to eat. Several cool artifacts here. The grilled chicken and pulled pork sandwiches were very good. The A/C was struggling on a hot day!

Im from Ohio and visit Washington dc for first time. KK is the manager and Keisha is the barmaid. They were very professional and friendly Bar was very crowded and everyone was taken care of in a timely manner.

anthony was rlly chill nd funny and sophie was rlly nice best service of my life. 10/10 would recommend

It's been many years since eating at a Hard Rock Cafe. I typically visit to see the STUFF (memorabilia, signed guitars, motorcycles, etc). But this time I went back to the 1st ever HRC I visited that started my obsession and truly loved the food we ordered! The fajitas were cooked excellently, medium rare as requested. The shrimp weren't too spicy, mostly a cayenne and black pepper spice. Mild in my opinion, so if you're wondering 'how spicy are those?', the answer is -- not very. Give them a try! The photo in the menu book showed more of a saucy shrimp but I'm glad they were dry! Our waitress was amazing, recommending some dishes and also being patient when we needed more time to decide. She was friendly and personable, made time to chat with us and not feel rushed through our lunch. Thank you DC HRC for recalibrating my mind about the food when visiting future HRC locations!

Came in as a walk-in to the Washington DC location. I wanted a table for myself only. Busy as Hell and staff looked over worked and slow. I was told over an hour wait or go to the bar. The bar was already packed. Terrible. I had to leave for another alternative. Where was the management? Rating: 1 Star

It's a Hard Rock! Awesome memorabilia, great atmosphere and service with delicious smashburgers.

Been to Hard Rocks world wide but this spot is quite different in that it is small and unlike any I have visited. First, the wait is terribly long and you can't help but wonder why, with a lot of empty tables starring you in the face. Waiting, for the most part is outside on the street if the bar area is filled. There is no waiting area inside. The decore for the most part is lacking compared to other Rocks. Finally seated, the wait staff was pleasant and friendly but seemed like they were overly busy and visits to our table were less than desirable. Food was typically prepared but my guess was left standing. and hot items were cold. Overall our visit was disappointing especially for our younger grandchildren. Be prepared to dig deep as the prices are extremely high. I do not recommend this as a family stop when in DC.

Arrive was good. Little different of a design for the building based on other hard rocks I've been to but the manager greeted us at the door to welcome and thank us for coming in which shows his passion for the place.

Food was good. Nachos could've had a bit more cheese on it. That's the only reason why I didn't give 5 stars. Charmagne was a good waitress. She was kind and patient. Customer service was excellent. The second floor is a fabulous place to have private events.

I have been here several times and most recently came for a New Year's Eve party (which was listed on Eventbrite). I am giving this place 5 stars mainly because it's a fun atmosphere and the D.C. location is really cool with two floors and an "Embassy of Rock & Roll" sign. It's nice to see they run with the D.C. theme. The NYE party was a lot of fun and was only $50 (most D.C. area NYE parties run over $100). I haven't eaten here in a while so I can't speak to the quality of the food now, however, I recall the burger and sandwiches being pretty good several years ago. The metro is located about two blocks away which makes this place easy to get to.

We had a reservation, but we arrived an hour early, and the staff gladly found a seat for us. The meal was delicious. I'd recommend sticking with their burgers -- their specialty. I had a surf and turf, a nice mix of Bangkok spicy shrimp and a generous burger. I also ordered the Santa Sangria, and it was great. All in all, a nice evening.

Attended an event that was for our group and the slider burgers were barely cooked tasting like RAW hamburger. Ran out of food quickly and was rushing the cooking process. Fries were good as were the onion rings and hush puppies. No salt and pepper available and no ketchup or mustard except a couple you had to find amongst 200 people - bathrooms were down 2 levels and the entire event was just bad

I visited Hard Rock Cafe for the first time this weekend! This location in particular is really big! They have two floors and we got seated upstairs. I found a voucher on Fever where you can enjoy 2 courses for $35 per person. I must warn that the voucher is very limiting as you can't choose anything off the menu. You can only choose from the burgers, sandwiches and salads for this deal to qualify. And the second course is a dessert and you can only get the brownie Overall the food was okay, it was typical diner food. I enjoyed my burger. I got the surf and turf burger (the shrimp was my fave part about the burger) and my partner got the grilled chicken sandwich with bacon. This deal also comes with a complimentary soda. The brownie was not great it was really dry. Our server was also pretty cool. They do play live music in the restaurant; rock of course. And they have a few installations to look at, one of the was an outfit Beyonce wore for a concert in 2001. They have a bathroom which was really clean! It was a single bathroom though but they have one for males and one for females. There is not much parking available in the area, but then again its DC so parking is always a struggle. If You'd like to checkout the fever voucher I'll link their site here for you to check out. They also have 3 course option. https://glnk.io/3voz5/feverxbuciie-m

