Ristorante La Perla of Washington

Review summary

1. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   Chicago1 review

   5.0

   Dined 4 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Great food and service. This is the third time I’ve had a chance to visit.
   

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2. OT

   OpenTable Diner VIP

   Baltimore2 reviews

   5.0

   Dined on 22 February 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Going to La Perla of Washington is always a special night out. The owner Vito is a great host!
   

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3. J

   JONATHAN

   Raleigh1 review

   1.0

   Dined on 15 February 2025

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 1

   Waited two hours with reservation with even poorer service when we got seated
   

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4. C

   Christopher

   Washington DC1 review

   2.0

   Dined on 15 February 2025

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 2

   Wait times were quite bad. I am not sure if they were short staffed, but the time it took to receive service (water for the table, drink order, and food order) was noticeably lengthy. The food was solid, but took just about an hour to finally arrive. On top of that we never had our water refilled. Unlikely I'll return, which truly hurts to say given their positive reviews. Again, not sure if they were missing servers and kitchen staff.
   

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5. C

   Calvin

   Washington DC1 review

   1.0

   Dined on 15 February 2025

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 1
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 4

   Heard nothing but good things. Arrived on Valentine’s Day at 8:15 with an 8:30 reservation. They were running a bit behind which is understandable and told us to sit at the bar. 15 minutes later we were informed that there was no bartender on staff that night and that no hard alcohol would be served. Preceded to witness a different server making their own martinis. Asked a couple who arrived before us how long they’ve been waiting at 8:50 they said they had a 7:45. We proceeded to leave and get in at another Resturant. I’m sure the food is authentic and good and the ambiance was fine, but they’re clearly either completely mismanaged or severely understaffed. Whatever the case we were not happy wasting half our valentines evening waiting on service we wouldn’t receive. At minimal, just turn us away if you believe you over booked. Value peoples time. P.S. when we left there was at least 20-30 couples dressed formally standing in the front waiting as well. Felt bad for them.
   

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6. J

   Johnnie VIP

   Austin1 review

   1.0

   Dined on 15 February 2025

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 3

   Valentines Day 2025. Our reservation was for 8:30pm and we arrived early but were not seated until 9:25pm. The entrance area was overcrowded with people waiting to be seated for their reservations - several people were seated 1+ hr after their reservation time (the restaurant was still seating 7pm reservations when we arrived around 8:20pm). I should have left when the customer seated near the host stand complained that she had to ask for water five times. Once we were finally seated, we ordered drinks and our meals after about 10 minutes of waiting. We had to flag our waiter down about 20 minutes later to remind him of the drinks that we ordered- it was clear that he forgot and was overwhelmed. Several minutes after that, the waiter came back with my drink, but forgot about my wife's. He then asked her to remind him what she ordered to drink... While waiting for our food, we saw ppl leaving after being seated because no one was taking their orders. We also saw one guy get up and find menus himself for his table. The food finally arrived around 10:15pm. My wife ordered some presidente pasta and I had the snapper stuffed with crab meat. Both were just okay we ate about 1/2 of our meals (obvs starving at this point) and did not even bother taking the rest to go. The food was 6/10 tops, which really just solidified the bad dining experience. Waiting forever to be seated and get drinks is one thing, but to have the food be average after all of that was really disappointing. The restaurant did look nice on the inside and the staff weren't mean or anything but the experience was not good, from beginning to end. Would not recommend.
   

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7. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   New York City3 reviews

   3.0

   Dined on 14 February 2025

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 4

   The food was very good, some of the better Italian food I’ve had in DC. The ambiance was nice as well, very quiet. And the restaurant itself is very well decorated. The service was quick and attentive. However, the discrepancy between the online menu prices and the actual prices is deceptive. Almost everything on the actual menu is 50% higher than what’s listed online. For example, the Vodka Penne is $21 on the online menu, but $30 in actuality. Based on other online reviews I’ve seen, I’m not the first to complain about this, and they have yet to fix it. This seems extremely dishonest and needs to be fixed immediately.
   

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8. T

   Tanya

   Washington DC2 reviews

   5.0

   Dined on 19 January 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 3

   Charming restaurant with a bit of an old world vibe.
   

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9. P

   Philippe

   Washington DC1 review

   5.0

   Dined on 19 January 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   Délicieux dîner à la Perla de Washington. Nous étions déjà venus de nombreuses années auparavant et n’avons pas été déçus! Vraie cuisine Italienne, raffinée et de qualité. Mention spéciale pour les dessert, vraiment délicieux. Service rapide, attentionné et efficace Le chef fait le tour des tables pour rencontrer ses convives. Nous garderons à nouveau un très bon souvenir de notre passage.
   

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10. L

    Lauren

    Washington DC16 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on 28 December 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5

    This restaurant is old school cool. The food is real-deal Italian American classics the way your grandparents made it — in only the very best way. No foams or stacked presentations or skimpy portions, just fresh food cooked just right. Truly attentive and gracious service, they genuinely love serving you their food. The chef greeted us, the wine was good, everyone loved their food. For the quality, and compared to what other DC restaurants charge, this is a hidden gem. Gonna put this one in rotation for authentic comfort Italian-American dinner!
    

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