A couple of days before Valentine’s Day, I took a date to Coeur De Lion in the Henley Park Hotel. It is a pretty little restaurant off to the side of the main bar. Yes, yes, I usually write about ethnic restaurants and dives – but not this time.

It was a cold, rainy night, and we were running early, so we hung out with some guests in the room to the right side of the front desk. That fireplace felt good. Then, off to the restaurant.
The service was very good, with Jamal (our waiter) spending some time with us without overdoing it. He did help us select the food and wine.

I ordered the jumbo shrimp as an appetizer. The chili flavored prawns were sitting on a pile of hummus. The lemon oil gave the dish a nice flavor. The strip steak with Yukon gold mashed potatoes, Vidalia onions, and baby spinach was cooked correctly (medium) and had a flavorful red wine sauce. The steak was actually huge; I only got through half of it.

My date was happy with the grouper with mushroom risotto and a salad. Ok…we did pick the wine to go with her dish. I drank Riesling with steak, so I’ll never get my food snob license now. 😉
We shared the seasonal fruit (which happened to be mixed berries with mint leaves) and the cheesecake with mango sauce. The berries were sweet and refreshing, and the cheesecake was fluffy, like a mousse.

Appetizers are $8-13, entrees are mostly in the $30’s, and desserts are $8. We drank a bottle of Dr. Loosen 2006 Germany Riesling ($9 a glass and $28 a bottle).

With wine, the dinner was about $120 for two. Ok, I’ll admit it; I won the dinner at an event a few months ago. So, I cashed in my gift certificate and we had a great dinner in a fancy restaurant. You can’t go wrong with that. But, yes I recommend the restaurant even if you are paying for your meal.
Coeur De Lion, in the Henley Park Hotel.

926 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington D.C. 20001
202-638-5200

-JAY