I haven't been so angered by a waiter ever that I can remember. Three times he reached for plates that we were still eating from, without even asking if we were ready to have them cleared. When we objected, he did apologize, but so perfunctorily, so insincerely. What a jerk.
Horrible, horrible service. Made special request for wife's birthday that were not accommodated. Service from our waiter was so bad I thought there was a hidden camera somewhere and that we were being pranked. He had no knowledge of the menu or specials, made no attempt at being warm or personable and treated us as if somehow hr deserved different guests to wait on. After waiting for almost an half an hour to receive our check/look at the dessert menu, I got up and went to hostess stand to ask if she had seen our waiter. She looked befuddled. After 6 minutes of her searching for him, another waiter came to our table to give us our check and apologized stating that our original waiter had left...LIKE, WHAT??? At no point did our server, management, or any other staff let us know that we would be without a service attendant for an hour. Horrible. The only positive/upside to this dreadful evening was the helpful server who waited the table next to ours. He saw what was/had happened (ing) and apologized on behalf of the company stating that should never happen and that he felt bad. He offered to comp us a drink.
Was not a fan of the dinner, felt it was overpriced. But I came back again for the brunch and it was solid. Excellent service and loved that the windows were open.
Always can find a table and something yummy easy parking too
Great experience! Try the cauliflower and the mac and cheese!
My husband and I popped in here for happy hour. What a treat! Dennis, our bartender, was amazing. We mentioned we were recently married and were treated to bubbles and dessert from Dennis and the chef. A lovely touch. We will be back, often!
Excellent tapas restaurant in the heart of 14th street. Creative and extensive drink menu and great atmosphere since they open two giant windows at the front of the establishment to create a partial open air environment. Great for dinner before going out to nearby bars.
Love this restaurant! My dish suggestions: salmon tartar, mac&cheese, fish tacos, risotto (potato wedges - papas bravas - are nothing special)
Had an amazing birthday dinner with the tasting menu! Though you can probably stick with the smaller of the two tasting menus...we got the larger one and it was excessive.
Only place we go for Mother's Day Brunch...great food and atmosphere!
Our server was efficient and friendly. Tacos portion could be better for the price. It was delicious tho . Salmon tartare could be more flavorful. Churros were great .
Disgusting food, bad drinks and very bad service. The manager is nice, but the place is terrible. The food was the worst thing I ever tasted in DC. Not only my dish looked bad, but also those of the people around. Nobody within our group was happy with the service! I had some expectations because of the reviews I read and I was utterly disappointed.
They have some great happy hour offerings! Especially the margaritas and sangria. Smaller version of their main menu for a bite to eat and the fried chicken tacos were phenomenal! Can't wait to be back soon
The name "Tico" is a bit misleading, as I expected most Costa Rican food. But, it seems to be pretty straightforward Mexican restaurant. Their happy hour specials are wonderful -- the $6 hibiscus margaritas (from a tap!) are great, and the tacos are so yummy. I would recommend the fried chicken taco (I might have had multiple).
Weekend evenings are a crapshoot but it's worth a visit to try perfect scallops with spicy tartar sauce and hit the bar
This was absolutely the best place I have eaten in DC. Not only was the food amazing but the service was spectacular. The waiters suggestions were on point. This place is highly recommended and I will be coming back.
Amazing food, New year's day brunch was crazy busy and so the service suffered. But the food is worth the wait.
Had one of my worst customer service experiences ever at Tico. My food was brought out 45 minutes after the rest of the members of my party. I asked for help several times and both mangers and servers dragged their feet taking care of me. When I complained to the general manager and owner, he insulted me to my face.
Great small plates, drinks, and service! Order desert. Do it.
Took a gamble during the last day of restaurant week. This place was listed as American food on I'm not sure what site but it was definitely more Mexican. Not the friendliest of staff, interesting decor (I wouldn't bring my kids due to the type of paintings on the walls) but great fries. The food was overdone, the price was higher than the quality, and the energy from the staff was blah-- maybe everyone was tired from a busy week. Wouldn't go back even with others giving it four stars... There are so many other consistently good places nearby.
We were excited to go, but left after one drink and two small plates. Sent the Hibiscus Margarita back, and the food was bland (risotto was runny and shrimp fritters seemingly had no shrimp in them). Also very loud. Went to another nearby restaurant and enjoyed the rest of the night.
