Oyamel Washington DC

Cocina Mexicana

Lydia from Washington DC

""Oyamel" in Washington DC has a festive, comfortable vibe. If you're a tequila or margarita fan, it's for you. My favorite snack? The papes al mole..."

One of the first restaurants in DC chef Josè Andres' empire, Oyamel has a festive, comfortable vibe, just right for a fancy downtown lunch or cocktails before a hockey game up the street. If you're a Tequila fan (guilty) the offerings rate a wine list length menu, and flights in every category (Blanco! Mescal! Vintage!) with lengthy descriptions of each, making them educational as well.

The menu is perfect for tasting a range of offerings and sharing at the table -- we always start with the family-style guacamole, made fresh to order and served with thin, crispy, just out of the fryer chips. That might be enough, with a hearty Margarita (my fave, and Josè's is the Oyamel, with Milagro Blanco and 'salt air' a frothy topping of salt foam) but I can never stop there. Pick a refreshing ceviche, seafood marinated in citrus, and a cheesy enchilada or meaty taco to round out the meal. The dishes are based on regional specialties, so you'll find goat, chicken, beef tongue, even the regional Oaxacan specialty, a taco of sauteed grasshoppers which, honestly, is quite tasty, served with Tequila, lime and guacamole.

Another favorite: papes al mole, little potatoes in a rich sauce of chile and chocolate, topped with creamy fresh queso.

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Washington DC Spotter Lydia

About me: The tale is in the telling. I am a storyteller, an excavator, a messenger, and for many years a journalist, with a portofolio that includes words crafted for magazines, books, online, television, newspapers, corporations and podcasts. I think everyone has a story, and everything. The person who made your coffee this morning (especially if that was you), and who picked the beans, the pedigree of the beans themselves, not to mention the arduous process of crop to cup. I do, however, prefer “inquisitive” to “nosy". An expat kid raised in the UK & Greece, I've also lived in Vie...

About this spot

401 7th Street NW

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2026281005

Dec 6, 2025

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