This was not the best Hard Rock experience. Our food was good, as expected for a place like this which promises reliable food across locations. Unexpectedly there were some menu differences from other locations but they seem pretty minor. Our service was the big weak point of the experience. I know not to go into Hard Rock expecting stellar service as they jam a lot of tourists in and service can be chaotic, however we had issues with our server simply disappearing for long stretches and it seemed like the 2 (maybe more) managers on the floor were already busy handling several other things so we couldn't get them either. I suspect the issue was related to them seating 4 or more large school groups - all within only a few minutes of each other. I sympathize with the difficulty of handling that many people - but on the other hand, they aren't forced to take those groups and they could have spread out their times more if it wasn't something they could accommodate. Additionally, the volume inside was high even for a Hard Rock. The large open room was already loud before the music layered in added more to the cacophony. This wasn't a serious issue although it did actually make it hard to order as the waiter had to move around the table to hear. The issue came in when they started up a live band. The band was good and not a problem themselves but they didn't really turn down the house music so the band just played over that, adding more to the sound in the room, especially for seating closer to the band.

Hard Rock Cafe as I knew it was a staple mainly in Las Vegas but when I found out there was one in DC I had to go ! Very large and spacious return with 2 levels. It can be considered a museum to some based on all the authentic artifact. I love the open kitchen and the stain glass windows on the second floor. The tangy wings are to die for ! The pulled pork nachos were also fairly good. & the pulled pork sandwich was quite massive ! The spirits were on point as well. - didn't need an additional shot. I would also like to shoutout our server Trinity. She was very personable and gave great menu suggestions.

Great food selection! Friendly service. Clean restaurant. Pleased! Minus one star because service was slow.

We came here after doing the escape game in the area to continue a birthday celebration and had a blast. I haven't had hard rock since moving away from Florida, and hard rock was always a spot to go to. It was so nice having a burger and being able to reminisce. The service was great and also pretty fast even though they were busy. I loved all the celebrity gear they had in display and also all the encouragement from the staff to walk around and take photos. Will definitely be back for another burger!

Wait was atrocious. Spent 3 hours here waiting in total for orders, receipts and to pay. Not to mention paid almost double just in whatever taxes and fees they add. Ambience was alright. Definitely not coming back nor to any hard rock.

Was recommended by a post on instagram, so I invited my friend along, and it was amazing. Service was good, food was great. The table was a bit rocky but not too much of a problem. There were beautiful artworks and very good music as well.

Good food, good service and even BETTER ambience. My Son loves music so walking around and seeing all the tributes to rock & roll legends really made a mark on him. We might have to visit more as we travel!

Not exactly sure what to write... I haven't been to a Hard Rock domestically (apart from some tipsy Vegas or Florida nights) in many, many years. On one hand, it's good to see not much has changed but also... ehhhh when's this brand getting a facelift? One thing different this time, I was in a large group which included children after a cheerleading competition so we had a separate area - that for the group size was understaffed. I hate when restaurants set up their staff to lose, so I helped the young ladies with everything except ringing in orders ‍ The food...hasn't changed a bit since the early 2000s...in general, this is good because expectations are met but also, my stomach has changed so the quality of the food (relatively poor) set off my tummy before my meal was complete. I was happy to see that just like in the early 2000s, there was a healthy bar fellowship beginning to fix before we left (remember early night, kids). I love that for this generation reaching the age of legality because this provides a (generally) safe, (relatively) expensive place to interact with other humans (who aren't behind screens).

Usually have the Legendary burger at Hard Rock Cafe. This is a traditional burger that fulfills everybody's expectations. It includes not only the typical items like cheese, tomato and lettuce but also bacon and onion ring. It was well assembled and well cooked. Service was amazing too!!!

Hard Rock is a nice place to go if you just want to have a pleasant time out with no frills attached. The service and food are good, the ambiance is nice, and the prices are fair (especially their happy hour menu), but I wouldn't call Hard Rock a destination dining location in a city like D.C. with so many great dining options. I will say The Original Legendary Burger is a must-have if you do visit though! This is easily one of the best burgers in the city, so if you do check them out you won't go wrong ordering that burger (they also have an impossible version as well for the non meat-eaters).