Uncomfortable seating, sour guacamole and awful chips. This place is $$$, the plates are listed between $12-18 so it seems on the less expensive side but it takes easily 3 plates to be not starving when you leave. The wait staff is very attentive and there are typically available tables without a wait. Disappointing pre-mixed margaritas that were far too sweet.
Went there for restaurant week and it was my first time. Nice restaurant, great food! And was able to watch the game sitting close to the bar.
Wonderful happy hour with fantastic tapas. The brisket tacos are outstanding!
In town for the weekend, I came to Tico after a recommendation from a friend. I thanked my friend profusely after eating here. Everything was super delicious, the wait staff was incredibly helpful, and the atmosphere was energetic without being over-bearing. This is a great place to come with friends to share some drinks and tapas. The Hibiscus Margaritas were to die to for (the 3 of us shared 2 pitchers), and all of our tapas were fantastic (favorites being the shishito peppers, chorizo risotto, and cauliflower).
The place was packed so we were glad to have reservations. I'd be happy to come back next time I am in DC!
Tico is what you can call a "safe bet." There is nothing about this place that will have you coming back the next day, but it's "shotgun" approach of a menu ensures that everyone at your table will be able to order.
Bonus points are available when the weather is nice and the windows are open so you can stare out and see Trader Joe's shoppers wait for their Uber's.
Delicious tapas style dining. I've had a majority of their menu and everything is spectacular. My favorite is the beef tongue, lamb meatballs and the octopus. They also open up the massive windows in the front when the weather is nice that makes such a nice atmosphere. Great date night option.
I really do like this place. Great drinks and tacos. Menu seems to have shrunk more recently. Definitely pricey for what you get. Worth it? Maybe. Definitely debateable. If you're looking for tacos this wouldn't be the first place I'd go. But it's a sexy date spot. Wait staff are lovely. Hosts can be snooty.
Ok food, good service. Extremely overpriced. Tables packed together and noisy.
The menu is very good. It has a great variety of appetizers between $ 8 and $ 15. Also bigger plates for under $ 20.
The place is well located, a few meters from the train station and parking lots.
Food is absolutely delicious, space is gorgeous and staff were professional and great. Case in point you gotta check this place out.
Yummy food. All the food was tasty. Want to go back and try some more. None of us fell in love with our cocktails, though. Noise level was ok.
I m visting from Seattle and I will say that the Ahi Tuna was good (a little over priced), the ribs was a great size (and quiet delicious), the corn was AMAZING. We noticed our waters were always full, they were never below half within 2 minutes we had water glasses full (we even timed them!) I recommend for a semi-high prices taco experience.
Awful brunch experience. Food is good and the spicy Bloody Mary is popping but they seated our party an hour late, brought out minimal food, and make the 2-hour mandatory time limit work in their favor by being stingy.
Lower rating not due to superior and highly responsive service but the food...such a let down
Went to happy hr w/ my boyfriend. The food and drinks were great! Good prices, warm bartender, great atmosphere & decor (chic w/ modern art pieces). Food took a little time to order though.
Pretty darn good. Service gets quite slow when they're busy, but really, what do you want?
Great ambience. I think the tacos should come in 3s not 2s
I was just racially profiled at Tico 1926 14th DC the managers refused to serve us said we were to intoxicated to be served. We had just left a Gala at the Hyatt downtown and stop there for a drink with a white friend on the way home. The white friend they were willing to serve.
We were completely sober not a drink prior to going there.
The manager appeared to have been drinking on the job. I told him he looked as if he had been drinking far to many to be working.
I do not recommend this place especially for African Americans.
I seriously cannot put into words how amazing this place is. I went on a dinner date with my best friend whose pregnant and our server (I forgot his name, but he s from South America), was extremely professional, tentative and very helpful. He told her a list of things she can and cannot eat. It s like this man was born for the job. Anyways, we ordered our food and at one point I got the shrimp taco and I wasn t a big fan of it so I sent it back. A couple of minutes later the manager (Justin Weiss. You give that man a raise and a promotion) came over to our table and wanted our input on why we didn t like it. So I told him and he appreciate our feedback. Fast-forward to the end of dinner, we got dessert and they told us it was on the house. That was probably my 6th time there and every single time I had a fabulous experience. This will forever be one of my favorite restaurants, mainly because of how they treat their customers and because of how amazing and professional their servers are and not forgetting how amazing the food is
When dear friend @sim1ny suggested having a late dinner at 14th street corridor @tico_dc, I knew she wouldn't steer me wrong but I was not prepared for the impromptu culinary adventure.
