Lebanese Taverna

Great place 10 out of 10 recommend. Hit happy hour and ordered mint pizza, hummus, lamb and chicken swarma sliders, calamari and draft beer. So good. Needed a 3rd person to finish everything. It's perfect execution of ancient favorite foods. You should go. Go tommorow w a friend or friends and enjoy and smile. Sixto was our waiter and is a 11/10 waiter. Jokes, service , energy is best of the best.

Great food! Awesome waiters. The pita bread comes out hot and fresh! The hummus spread is soooo good. The chicken curry was yummy. It’s definitely worth a try. The ambience is nice and everyone is comfortably seated and conversing in their own space. Food is delicious.

They have really great food and large portions while still being really affordable. The sampler platter is always a must order. I have been here many times and always had good service. I hosted a large dinner party here for a graduation, and they were especially helpful in organizing that. I would definitely recommend them for an event like that.

Food is very tasty, service is excellent, and overall experience is outstanding. Special THANKS to Chef Mohammad, who asked about our experience and made it more flavorful!!.

My favorites here are the Mujaddara, Tabouleh, and Baba Ganoush. The bread is amazing! The lamb dishes looked really nice too! The shawarma was huge. Great portion sizes and superb quality. Definitely try their amazing desserts. The cardamom ice cream is divine. This is conveniently located across the street from the Woodley Park Metro station.

The place is gorgeous, the food outstanding. I used to treat my colleagues to this restaurant every year when I was in DC for a conference across the street. So I was excited to bring my husband here on our trip. It did not disappoint!! As good as I remember. I cook Lebanese food well, so this was a real treat. I think it's the best Lebanese restaurant I've eaten at in the US (maybe tried some in 6 cities or so, including Detroit which is known to have a super large Lebanese community). My salute to the chef & owner for staying consistently excellent & authentic.

Lebanese Taverna on Connecticut Avenue in DC is a culinary gem that tantalizes the taste buds with its vibrant flavors. The chicken shawarma salad is a delightful symphony of textures and tastes, leaving you satisfied yet craving more. The chef samples offer a journey through Lebanese gastronomy, showcasing the mastery of the kitchen. This location is well kept, well decorated, spacious and traditionally elegant. The server, hailing from Morocco, adds a global touch to the experience. Their warmth and helpfulness elevate the dining experience, making you feel more like a welcomed guest than a customer. The ease of finding parking, conveniently located along the road with public options, is a rare treat in the bustling DC scene. Lebanese Taverna isn’t just a restaurant; it’s a savory exploration that leaves you both satiated and yearning for another visit. The culinary prowess, coupled with the hospitable service, makes it a standout choice for those seeking a memorable dining adventure in the heart of the capital.

Great service, beautiful dining room, and a diverse menu. What could be wrong? I had a tabbouleh salad and chicken shawarma sandwich. Both were excellent. The salad was fresh and flavorful. The sandwich was also fresh and full of flavor. There was a lot of chicken. I could’ve used a little more garlic sauce but I didn’t ask for it so it’s not on them. The bread was warm and seemingly baked seconds before arriving at my table. I loved it and I’m glad I stopped in!

Absolutely fantastic food. Delicious. Waiter attentive and had good suggestions. Managed to served us a wealth of dishes that satisfied and delighted us. Attractive dining room.

The meal was good but the star was the Hummus and bread, it was exceptional! My main dish was fairly bland, but it may be that I ordered too safe.

First of all 4 stars are for the nice place and ambiance and good food- The only issue we had was with the wait time of food at a reasonable not-so-busy lunch hour. We literally waited for around 45 mins for our food and the place wasnt that swamped. Yes when we got our food it was really good- especially their bread is amazingggg. Their shwaramas are the absolutee best. Will defo recommend.

