14 Best Restaurants in Northern Virginia, Virginia

This classic raw bar is consistently busy thanks to a nice mix of locals and visitors. No doubt it's because the oysters, clams, and lobster rolls are incredibly fresh, and the wine list is great. The restaurant also offers several daily specials highlighting local and seasonal ingredients, as well as fantastic soups, salads, and small plates. The rooftop dining area is superb.

Be sure to make reservations because foodies flock here for a taste of its award-winning Modern American cuisine. Vermilion favors locally sourced, sustainable ingredients, though quality trumps local here, so you may find Parisian gnocchi alongside Maryland crab croquettes on this mid-Atlantic menu. Don't miss the fantastic homemade pasta, bread, and desserts.

Shipping containers floating atop the Potomac River comprise this Spanish-inspired tapas restaurant in Old Town. The lunch and dinner menus feature small plates: patatas bravas, ham croquetas, and Spanish octopus salad. You can also savor meats and cheeses from Greece and Spain, miniature sandwiches, and more. The summery drink menu features ciders, beers, and wine—though order the stone fruit sangria to put you in a beachy kind of mood. The indoor wine bar is nice especially in winter.

In the heart of the historic district, this circa-1789 tavern provides a taste of the interior decoration, cuisine, and entertainment of the early Republic. A strolling balladeer usually makes the rounds on Friday and Saturday nights. The tavern was a favorite of Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, who is commemorated on the menu: George Washington's Favorite is half a duck grilled with scalloped potatoes, corn pudding, rhotekraut (sweet and sour red cabbage), and a port wine orange glace. Brunch is served on Sunday.

Inside an old building just one block from the Potomac, Il Porto's interior is reminiscent of Italy, with plaster walls, exposed wooden beams, and checkered tablecloths. The menu includes traditional Italian versions of veal, seafood, pasta, and chicken. Healthful touches include whole-wheat pasta and organic wines. On weekend nights the cozy dining room can get crowded.

At this local favorite, run by Jean François Chaufour and his wife, Françoise, for more than 40 years, lovingly prepared French country fare is served with beaucoup flavor. Popular selections include trout, bouillabaisse, garlicky rack of lamb, frogs' legs, and beef Wellington. Polish it all off with an order of profiteroles or crème brûlée.

Opened in 1999, the Lightfoot occupies a historic bank building, lending traces of vintage architecture to the chic design—the marble staircases are the first tip-off (and the wine cellar is in the old vault). But people flock here for the upscale dining experience, focusing on creative American-style cuisine: lobster and shrimp pasta in rosemary cream sauce; braised pork, shrimp, and grits; filet mignon with horseradish-chive butter and crispy onions. The desserts are just as heavenly.

Housed in a Romanesque-Revival building (1888), this restaurant was the Peoples National Bank for more than half a century. Restored to its original grandeur, the restaurant was named in honor of Francis Lightfoot Lee, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. One of the wine "cellars" is actually the bank's vault. The seasonal American cuisine, based on local ingredients, includes meat and seafood with a regional spin.

It goes without saying that romance is in the air at this chocolate-themed restaurant, enhanced by low lighting and tucked-away booths. Chocolate may not be used in every dish, but why opt for anything else? The crispy calamari is prepared with a cocoa beer batter, while the burger comes with chocolate barbecue sauce. Even the Caesar salad is sprinkled with cocoa nibs. As you can imagine, the desserts are decadent, as are the specialty cocktails (the “moussetache,” for example, has vodka, baileys, and four forms of chocolate including crème de cacao and chocolate mousse). The secret is the conche—a machine that refines the chocolate to perfection.

Tuskie’s, as locals call it, is a Loudoun institution. Opened in 1985 in historic downtown Leesburg, it occupies a restored 1899 grist mill. Owner Kevin Malone was a proponent of the “buy local” movement from the start, and the New American menu—with dishes like grilled flank steak with bourbon molasses, slow-braised lamb shank with rosemary sauce, and jumbo lump crab cakes with lemon-leek aioli—reflects this philosophy. You can get salads and sandwiches too; the Barn Yard “Au Jus” smoked beef brisket and pork sandwich is a local favorite.