We happened upon this little brunch spot by mistake. The original plan was to hit up Beacon Bar & Grille on 17th St., but they were super lame and only have their fantastical brunch on Sunday. Go figure. So instead we trudged up 17th street toward Dupont hoping to find a decent Saturday brunch alternative.
As we came upon the Q st intersection we saw the usual places of interest, Skewers, Mr. Yogato, Dunkin' Donuts, and other restaurants. To be completely honest, if Mr. Yogato had hollandaise sauce and hashbrowns as topping options, we probably would have eaten there and played Super Nintendo for 2 hours. We, like most of DC, love Yogato that much.
Sighing as we passed Mr. Yogato, and glancing hungrily as we walked by the Dunkin' Donuts sign, we turned to the menu of the first restaurant we saw. It was Annie's.
Annie's is located at 1609 17th St NW. Their menu posted outside wasn't anything unique or engagingly spectacular. The prices weren't cheap, but not expensive, and it seemed like you were able to get a lot of food bang out of your buck. There was a variety of brunch foods, and they had a good selection of omelets. What did it for me was the gaping hole in my stomach and the eggs benedict that came with fried potatoes (hashbrowns), a side salad, and toast, for about $8.50. Not too shabby.
So as we walked in, the place was moderately busy and the hostess was prompt and courteous. My favorite thing about Annie's was probably the decor. It can be described as luxe-modern, with solid grey and purple tones, with silver accents. They have a sunroom addition where we sat that I really liked. It had a light airy feel. I think there were some pretty cool chandeliers there too that really enhanced the atmosphere.
Our waiter was super friendly, prompt, and attentive. Elysia ordered a mimosa and the salmon omelet. I ordered coffee and the eggs benedict (not predictable, lie). Elysia said her mimosa was tasty and the salmon omelet was yummy, but nothing over-the-top orgasmic. The coffee was good, smooth and mild. There's nothing worse than coffee that's too strong and makes you feel like hamster running endlessly in a wheel.
As for the eggs benedict, also nothing spectacular to note. The eggs and hollandaise sauce were on par, as was the salad. The potatoes were a little hard to eat since the slices were so large they often needed to be cut into smaller pieces, and they were a little over salted. However, in the end, my eyes were larger than my stomach and I ended up taking half of it home with me.
Here's a picture of the EB - I was so hungry that I polished off the first guy before remembering to take a pic. (as a side note, this was taken with my new 8900 BBerry - pretty awesome pic for a phone, no?)
So the verdict? Here's how I'm going to break it all down:
Rating: Yelp gives it an 3/5 stars, and I full-bellied agree with that.
Crowd: Any age, but not good for families with kids. Lots of couples, and young groups (ages early 20's to 50's). There were also a handful of older couples (+50)
Dress: Jeans and a T - you'd look out of place in a collegiate sweatshirt/sweatpants uniform, but definitely not a dressy place.
Synopsis: If you're wandering around Dupont and want a place off the beaten path that's going to guarantee you good service and food without sticker shock or a hellish wait, Annie's is a place for you. Feel free to nurse your hangover with their mimosas - just don't sit in the sunroom if you want to avoid the light of day!
Yelp's Review of Annie's
Annie's Menu