With so many options I decided to go for the "Kind of Hungry" tasting menu. #Delicious I will definitely go back for the "Full Tico Experience#
From the first fresh course of ceviche snapper to the best Tres Leche I've ever had all washed down with Burbon and Margaritas, @tico_dc is a must.
Great location, okay service, awful brunch food with a complete lack of spice. Flimsy sad tortillas, oily meat... disappointing all around.
Two words unlimited brunch. All you can eat and drink....
Came for happy hour and stayed for the food. The drink specials were great, $6 cocktails and they were strong! Can't go wrong with the hibiscus margarita. Deducting 1 star for the extremely rude female bartender. Her attitude could not have been worse.
This was an overall excellent dining experience. We started off with the lamb meatballs, which were perfectly cooked and seasoned. For dinner we each got an order of tacos: beef and duck. Both were incredible! We finished off the evening with the decadent banana sundae with chocolate gelato and peanut butter sauce.
Will be returning!
We joined our friends for dinner here and I very much enjoyed our experience here. The atmosphere was very nice. It was quiet enough to have a good conversation and the artsy decor made it a unique dining experience. The service was fabulous and even the manager checked in to see how things were going. I have to say that I was a little disappointed at the prices vs serving size. It was expensive. I do like smaller serving sizes, but it should reflect on the bill. However, the quality of the food was excellent!
The restaurant is big, there is a lot of seating, the service is great and the staff is all very nice. The drinks were great and the food was good, but not delicious. We got about 10 small plates for our table, I liked the spicy shishito peppers the best. I'd go again but for drinks and appetizers instead of for dinner.
The food was awesome! I was shocked at my bill after ordering two drinks, a desert and three appetizers. So, just be prepared!
This is an update! I went to brunch here a few weeks ago and the Duck was awesome! The fried chicken was pretty good, the slaw is spicy and the banana pancakes are good, but can be very sweet. Most of the servings can be shared, so bring a friend and get the bottomless mimosas! passion fruit!!!! Delicious!
Overall the restaurant is nice ( ambience , decoration , music... ) but I was disappointed with food portion . I had tacos , which were not that yummy and not enough to feed me . After this experience, I don t think I will go again :(
Nice menu, great mixed drinks, and a friendly staff.
Great reasonably priced brunch spot. Accepts reservations. Great shared mimosas. Good value for a great price.
The food was so delicious and I enjoyed every bite. I had a perfect birthday dinner and highly suggest the shrimp tacos.
I have loved Tico for a long time, but this visit was a disappointment. They've narrowed their dinner menu, losing a lot of items that were signature dishes. If you want an upscale ceviche and tacos place, this is great, but I don't find anything overwhelmingly special. The tapas are very scaled back. In the end, I had an okay meal, when I'm used to a wow meal, especially for the price. Their drinks, especially the hand mixed cocktails, are refreshing and very tasty, but also expensive. The service is among the worst I've had all year at any restaurant, with a slow waiter and managers who did not seem to notice the problems in the dining room. This actually is hard to write, but hopefully they'll fix a lot of problems. That said, I won't be making a reservation anytime soon for dinner. There is still hope in brunch, but I hope this does not just become another brunch spot. French toast is easy.
Just go. It's absolutely amazing. Everything is great.
Updated: the manager of the restaurant responded to my email and explained that this type of service is not up to their standard. He then offered to prove to us that they are better with a reservation for two, on the restaurant. I appreciate this gesture and offer. We will be taking them up on this offer in the next few weeks.
Our server was horrible - took our drink and food order and then we never saw him again. The restaurant uses runners to bring food or else we would not have received our food. We ordered a bottle of wine that never came to the table. After twenty minutes of being done with our food (which we would have ordered more if our waiter came back), another waiter stopped and asked us what we needed. He quickly brought us our check.
