Ris review: A neighborhood stop for the swells

When Ris Lacoste rolled out her eponymous restaurant five years ago, the veteran chef promised a neighborhood restaurant that would be both rustic and elegant. She continues to make good on her word in a West End dining room that shares its building with the Residences at the Ritz-Carlton; Ris's menu embraces cheeseburgers and crab cakes fancied up with sliced kumquats.

The prettiest dish brings beet and goat cheese ravioli dappled with shimmering pistachio arugula pesto. The heartiest plate is weighed down with dry-aged rib-eye and a potato cake held together with Gruyere. The best of the lot is thinly pounded chicken in a golden coat of Parmesan, lemon and basil, served with an arugula salad pink with prosciutto.

Since Ris opened, the bar for dining in the city has risen dramatically; some compositions could use more finesse. This is a generous kitchen that can't say no to an extra accessory or five, evinced by a catch of the day with more parts than a Lego set and desserts with so many flowers, a companion asks if I want one for my lapel. The signature scallop margarita lacks the balance of heat and sweet the appetizer once offered, its tequila sorbet a ringer for limeade. But the service is swell, and so is the people-watching. Chances are good you'll be sharing the place with a Cabinet member, a talking head, a celeb staying at one of the nearby posh hotels or ... OMG, is that Oprah?

→2275 L St. NW. 202-730-2500. www.risdc.com.

Open: Lunch Sunday through Friday, dinner daily, brunch Sunday.

Prices: Lunch entrees $18 to $42, dinner entrees $20 to $42, brunch entrees $14 to $23. Sound check: 73 decibels / Must speak with raised voice.

This review appears in The Washington Post’s 2015 Spring Dining Guide.

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