Came here on a rainy Saturday for an early dinner to get some Mediterranean food, and after a long day of walking around DC, this definitely hit the spot. For an appetizer to share our group got the standard Hommus, and it was a pretty good hommus mezza! Really tasty dip with good quality olive oil, and the puffy bread they provided was fresh, crispy, and a solid vessel for the dip. For my main entrée, I got the Lamb & Artichoke Stew; tender chunks of lamb in a savory and slightly sour stew with braised artichoke hearts. Comes with their rice pilaf and the combination of the stew with the rice was pretty dang good! The meat could've used a bit more seasoning itself, but the artichokes and the stew were pretty flavorful enough so not a big deal. Service was nice and accommodating, which I appreciated. They provided us refills on the bread for our hommus when it got low, and one group member's dish was taking a bit longer so they gave her a free Lentil Soup as compensation, which was very considerate!

I hadn't been to Lebanese Taverna for a while and saw that it's undergone a major transformation. I did a double-take to make sure it was the same place and founding family running the show. And both are still true. A second generation is in charge now. I was told that the makeover was accomplished a few years back. I like the new look--captures the spirit of the Eastern Mediterranean nicely. The lamb sharat platter is to die for, can't go wrong with it. Fried artichokes are yummy, come with a garlic/lemon dipping sauce that's slamming. The baba ghanoush is smoky and creamy although I prefer it without the pomegranate seeds on top, however easy enough to work around. The mezza fries, lightly sprinkled with sumac, cumin and garlic, arrive hot and plentiful. Service is gracious. I'm a fan of Lebanese cuisine and think that this restaurant has done a good job of serving it up over the years.

Walking by and decided to stop. The customer service was good. Food was served quickly!! I really enjoyed the hummus, large servings.

Coming in from the heat, the air conditioning was a relief. The high ceilings were beautiful to look at along with the rest of the decor. It wasn't very busy on a Saturday at lunch-- our server was very attentive and helpful. The warm bread and oil with sesame seeds were very nice to start. I ordered the Taverna platter with Chicken Shawarma. Loved that it came with salad, hummus, chicken and rice. Yumm! It's a big portion, so I was able to take some home too! My friend ordered the chicken Shawarma sandwich with a side salad. She enjoyed it, but it was a big portion and she only ate half of it! I've been here before-- and enjoyed a lot of appetizers too. I'll be back. ** They have parking in the back :)

Love this restaurant! I came here for lunch and was not disappointed. I had their hommus with some type of pita bread to start and the quality was amazing! I also got the chicken shawarma sandwich and wow! The flavor of the chicken with fresh vegetables and garlic sauce was perfect. Not to mention, the portion was huge! Our waiter was also extremely nice. I will definitely be going back here!

Great food! Great experience! Group of four of us stopped in and each got the Chef's Platter at our waiters suggestion. Best decision, we got to try a little bit of everything and literally everything was delicious. It cost $19 and I highly recommend it. They also bring out fresh bread and oil to dip. We literally made a meal out of the platter, each of us, I also ordered an appetizer of the pickled vegetables, which was fabulous and I got a drink, which was made with passion fruit and ginger, and it was so refreshing. Love the atmosphere of the place, it wasn't too crowded, staff was great, no waiting. We just got seated immediately. I will definitely be coming back, the food was incredible!!

The high points are the ambiance and the service. A fun, lively, and comfortable space to share a meal. We ordered one of the family-style meals allowing our party of 6 to sample quite a bit of the cultural cuisine. Overall, it was food, with some dishes (mostly the proteins) lacking in distinctive flavor. I would certainly eat here again and try other dishes, even if only for the very friendly and helpful service.

Excellent lunch with the family! Had the Chefs sampler and a chicken shawarma everything was delicious, service and pricing were both great.

The food was amazing and fresh. It was a flavor explosion in my mouth. We had the family style mail that fed the whole table.

Got a platter to share between 3 people and some additional sides. Was yummy! Went to the location in Tyson's but I can't find it on Yelp. Flavor was good but I do wish some stuff was more flavorful. Luckily, we were seated right away but service was a bit slow as it was a busy night.

