Want the intel on Washington's buzziest local spots?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp and SafeGraph, a dataset of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to deduce which local businesses have been getting a noteworthy uptick in attention this month.
To find out who made the list, we first 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. Then we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.
Read on to see which spots are extra hot, right now.
North Italia
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Foggy Bottom's North Italia, the bar and Italian breakfast and brunch spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp saw a median 1.3% increase in new reviews over the past month, North Italia bagged a 15% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a strong four-star rating.
There's more that's trending on Washington's breakfast and brunch scene: Unconventional Diner has seen a 5.3% increase in reviews.
Open at 2112 Pennsylvania Ave., Suite 102 since March, North Italia offers small plates (like Italian meatballs, grilled cauliflower, crispy calamari and beef carpaccio), salads, pizza, sandwiches, fresh pasta and signature cocktails.
North Italia is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m.–11 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.–10 p.m. on Sunday.
Coconut Club
Eckington 's Coconut Club is also making waves. Open since January at 540 Penn St. NE, the popular cocktail bar, which offers seafood and more, has seen a 9.1% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.3% for all businesses tagged "Seafood" on Yelp. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis Coconut Club's review count increased by more than 240%.
There's more than one hot spot trending in Washington's seafood category: Estuary has seen a 17.4% increase in reviews, and Union District Oyster Bar & Lounge has seen a 5.1% bump.
Coconut Club offers healthy brunch meals like fresh fruit and granola or a pulled pork eggs Benedict. Dinner meals, cocktails and bottles of wine are also on offer. Over the past month, it's maintained a solid four-star rating among Yelpers.
Coconut Club is open from 5 p.m.–10 p.m. on Tuesday-Thursday, 5 p.m.–11 p.m. on Friday, 3 p.m.–11 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m.–4 p.m. on Sunday. (It's closed on Monday.)
District Commons
Foggy Bottom's District Commons is the city's buzziest traditional American spot by the numbers.
The popular cocktail bar and traditional American spot, which opened at 2200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW in July of 2013, saw a 1.1% increase in new reviews over the last month — matching that of all businesses for the Yelp business category "American (Traditional)" — but saw visits almost double over the same time frame, according to SafeGraph's foot traffic data.
It's not the only trending outlier in the traditional American category: Sweet Home Cafe has seen a 4.9% increase in reviews.
District Commons offers breakfast, lunch, dinner and weekend brunch menus. Look for notable menu choices such as flatbreads, seafood Cobb salad, mussels and Korean bibimbap.
District Commons is open from 11:30 a.m.–11 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 11:30 a.m.–midnight on Friday, 11 a.m.–midnight on Saturday and 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Sunday. According to SafeGraph, it's usually busiest at 12-2 p.m., and people visit District Commons most on Fridays and Tuesdays. If you’re planning your visit, you may want to try its slower periods on Sundays.
Mission Navy Yard
Capitol Hill's well-established Mission Navy Yard is currently on the upswing in the bar category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Bars" on Yelp saw a median 1.2% increase in new reviews over the past month, this bar, venues and event space and Mexican spot increased its new reviews by 6.5% — and kept its rating consistent at four stars. Review counts increased by more than 300% on a month-to-month basis.
Open for business at 1221 Van St. SE since August 2018, Mission Navy Yard offers everything from guacamole toast and chorizo skillets to tacos and quesadillas.
Mission Navy Yard is open from 5 p.m.–midnight on Monday-Wednesday, 4 p.m.–1:30 a.m. on Thursday, 4 p.m.–2:30 a.m. on Friday, 11 a.m.–2:30 a.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m.–midnight on Sunday.
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.
