I believe I’ve already shared with everyone that I’m a regular reader of the local dc foodie blog Metrocurean. Matt and I were looking for a good date spot to celebrate Christmas together before I head home for the holidays, so I turned to Metrocurean’s “date spot” recommendations. Metrocurean author Amanda suggested a bunch of places I’ve been before, but one I’d never even heard of, Little Fountain Cafe. It’s getting pretty hard to stump me when it comes to good eats in this city. Between writing for WLDC and spending lots of time researching this town, most of the time I’ve at least HEARD of a place if it’s worth anything. But this one was new. A little googling, and an online reservation later, Matt and I were booked, and I was super excited. Everything I had read about said we were in for a treat.

Little Fountain Cafe is located on 18th street, right in the bustle of Adam’s Morgan. In the english basement below Angles Bar, Little Fountain is a hidden gem.

With only 13 tables, it’s a touch kitchy. Okay, maybe a lot kitchy, the tables are set with flower print table clothes your grandmother would have, you drink water out of stemware and eat off of mismatched fancy silver. It reminded me of the tiny little cafes tucked into little crevices in London. The whole place is only a room and a half, and very dark.

When we walked in it was super quiet, with only two tables occupied. A half-hour later the place filled up and became much more alive, but just a warning, this is NOT the right place for a first date. Too many candles, too quiet, and it would be very overwhelming. But it’s a great place if you’ve been dating a while and want an uber-romantic special night out. We started out with the cheese plate trio (brie, goat and stilton, with fig and honey walnuts) and the special salad. Super delicious. I love cheese, and this was cheese done right. Mmm…

For the entree, I ordered the marinated pork loin with pan jus, mashed potatoes and green beans. Matt had the pan-seared trout with grapes and tarragon cream, roasted potatoes and asparagus. The thing about Little Fountain Cafe is this: it’s not cutting edge, there are no grasshopper tacos or beer popsicles, it’s just good food, cooked well, and when it comes down to it, that’s all you need. Everything was right on the money, classic, and delicious.

The crowning point of the whole evening though, was the warm brioche & chocolate chip bread pudding. Do not miss it, it is so yummy there are no synonyms for yummy to describe it. I won’t even try. You just need to go eat it. Go! Now! It’s warm, sugary, chocolate-y, and just really really good.

It’ll be a new favorite of mine, and a great place to go for anniversaries or nice nights out. Very reasonably priced, we could have gotten out of there for a three course meal under $40 per person, except we ordered a bottle of wine, which tipped it over the edge. Still, though, very inexpensive for what it is, and I’ll certainly head back soon.

Little Fountain Cafe is located at 2339 18th St. NW. For more information, call (202) 462-8100.

Photos courtesy of flick user needlesssspaces.

Katie

Katie moved to DC in 2007, and has since embarked upon a love affair with the city. She’s an education reform advocate and communications professional during the day; at night and on the weekends, she’s an owner here at We Love DC. Katie has high goals to eat herself through the entire city, with only her running shoes to save her from herself. For up-to-the-minute news and reviews (among other musings), follow her on Twitter!