Stopped by with two kiddos on a weeknight and the service was impeccable. Aside from having the usual parking issues - Connecticut Ave is sometimes difficult- we had no issues finding it. It's on a row with a lot of options but we (I) wanted hummus so here we were! The service and greeting were great? Our waiter was thorough and advised of the best items on the menu as well as allowed us to take out time ordering. We tried the pita bread with olive oil which was a little bland and required salt and pepper-but the pita itself was warm perfection. We also tried the artichoke hearts, which were amazing and the dressing was so good, the kids tried to eat it with a spoon! I typically don't eat after 7 and since it was much later, I ordered a salad with tabouleh and falafel, of which I finished one. The falafel was a little dry, which didn't make for a great reheating experience but on day one it was great! The kids both ordered the kids meal with falafel which is massive and comes with hummus and rice or fries. He let my picky water get a salad instead which worked nicely. There were a ton of leftovers and we are hearty eaters. I will just say the falafel and tabouleh salad doesn't reheat very well. The tabouleh is as expected, quite wet and if I'd had space to eat it on day one, it would have been a 5/5. As such, I'd give it a solid 4.3. It wilted almost completely in 12 hours even after separating the falafel. But we would go back, the menu is expansive, the service was very good, and the ambiance is perfect for a date night at any point! The high backed booths lend and aura of privacy and the high ceilings swallow conversation in a way that allows you to relax and really talk. Definitely a good restaurant design! If you like Lebanese/Mediterranean food, you won't be disappointed!

Carry out order for almost 100$ missing food and no call back from the manager. This Co is just not what they once were and there are too many other options to try. Recommend you try some place else.

Service was professional, fast and proactive! Best service at a restaurant in years. Food was delicious, served hot and all seemed freshly prepared. Ambiance was lovely, clean and we felt like we were able to relax. Overall, superb experience! Well done, Lebanese Taverna.

I came with five friends on a Wednesday evening. Although the restaurant was not terribly busy when we arrived (at 7:45PM), there was no one at the front of the restaurant to seat us. This seems to be a common problem in DC because I encountered it in both restaurants that I visited over a four-day period. Fortunately, someone ultimately did appear to seat us. We were given a fine table toward the back of the main dining room, where we had a meal that all of us enjoyed. The key to the success of our experience is that one of our co-diners was a Syrian woman who had lived often in Lebanon as a child. If you know someone from Lebanon, I definitely recommend that you bring them along. For the table, our Syrian friend selected a large group of appetizers from the mezza portion of the menu and then suggested that we each choose a main dish for ourselves. The mezza were all excellent; you could obviously make a meal by ordering lots of them and skipping the main dishes. I did order a main dish, which was the lamb and artichoke stew. The stew was OK but was without question a step down from the mezza. As you'll see in the restaurant (but can't easily find out online, I think), there are lots of Lebanese wines that you can order. I decided to start with the Chateau Musar jeune blanc ($56) and thought that we'd transition to a red wine after finishing it. However, the Ch. Musar was so good that we stuck with it and got a second bottle! A good number of the wines are available by the glass -- if you're unsure what wine you want, you can order a glass with little risk or ask for a tiny pour in order to help you decide what to get.

The food was soo good, everything was fresh. The customer service was great. The ambiance was intimate. I will be back!

Love Lebanese Taverna! We admire the food and the authenticity! It is a recreation of a culture! The food is very well done and very nicely tasting!

Love this place but unfortunately not close enough to where I live to visit often. Maanek is one of my favorites!

We were looking forward to trying this restaurant as it's our ethnic cuisine & our family really enjoyed meze. We stuck to their small meze plates. Hummus was light & creamy, grape leaves lemony & well flavored. Fresh pitas & crisp falafel. The kibbe was well spiced & well fried. What was really disappointing was the service. I'm not sure I understand when you have a reservation & a restaurant has good open tables elsewhere, why you seat patrons in the worst possible location? We were placed in the corner booth by the loud open kitchen & bathrooms. We could barely hear each other talk. We were going to ask to move tables but then the food started arriving & my son said he didn't care & switched seats with me so I wouldn't be staring at the open kitchen. It shouldn't be like that. Our server was also very cold & indifferent. Not sure we would be back.

