Wondering where Washington's in-the-know crowd is eating and drinking? It's easy to spot lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to deduce which restaurants have been in the spotlight 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 increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are riding a trend this summer.
Busboys and Poets
Open since March 12, this event space and New American and breakfast and brunch spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp.
Citywide, breakfast and brunch spots saw a median 2.1% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Busboys and Poets saw a 43.2% increase, with a slight downward trend from a 4.5-star rating a month ago to four stars today.
It's not the only trending outlier in the breakfast and brunch category: Unconventional Diner has seen a 9% increase in reviews.
The eatery, located at 2004 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE, features signature brunch dishes, such as Iraqi corned beef hash, sweet potato hash and shrimp and grits. It also serves cocktails, beer and wine.
Seven Reasons
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about the U Street Corridor's Seven Reasons, the cocktail bar and Latin American spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Cocktail Bars" on Yelp saw a median 4% increase in new reviews over the past month, Seven Reasons bagged a noteworthy 128.6% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a superior 4.5-star rating.
There's more that's trending on Washington's cocktail bar scene: Queen's English has seen a 100% increase in reviews, and Punjab Grill and Whiskey Charlie have seen 55.4% and 8.5% increases, respectively.
Open at 2208 14th St. NW since April 16, Seven Reasons features Venezuelan chef Enrique Limardo's Latin fusion cuisine, including chorizo and lobster rice and duck magret with salsa verde.
Mission - Navy Yard
Mission - Navy Yard is also making waves. Open since July 2018 at 1221 Van St. SE (between South M and South N streets), the bar and Mexican spot has seen a 17.2% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.8% for all businesses tagged "Mexican" on Yelp.
Mission - Navy Yard offers beef, pork, shrimp, chicken and vegan tacos, as well as fajitas, pan-seared salmon and carne asada. Over the past month, it's maintained a strong four-star rating among Yelpers.
Wingo's
Glover Park's Wingo's is the city's buzziest New American spot by the numbers.
The business, which offers chicken wings and more at 2218 Wisconsin Ave. NW (between North Hall and North W places), opened in September 2018. It increased its new review count by 24.5% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 2.2% for the Yelp category "American (New)." It outperformed the previous month by gaining two times more reviews than expected based on past performance.
It's not the only trending outlier in the New American category: Mazi has seen a 34% increase in reviews, and St. Anselm and Kith and Kin have seen 12.1% and 7.4% increases, respectively.
Wingo's offers wings with two dozen flavors and levels of heat, plus burgers, hot dogs, fries and a variety of sandwiches.
Rappahannock Oyster Bar
Southwest's Rappahannock Oyster Bar is currently on the upswing in the seafood category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp saw a median 2.3% increase in new reviews over the past month, this wine and beer bar, which offers seafood and more, increased its new reviews by 32.7% — and kept its rating consistent at four stars.
There's more abuzz in the world of Washington seafood: La Vie has seen a 15.7% increase in reviews, and Union District Oyster Bar & Lounge has seen an 11.2% bump.
Open for business at 1150 Maine Ave. SW at the District Wharf since December 2018, the business offers Chesapeake Bay, Rappahannock River and Chincoteague oysters, as well as oyster sandwiches, crab cakes and seasonal whole fish.
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.