I've always loved Hard Rock Cafes!! This one is located on the same street as Ford's Theater. It's so nice inside!! It has two floors and I loved the presidential seal above the stairs leading up. They have a really cool Elvis stained glass upstairs and other great music artifacts throughout. They have a huge John Lennon statue and pictures of the Beatles also. The waiter we had was as nice as nice can be!! He was great!!!! The salad I ordered was good! I really liked the seasoning on the grilled chicken. Lionel Messi - superstar in soccer has a collaboration with Hard Rock and has two menu items as well as items for sale in the gift shop. Speaking of they have a lot of nice items in that gift shop. Shot glasses, the iconic Hard Rock DC shirts, hats, and much more. They also sell those hurricane glasses with the cities on them you can have while sipping on it at your table. I will say the restrooms here were extremely clean and really nice!! All of us were like those are some of the nicest restrooms!! Hey, not every place keeps up on those. But, they do here. Go try this place if you're in the Washington DC area.

Service was horrible. The waitress dropped off the wrong food. We ordered steak fajitas and she dropped off chicken fajitas. By the time we realized she had dropped off the wrong food. She was gone never came back so we ate the chicken fajitas, even though we wanted beef. We also asked her to bring some small plates when she dropped off the food and never brought the plates When she finally came to our table 30 minutes later with the bill it listed steak fajitas, which are more expensive. We left chicken on the plate so she could see she brought us the wrong meal when we told her when she finally brought the bill she knocked off one dollar which was the difference between the food that we had ordered and the food that we actually wanted That is completely unacceptable. Also very crowded with lots of tour groups and students do yourself a favor and stay away.

I have a great affection for any and all Hard Rock cafes. I had not been to this location before so this was a treat. I love classic rock. I love the memorabilia. The food is good. It's better than dependable. It is hearty and substantial. I had the bacon cheese burger. Really good. Great fries. Great location near the Ford Theatre. Not far from the mall. The service was impeccable and Winnie was fun to talk to. She came by often to ensure all was good. I will always come back to a Hard Rock Cafe

I haven't been in YEARS. I remember the experience being mediocre, but the area is easily accessible by metro. I've worked in the nearby restaurants and had many employees from here come in after their shift for a late lunch or early dinner. Most of them have been extremely respectful but I can tell the stress from service isn't the easiest. I'll be visiting again soon!

The BEST burger I've had in quite some time! We only had burgers but we both loved them! Service was friendly and fast! The restaurant was busy, but not very loud either. Stopped here on a whim and VERY glad we did!!b

So I got to Hard rock cafe, checked in and there were drinks ready. Delicious! Their menu today was Sandwich sliders, Pretzel bites, nachos, Mac and cheese tots and more. I would definitely recommend this place for others

Food was great. I recommend the cheese pizza. The service was great. And the ambiance is a rock cafe.

I went here with my dad and his middle school class on a field trip, the first night we ate at this cafe and everything was delicious, our servers Kenny and james were great and very fast, which is hard when your feeding 30 or 40 kids.

Server was good but the place felt dirty, the table we were sat at was falling apart and and the food lacked flavor.

The food was horrible we found a hair in our drinks they BOTTLED ketchup tasted like eggs the chicken tasted like rubber dipped in oil everything was rushed the lettuce was HORRIBLE and tasted like it wasn't even washed

The food we had was terrible the bottled ketchup tasted like eggs there was a hair in one of our drinks the food was rushed and the other sauces were ok the service was good and the place is really cool but the food was not great

Staff is like family. Food is great and their happy hour is the best deal in town. Please experience this place. It's definitely worth the trip and they'll make you feel like part of the family!!!

bathroom was a mess but fun. As slippery as an ice rink. the toilets were full to the top with toilet paper and poop. food was pretty good but burger was so over cooked. service was good but I needed a bit more water. overall could've been better. Bit just ur average restaurant and very overpriced even for DC.

Amazing service, great food the legendary burger was amazing, nice servers, decoration.

I tried this Hard Rock Cafe near Gallery place DC after a long day at a conference nearby, where I needed something quick and reliable without thinking too much. I was pleasantly surprised! The staff I encountered were very nice and the place was surprisingly busy for a weekday, although I did not have to wait. There was a singer/live music that was fun if you're looking for some entertainment. The prices were reasonable too considering the area. I tried the barbecue wings and nachos, both of which I would DEFINITELY eat again! The true star of the show was the cocktail, which was a pineapple cinnamon drink. I'm not sure if it was seasonal as I don't see it on the menu, but take a chance and ask for it if you go, it was amazing!

I'm sure this place was good if they hadn't refused to serve our group. Apparently there was only 1 server.

I had never actually had a meal at Hard Rock Cafe..first time today like a tourist in 1996..haha..had a cheeseburger, drink and brownie..it was too much for the promotion at $40...in Penn Quarter..weird scene..maybe I have no grasp on reality.

Food is pretty good here, really like how they make the fries. Happy hour is only in the bar area and menu is tiny for it. Always enjoy the atmosphere and live music. Server was on top of it and food came out fast.