Lebanese Taverna is unassuming from the outside. Once you walk in, however, you're surprised with a spacious and modern interior. Plenty of seating for large and small parties as well as a tall bar with even more seating. There was only one host even on a busy Saturday for dinner. Although we had a reservation, it took a while to be seated (almost 15 minutes). Once we sat, however, we had careful, fast service from the servers and runners. I was also impressed by the bathrooms. I think more restaurants should have bathrooms with sinks accessible to all, for when you want to wash your hands or look in the mirror without actually taking up a bathroom. The decor is quite nice. Comforting, high ceilings, and good flow of air. The food is good. Each table gets a basket of fresh hot pita with seasoned olive oil - hard to resist even though it is filling! I had the shawarma sandwich with rice. Although it looked small it was filling and tasty. I really recommend the passion fruit ginger (non-alcoholic) drink. It's fresh, refreshing, and delicious! Not too sweet, and I believe it is made with all natural ingredients. I subtracted a star from the review because the baklava tasted quite stale. Other than that, the food is fresh and delightful.

Food was good. Service was not good as server even asked if we needed a bread while he brought to others before their meel. It ruined our lunch experience on a nice day.

Had a reservation for 8:30pm on a Sunday - was about to be seated by one person and then another person came over and said they have a water problem and will be closing. I was very surprised as numerous people were waiting for takeout. We left and my wife said to go back and make a reservation for Monday instead. I go back in and one of the people waiting for takeout asked if the water problem will impact their order and the guy goes "the water problem is fixed" and another goes "it's slow and we want to close at 9" - I ask for the manager abtel who comes over and offers to sit us. No thanks - will never return! Manager never apologized either!

We loved everything we ordered. The service was excellent and the ambiance of the entire restaurant was perfect. Glad we found this place so close to our hotel.

Flavors, serving size and quality were fantastic. Years ago during a conference, a former co-worker brought me to LT and my memory was that the food and ambiance were great (2002?). Fast forward to 2024 and my whole family was in the DC area; I suggested we try Lebanese Taverna...and it was A-mazing! We have good Lebanese food in Chicago (hometown) but this is top-notch, cream of the crop, A+. Including the warm and friendly staff and their attentive service.

I really wanted to like this place since there's really not a lot of Lebanese places that offer kibbeh nayeh in DC (considering most middle eastern places in DC aren't even Lebanese). They were not offering it when I came though, so I ordered stuffed zucchini (not traditionally cored) and a chicken and rice dish. Both of them came rather disappointingly plain. I don't know if it's because of the clientele that comes here (it's mostly a much older crowd that dines here). They sure know how to keep this place popular though. I'll say this though - the complimentary pita bread is amazing and by far my favorite thing here, served with the olive oil and zaatar spices. If you're going to be eating here, avoid the plates and stick to the traditional mezzes and enjoy them with the pita bread. And yes, you can get the kibbeh nayeh as a mezze. On a side note: this place is a bit dressier than casual.

Amazing food and great service! I have never had Lebanese food and I was amazed on how great it was!

Let me just say that I really enjoyed this place. I was in town for a conference and my group of 6 headed out for a nice dinner. We decided on Lebanese Taverna. The menu had something for everyone. Most of my group decided on the either Chef's Platter or the Taverna Platter. I decided I was in the mood to graze on some of their other offerings and ordered a bunch of apps. Sadly, they were out of octopus, but I was easily able to find other things to enjoy. Ultimately decided on hommus, halloumi, and kalamar. It was a lot of food. But I got a to-go box and enjoyed a late night snack back at the hotel. Everyone had a great time. We enjoyed great service in a really lovely space. I look forward to going back the next time I am in town.

