Phillip's Flagship of Washington

Phillips Flagship is located on the waterfront in Washington DC. It is easier to get there if you drive. If you take the Metro, you must walk quite a ways to get to the restaurant; I think the bus stops closer. The dinner was $25 when we went last (Jan 2009) and you get a buffet of steamed seafood items, regular food, a cold bar of seafood items, fried foods, and a dessert bar with a variety of choices. So, it's not the place to go when you are on a diet and you shouldn't go often (cholesterol!), but if you have an occassion to celebrate, Phillips is the plae to be. If you want to be in the crowd, weekends are great. To have easy access to the food and without waiting on line forever to get a table, Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the best time to go.

I wouldn't automatically associate Washington D.C. and seafood, but I stumbled upon an All-You-Can-Eat Seafood Buffet. I was in heaven.

When you first walk in there is a large winding staircase going up to the second floor. The location is nice as the restaurant is open to the Potomac River. You have the choice to enjoy your meal out on the open deck or indoors, but even indoors you get the open air feel as the restaurant is not closed off to the outdoors by windows. You get that open southern style porch feeling. Casual style dining, but very quaint atmosphere.

The menu consists of endless crab legs, steamed clams, fried shrimp, prawns, calamari, crunchy corn on the cobb, fried chicken, crispy french fries, pasta, and muscles. Of course there was plenty of ice cold beer! Be sure to order the 20 ounce beer so you get the free souvenir glass. I ate here at around 6PM so the dinner crowd was not yet at its peak. We were able to avoid lines and people rushing for the mounds of crab legs. Weekends cost a little more than weeknights at $29.99 per person. A little pricey considering I usually can't eat my money's worth, but I think the restaurant lost money tonight. The dessert spread was satisfying as well with carrot cake, chocolate cake, a refreshing lemon cake, funnel cake, brownies, pecan pie, and apple cobbler. (I almost sounded like Bubba Gump, but with cake.)


Right next door to Phillip's Flagship is an awesome outdoor seafood market reminiscent of what you might find at Seattle's famous fish market (minus throwing of the fish). The parking by the market was horrendous, but Phillip's Flagship has a parking structure conveniently located across the street.

Good first meal on my Washington trip.