Want the scoop on Washington's most happening local spots?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to discover which local businesses have been getting outsized notice this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at Washington businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increase their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are riding a trend this spring.
High Street Cafe
Open since November, this Georgetown cafe is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "American (Traditional)" on Yelp.
Citywide, traditional American spots saw a median 1.7 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, but High Street Cafe saw an 85.7 percent increase, maintaining a sound 4.5-star rating throughout. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis, High Street Cafe's total review count increased by more than 200 percent.
It's not the only trending outlier in the traditional American category: table tennis bar Spin has seen a 43.5 percent increase in reviews, and Rare Steakhouse has seen an 8.2 percent bump.
Located at 1303 Wisconsin Ave. NW (between North Dumbarton Avenue and North North Street), High Street Cafe offers American classics, like shrimp and grits, a grilled romaine wedge salad and a pepper-crusted New York sirloin, plus Latin-inflected dishes, like a roasted pork pizza with chimichurri sauce.
Flower Child
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Foggy Bottom's Flower Child, a branch of the health-oriented New American chain, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp saw a median 2.5 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, Flower Child bagged an imposing 118.8 percent increase in new reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a superior 4.5-star rating.
There's more that's trending on the city's New American scene: Rooster & Owl has seen a 78.6 percent increase in reviews, and Wingo's and St. Anselm have seen 32.3 and 31.8 percent increases, respectively.
Open at 2112 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 101 (between North I and North 21st streets), since Feb. 4, Flower Child offers innovations like vegan poke bowls, black pearl rice with shaved beef and red chili hoisin, and kombucha on tap.
The Crown & Crow
Logan Circle's The Crown & Crow is also making waves. Open since last July at 1317 14th St. NW (between North Rhode Island Avenue and North N Street), the bar has seen a 29.4 percent bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 2.2 percent for all businesses tagged "Bars" on Yelp. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis, The Crown & Crow's total review count increased by more than 250 percent.
But there's more than one hotspot trending in Washington's bar category: Po Boy Jim has seen a 22 percent increase in new reviews.
The Crown & Crow offers old-timey designer cocktails made from liquors like gin, scotch and apple brandy, as well as small-batch local beers and wines from Spain, Germany, Chile and elsewhere. Over the past month, it's maintained an outstanding five-star rating among Yelpers.
Sfoglina
Mount Vernon Square's Sfoglina — sibling to the Van Ness restaurant of the same name — is the city's buzziest Italian spot by the numbers.
The Italian spot, which opened at 1099 New York Ave. NW (between North 10th and North I streets) last fall, increased its new review count by 17.9 percent over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 2.1 percent for the Yelp category "Italian."
It's not the only trending outlier in the Italian category: Lupo Marino has seen a 12.9 percent increase in reviews.
Sfoglina, from the folks behind Fiola and the Wharf's Del Mar, uses handmade pastas to make both classic dishes and regional specialties, from a Roman-style bucatini to squid ink linguine with Calabrian chilies.
Taco City
Open since October, this Mexican spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Mexican" on Yelp.
Citywide, businesses tagged "Mexican" saw a median 2.9 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, but Taco City DC saw a 20 percent increase, maintaining a solid 4.5-star rating throughout.
Located at 1102 Eighth St. SE (between South Potomac Avenue and South L Street) in Capitol Hill, Taco City offers street-style tacos — corn tortillas filled with your choice of carnitas, lengua, mushrooms and more. There bar also serves up a variety of margaritas, craft cocktails and Mexican beer.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