We stopped in today randomly after a day at the zoo and oh my gosh so grateful that we did! First of all the space is beautiful, gorgeous walls and ceilings. The service was great, servers were pleasant and responsive and gave us good recommendations. Now the food was so unexpectedly good! We ordered the Chef's platter as an appetizer which came with several different items- all delicious in their own ways but that Humus and Samosa were standouts! For entrees I got the shrimp kabob platter and it was so delicious especially the sauce they have on the side. My husband got the chicken Schwarma sandwich and devoured it. Oh and the pita bread so good-freshly baked. We ordered two rounds, even though one was plenty. Because everything had been delicious up that point we decided to go for dessert and so glad we did. We got the Awamat-basically deep fried donut holes with a side of ice cream and both were spectacular. Thoroughly impressed and can't wait to come back again.

Food - lamb schwarma 3/5 Service -1/5 Ambiance -1/5 Sat at the bar around 8:15 Service was slow between apps and dinner . About 20-25 minutes of either being ignored or the guys being away from the bar for 15 minutes . It was only me and one other guy who was drunk beyond belief and would t stop talking to me making me very uncomfortable. Food was rough , lamb was dry , sauce needed acid , fries were ehh. Staff seemed checked out for almost 2 hours before close . Once it came time to get my check and get me out of here , he was all over it ( no surprise there .) Definitely will not be back .

Oh meow, oh meow. Worst service my whiskers have seen in many years....i had to bound up to the servers station to get more water, cold meals took 72 minutes to arrive, and kids meals almost didn't make it at all (had to ask). Absolutely embarrassing LT DC.....do better right meow!

Nothing more annoying than a waiter trying to upsell water to bottle and not listening that tap is ok. Sneaky sleazy sales stunt. You lost in alcohol sales and additional appetizers:

Super nicely decorated place with friendly servers. I was really happy that things were clearly labeled gluten free. Obviously the food was delicious too!

Your website isn't working. Please fix broken link. ‍ I can't wait to come here. The food looks great and reviews are strong positives

A high quality venue with service that leaves somewhat a lot to be desired. Upon entering, it was unusual to be met with, "just one, sir?" Anyway, the server came to ask if we were interested in drinks and did not come back after that. It was sort of interesting/weird. I waited about 20 minutes until another server walked by and ask if our order had been taken. He was kind of enough to give us some recommendations. We tried a shawarma entree and a side of hummus. The food came out not too long after. The shawarma was not very warm. Full of flavor, though. We will probably come back to try their menu again as it appears to offer some great authentic Lebanese options.

Simply great! We often order takeout from here, as the kebab plate is enough to feed both me and both of my kids! Recently we dined in when extended family came to town, and everyone enjoyed their meals and found something they liked. Special shout-out to the phenomenal watermelon and feta salad with fresh mint. I might need to add that to our next takeout order!

Ordered food for delivery. It came over an hour late. There is nothing worse than cold shawarma. Except for cold kibbeh, which is somehow worse. I called the restaurant and was just told that it wasn't their fault that the delivery service was late. Won't be ordering from them again. Hugely disappointing for a restaurant I used to really enjoy.

Reliably delicious with great service and yummy drinks. The environment is similar in multiple locations, which is pretty chill and welcoming.

We came here for Valentine's Day and we had a fabulous time! The food was great, the service was great and the ambiance was awesome! We totally we could back here! They had great gluten free options too, so I would love to come back!!

I choose this place for my Birthday dinner with my family. I was not disappointed. Food: 5 Stars Service: 4.5 Stars Atmosphere: 4 Stars They start by bringing out hot pita with dipping oil. Hot bread is always good. We stared with the watermelon feta salad and it was my favorite part of the meal. That is a meaningful statement because the sliders are so good. My main dish was very good. It is Lebanese comfort food and was a good size portion. The tobouleh was solid, my husband loved it. The weak point of the meal were the rolls. They are ok, but compared to the rest of the meal they are not as good. I will pass on them next time. Over all I highly recommend this place.

Lebanese food is awesome. And they get extra credit for being mostly gluten-free. We came here for a tiny celebration mid week and had a very nice time. The humus was great - we had both the standard and the spicy. The shrimp appetizer was really good - in a lemon garlic sauce - yum. The falafels were good but they are fried in canola oil which is REALLY bad. We let it go because we were celebrating but won't order that again just because of the oil. I remember when this was the only taverna and it was decorated in a more traditional fashion. Now the decor is very modern (and there are a bunch of them through the DMV). Not a bad thing, but I somehow longed for the traditional with all the cushions and more middle eastern feel. The service was good and I really like the place. The one star I took off was for the canola oil.