I just came here for my Washington DC trip. Workers are insanely rude. Exept for a black male with dreads our waitress was so rude rushed us we could not move from our seats food was DISGUSTING our waitress had a butterfly tattoo on her arm hair in a pony. This was a horrible experience. I bet i have food poisoning. They never gave us drinks except water and lemonade. The menu is horrible. This place is a mess

Worst bar service ever! No attention, not enough people behind the bar. Chaotic at best

Food subpar. Order the new Messy Burger and not only doesn't look like the Pic but only came with two small sausage slices. Served with over cooked fries and a vert small portion. I do no recommen this burger.

The music was very loud and the people working there put us right by them. The food was good. The hot dogs are good and the pasta was good too.. The music was so loud that I didn't enjoy eating there because I was plugging my ears. It was hard to eat. My recommendation is to not go to any restaurant with music blasting. Them: "Blasting Music" Me: Stop I'm trying to eat!

My food was pretty cold, took like barely any time to come out, but that means that we have any time to look around and we were all waiting to look it's a cool restaurant, but the food at this location is not good. There was a girl with huge lashes that was telling had to leave immediately after hang around, I think I've had better food that's been sitting in my pantry for two months. Don't go here if you're really hungry go to like McDonald's or something.

I do like to try the Hard Rock establishments in the different locations and have tried their hotels too. But had an odd experience here. Ordered a burger and opted to upgrade the fries to onion rings for $4. But the waitress brought fries instead. When I said something, she said they would bring onion rings. When the bill came I was charged $9 for the Onion Ring Tower appetizer, and not the $4 upgrade to my meal. She tried to first justify this as they me brought the tower (not my problem, I didn't order that and I only ordered a side of onion rings to my burger). Then she said it was a mistake from the kitchen, and she saw them bringing it to me and knew this but couldn't stop it. Either way, she did also see this error on the bill, but also hadn't corrected it, but then blamed another staff member for that, claiming she told him to adjust it. The whole conversation was odd, and I just asked her to adjust the bill as to charge me the $4 per the menu. In the end, she removed the item from the bill. However when I went to tip extra to include what would've been the full price of the meal, I noticed a discrepancy on the "suggested tip percentage" on the bottom of the receipt. Where it is listed 18%, 20%, 22%, the amounts are incredibly inaccurate! Even if you calculate for the subtotal or after tax amount, the dollar amounts suggested were actually much higher than the actual percentages they were claiming to be. For example, I the 18% suggestion on my bill actually calculated close to a 28% tip!!!! When I wrote a review on OpenTable, the manger asked me to call him to discuss, so I did. Left a voicemail, but never heard back. So don't just take their word for anything on those bills!!!! Watch for upgrades being swapped out for appetizer prices, and don't accept their tip calculations! Do your own math. Because their math isn't mathing.

The burger was something I never had before... An onion ring in my burger... I NEED MORE OF THAT LOL I recently visited HRC and it did not disappoint. Get the Nachos, man we're they delicious! Service is 10/10 everyone was so nice and helpful. They had the best smiles on when greeting you. Ambiance: we had live music while eating and who doesn't love that! Coming from Miami, all the hard rock cafes were museums this is a restaurant/mini museum (?) I believe. I wish they played onto that a little more across the restaurant with like guitars and all of that but the food 10/10!! Perfect stop for tourist visiting DC!

The first thing I noticed is that this place seems like a tourist hot spot. The overall appearance felt like they are trying to cram as much tables as possible into an aged building. For business this is probably smart due to the traffic but as a local I'm not a fan. The tables and chairs seemed a bit outdated which doesn't help the situation. As for the food I went with buffalo wings, fries, couple of beers and apple cobbler for dessert. I was overall satisfied and the service was very helpful. I personally won't be coming back because there are better options in the area with a less crowded ambiance. Side note: It was during the cherry blossom festival so that might be the reason for the crowd.

I'm pretty sure when people say tourist trap this is exactly what they have in mind. I came here as part of a group of about 20 people. They had pitchers of soda on the table ready to go, but this also meant they were kind of flat. No problem for me since I drink ice tea, but that wasn't ready and so I had to wait a little bit for that to come to the table. Other than that the service seemed fine. We ordered off a prefixed menu and I went for the burger. It was all right but didn't have the signature steak sauce on it, or if it didn't I didn't notice it. It was a very average burger with rub if the mill fries. It was nice that the meal came with desert. Something at the end to make it more memorable. However, the brownie was dry and reminded me over the kind you might make from a box at home that didn't quite turn out right. Everyone kind of thought the same way. The food was just kind of ho-hum, not bad, but not great. Next time let's go somewhere else.