Met Cafe the Venue

Not many food options in super close proximity so this is certainly welcomed. Situated approximately 7 blocks from Farragut West metro station, this establishment offers ample indoor and outdoor seating. Patrons are able to choose from a buffet or menu selection. While I’ve frequented several times for breakfast, my colleagues rave about their lunch options. Breakfast buffet is good. They tend to not have the he full spread available until around 8am, and even then the fruit is usually unavailable. Food is decent for a buffet (not a fan of buffets but since I’m among the first to grab my food I can dismiss the thought of all the germs). They also offer a variety of beverages, pastries and snacks. Service is decent. English is second language for most of the staff so it can get a bit interesting at times.

Nice café with lots of options near White House. We walked the National Mall Memorials and then saw the back of the White House. This café was about 1 block away and the perfect place for warm up and lunch. Great variety of options. Food was tasty, but hot options on buffet weren't very hot. We were there on a 30 degree day. The chocolate chip cookie did not disappoint though!!

Beautiful spacious interior with good food. There are great outdoor seating options as well. Food is delicious, fresh, and reasonably priced. The variety of the food is OK for the type of place it is. If they add sushi (heard they might), it would be fantastic. What to expect: This is NOT an all-you-can-eat restaurant. Food is sold by weight ($9.99 per lb as of July 2023). You can choose any item you want from the buffet style servings. Drinks/soda cost extra. A majority of the customers appeared to be employees from nearby businesses/organizations, so, this is probably a good lunch spot. I would definitely recommend this for a quick bite or a weekday lunch, but, perhaps not for interesting experiences or exceptional food. Overall, my experience was pretty good.

The food is amazing, high quality food. It’s reasonably priced, near the white house. Fruits and vegetables are so fresh at the salad bar. Hot food section has lots of variations. I enjoyed home made dumpling, spare ribs, chicken wings and lomein noodles. Where else can you eat this variety of foods?! Staff was very friendly too.

Great little place to grab lunch. Choose from menu items or hot/cold food bar. The bar food was tasty but luke warm. The restaurant is clean and the staff friendly. The bathroom was also extremely clean which is a sign the owners really care about their customers and business. Even the restaurant is open space and music was playing, it was not loud. Kudos to the owners for having this balance!

Delicious! The lasagna and beef stew were standouts. Orange chicken is solid too. My co-worker says his hot reuben was the best he’d had in years. Wide variety of quality hot and salad bar options, plus custom bowls and sandwiches. Sushi looks like it’s coming soon. Friendly service. Huge, light-filled, window-surrounded interior, and plenty of covered outdoor seating. Will definitely return to Met Cafe the Venue regularly now that it’s freshly open in an impressive new location (reopened summer 2022.)

I bought a turkey Reuben w/ fries! 5 stars for 5 reasons 1. The turkey Reuben was delicious for what you pay. Fresh, warm and tasty! 2. Around 12.65 for both is a steal! Reasonably priced. 3. Service was great and fast. 4. Great secret location and nice area 5. Nice variety of different sand which to buy from and there’s also a hot bar that has a lot of choices to pick such as Chinese, sushi and more.

God forbid people actually want breakfast after 8am. It’s getting kinda annoying that they put out lunch at 8-9am and it sits there all morning only to become barely edible by 10:30. If you like spending $20 on lunch that’s somehow less edible than the most processed frozen meal then you’ll love this place.

Delicious! The lasagna and beef stew were standouts. Orange chicken is solid too. My co-worker says his hot reuben was the best he'd had in years. Wide variety of quality hot and salad bar options, plus custom bowls and sandwiches. Sushi looks like it's coming soon. Friendly service. Huge, light-filled, window-surrounded interior, and plenty of covered outdoor seating. Will definitely return to Met Cafe the Venue regularly now that it's freshly open in an impressive new location!

If you're looking for a true ALL you can eat buffet. This may not be the place. THEY CHARGE BY THE PLATE.

The food was okay, but certain staff members were extremely rude to my colleague when she requested a condiment after ordering her initial meal. This was uncalled for and the staff desperately needs customer service training.

First and foremost, the young lady cashier always has an attitude and is very rude and aloof like she's doing you a favor by waiting on you. The cooks seem to always get my order wrong and I have to check my food before I leave so I don't have trudge back. That said, the food isn't bad but they've lost me as a customer forever due to a lack of concern when they screw up and the lack of understanding customer service! I also have several coworkers that have had similar experiences with the cashier's rudeness! She needs another line of work!

Oh, I love this place. For a buffet and deli type setup, they prepare such delicious and fresh (!) food--see pic. I loved everything I got from the hot and cold bar. Seating is plentiful, and the space seems clean and well maintained. Nothing in DC is cheap, but Met Cafe provides a relative bargain. And with the buffet there's a chance you can get everything you were craving. For me today, it was kimchi and egg salad. Both were superb, bright, and satisfying. *chef's kiss* (And where else can you find fried plantains and Korean sides?!) The owners are Korean, so all the banchan are wonderful. This will be my standby for lunches not made by me.

Good breakfast and lunch buffets, although you pay by the pound, and it can add up (they also have a deli and desserts). Very nice atmosphere with light music, tables, couches, and quiet study/meeting rooms.

This used to be my go to spot for breakfast almost every other day and lunch at least 2-3x per week since it was so convenient to work. During my last visit I experienced watching/hearing the owner/manager lady rudely ask one of her workers to not speak spanish ever again while at work, it was done out loud in a very rude manner and I honestly felt bad for the employee. I told the manager that she should talk to people in a nicer tone/way and also asked her what is the problem with her employee talking to other coworkers in their native language. She did not like my questions and comments, specially when I saw her speak to an Asian customer in their native language. The manager began to raise her voice at me yelling "YOU WANT TO FIGHT ME - WHY DO YOU GIVE ME HARD TIME-I DONT CARE" she rambled yelling other things at which point I looked around and every table inside that place was looking at our table as she stood next to me yelling on and on very upset. I asked her why was she yelling at me and being rude, that I calmly and respectfully gave her my thoughts and opinions in regards to what I saw and heard at her business establishment. I told her that I am a paying customer and she should not speak to me in that manner, that I am sure she would not like any negative reviews for her business and her reply was a very loud "I DO NOT CARE' blah blah blah blah she continued to ramble loudly. So I said ok, you do not care and that is very evident! We all stood up and left out, I have yet to visit this place again and I never ever will! As a business owner myself, this lady has some things to learn, hopefully she figures things out but she just lost my average yearly $2,000 (at least) income as a customer.

Best variety and freshest buffet in the D.C area. they had such healthy options too. i had the vegetable cold glass noodles! and a chopped kale and quinoa salad. added some mashed potatoes because i couldnt help myself and they were so good- not loaded in butter like others. I highly recommend this place for a quick bite in downtown!

Great food and reasonably priced. It is our favorite lunch spot. Good variety. New items every day.