The food here is pretty legit in general, but this service experience means we will not attend again. I also sent the restaurant an email via their website contact us page that evening and, five days later, have still not heard anything.
Service was quite poor. Inattentive wait staff that appeared to be stretched thin and a male host that spoke so softly you couldn t hear what he was saying.
Once the server finally came over to us, she introduced herself by looking at out empty water glasses and making an exasperated comment about *trying* to find some water for us. Seriously? I could tell we were in for a treat. It took forever to take our order and food took an extremely long time to come out. The menu was cut down due to being out of items which was disappointing. The server never once asked us how the food was and had to be prompted to refill water and get us our check.
The only plus side was the food was good (although an overpriced $6 small side of fresh fruit and $4 cup of old coffee that never got refilled was outrageous). But the extremely poor service made the brunch one I wish I never had.
Asked for the last spicy tacos on the menu and got them ased off the recommendation... My mouth was on fire. My boyfriend also for tacos, and they weren't spicy at all. Waiter was also standoffish. The guacamole was delicious though.
Great food. Friendly staff. And cool atmosphere. Definitely recommend. Loved the bacon cheeseburger with egg and breakfast potatoes.
The food was good, but I was really impressed by their home made hot sauces - so many choices!
This place is pricey and very loud.
It's $12-20 for 2 tacos, 10+ for a small bowl of guacamole, 50+ for a pitcher of margaritas (~5 small margaritas)
We could barely hear each other sitting directly next to each let alone across the table. Both music and a packed house contribute to this.
The server was also super inattentive, this might have been because the place was busy... But again for the price. I should not have to flag someone down to have my tiny water cup refilled or even to order another 50+ dollar pitcher of margaritas. He did not even realize that we were done eating and our party of 10 starting to leave... He came dashing out of the back with the checks. We had even ordered/ eaten deserts and the bussers cleaned the table.
Now the food quality was on point, which is why this is a 2 star review instead of one.
Overall, the price of the dishes and drinks are not worth the atmosphere or service when busy.
A major remodel is needed with noise dampening in mind or the price needs to massively drop to be treated like cattle for table turn around, unable to be heard by friends, and ignored by wait staff.
Awesome margs and tacos! This was a great place for happy hour or grabbing drinks before heading to DC Improv or hitting up DuPont for a night out. The bartenders were soooo friendly and our food came out quickly. I highly recommend especially if you love spicy food! Will be back soon!
They accommodated 14 of us and the food and wine was terrific. Great service and they brought out many plates to sample. Everything was amazing but the Mac and cheese and the Cauliflower with chipotle was to die for.
I love the vibe and the atmosphere here. There's a mix of locals, tourists, hipsters and Capitol Hill types. The food is tapas style and every dish was better than the last. I'm partial to the grilled cauliflower, fish tacos and watermelon salad.
Could be better. Expensive and portions are too small even for small plates. Fun atmosphere if you are in a big group.
Great service and atmospher. The server was awesome and the whole staff was fantastic! Food was good but waaaayyy too exspensive for size of serving portions. Would not go back as other places with good food and better pricing
Good food and drinks for a happy hour or dinner date. It's dimly lit, which gives you the impression you are in a lounge with low, uplifting music as the servers treat you to a pleasant dining experience. The chorizo risotto and pork belly sliders are exquisite, and the drinks quite delicious. Everything is reasonably priced for the quality and area it is located. Would recommend for a date, after work drinks, and activities that lean toward the evening.
Food tasty but service awkward. Expensive for what you get. Pet peeve when you re denied seating on your preferred table, given reason of that table being booked, then said table remains empty for the entire time you re in restaurant. Also, strong air conditioning made for chilly dining - bring an extra layer.
Good service. Great Palomas. The calamari was decent, pork belly sliders were a little tough. But I would definitely go back to check out more of the menu.
Saturday brunch was amazing. We celebrated a birthday with about 20 people and the service was great and they had plenty of room for us. They brought out the different foods in waves and had enough for everyone. Their food is very well presented, tasty, and the right portion. Would recommend this for events and gatherings. As someone with a sweet tooth, the churros were overall a great experience and fun decor. Clean bathrooms, nice people, good food, good service.
ticodc.com