While I miss the original Lebanese Taverna restaurant, I keep coming back for the hummus and falafel at the LebTav at Riva shopping center. It is sad that there's hardly anyone in there eating, but one hopes that customers, like me, are getting carry-out.

We were visiting Washington DC and decided to try out Lebanese Taverna. We greeted by the host ride away and taken to our seats. The place was quite large and had a nice ambience to it. For appetizers we ordered some garlic hummus and some veggies. They first served some complementary warm bread which was delicious. For the main course we had chicken kebab platter, Shwarma platter and the mixed platter as they sold out of the chicken shwarma. The mixed platter came with lamb and beef as well as chicken kebabs. The food was moist and delicious and flavored perfectly. If you are in the area this place needs a visit!

Lebanese food is an all time fav so when one of my friends said she was hungry and suggested that we go here for dinner, I couldn't say no. I called the restaurant ahead to see if reservations were needed and they said no and that we could just walk in. We found FREE parking right across the street from the establishment (which is always amazing considering how ridiculously difficult it is to find parking in DC). We walked inside and waited to be seated. Shortly after we walked in, a family of about five (with a baby) came in and they were asked if they wanted to be seated indoors or outdoors. My friend and I looked at each other like ummm did they not see us?! I thought maybeeee just maybe the staff member thought we were picking up food but whatever. We arrived at our table and waited for our server who took a while to get over to us. I ordered the hummus, chicken samosas and curry chicken. Everything tasted SO good! I really loved the spices and flavors of the curry. It could've been a little more spicier though haha. I barely ate any of my curry chicken because I was so full from the appetizers and the fresh bread! My friend ordered the lentil soup and lamb kabobs with extra veggies. I know you're wondering why the three stars right? The reason is because of the service. Our server seemed to be in a rush with everything, rarely checked in/engaged with us and when he brought us our food, he would only place it on one side of the table, at the edge (like just drop it off on the table and then turn away quickly). I get that people have bad days but it shouldn't show nor should it be taken out on the customers. We still gave him a good tip considering COVID but was quite disappointed with the service. Treatment like that will ruin the chances of me wanting to visit the restaurant again and it's sad because the food was awesome. I will say this. We did appreciate the restaurant manager coming over to check in with us and bring us to go boxes. Maybe he could sense we weren't really happy with the service.

Popped in here for a late lunch with friends after a day at the National Zoo. Not many folks were there at 3pm, but it still took a while for anyone to come over once we were sitting at our table. The service in general was pretty sparse, which was rough. That said, all of the food was fabulous! We ordered to share among the four adults and had a kids size meal for our son, which was a well-rounded and generous portion. Overall, the food was delicious, so we'd definitely eat it again. Take-out might be the best way to go!

The food was ok. Didn't like the Kibbeh at all. The service was the worst. My server actually was frowning when he took my order. Near the end my server came by to check on me ... but rarely while I ate. But I could see and hear the lone person sitting behind me being checked on periodically by multiple servers. My server almost acted as if he didn't want to serve me at first. I clearly wasn't welcomed at this establishment AND THEY MADE IT PRETTT CLEAR. No worries I will never come back here nor would I recommend it to anyone I know.

Service is so ass. It's so ass. The hostess sat at least 10 different parties before us and claimed they were reservations (they were not). The waiter was so exasperated with everyone and everything that homie literally yelled "who's check is this" while waving a receipt so he could get everyone there out as fast as possible. Severely understaffed and everyone was very done with everything. Food was good though...but the wait was WORSE. Anyway would NOT RECOMMEND on a busy night.

Amazing spot! The shawarma was amazing. Loved the passionfruit ginger drink. The service was superb and the ambiance was very pleasant. I will definitely return when i'm back im DC !