kramerbooks & afterwords cafe

a perfectplacefor avid readers and foodies.. i recommend getting the fettuccine new orleans. it's really good! it's mixed with shrimp, chicken breast, pork sausage, onions, peppers, and scallions. it's $14, which isn't too bad. my friend got the misko sake salmon salad, which she enjoyed. we didn't have to wait too long for our food, and the service was pretty good.

after we finished our food, we went to take a look through their book selection. they have a great selection of books, but they don't have a big selection of magazines.

a little fyi: when you go to the bathroom, you have to ask the restaurant employees for a token. it is used for opening the door.

touring the neighborhood around dupont circle, my kids and i stumbled upon kramerbooks & afterwords cafe on connecticut street in washington, d.c.

kids were hungry and we seated ourselves on the outside covered patio. too late for lunch - too early for dinner, we decided upon appetizers. hicham was our server.

pow pow chicken (appetizer) for me - which is simply pow pow chicken with toasted peanuts and cilantro at $12.00; and macaroni and cheese (appetizer) for each of my three kids - which is simply macaroni and cheese with white cheddar sauce, elbow macaroni, and a bread crumb topping at $10.00 each. water as our beverage. total price with tax was $46.20.

food was timely prepared and very tasty. kids had no complaint and ate everything on their plate. the bread crumb topping was a delightful addition for my twins as they never get that at home when mom makes macaroni and cheese. as for the pow pow chicken, you could taste the heat and savor the sweetness. as an appetizer, i enjoyed it.

outside patio was well kept and clean. the cafe wasn't that busy when we arrived but started to pick up as we left. hicham - our server - was friendly and polite. prices were competitive and not offensive.

interesting littleplace- wish we had more time to check out the book store itself.

william e. lewis jr.

vero beach, florida

they say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. to live up to that, my cousin told me that he had the perfectplacein mind.
thisplaceis my cousin’s favourite and after eating here, i figured out why. i started my day at kramerbooks & afterwords where i had a very delicious corned beef hash & eggs. with a bottomless brew on the side, i was content. the service here is fantastic as the staff are warm and courteous.
my breakfast (technically their brunch) came on a skillet filled with the beef along with two perfectly poached eggs on top. a small slit into the egg made it flow out into the dish and my gosh, it tasted awesome!
overall, this meal was so satisfying and filling that i had my next meal only past 11pm.
if you love reading, they have a great bookstore at the back and if you’re in the mood for a drink, their pub will definitely not disappoint.

a perfectplacefor avid readers and foodies.we didn't have to wait too long for our food, and the service was pretty good.i appreciate the level of detail this restaurant takes. for example, the serve soda out of a bottle to ensure fresh taste. goodplaceto catch a great dinner. the service was exceptional, as was the food. steak was beautifully cooked, ribs fell off the bone, cornbread is heavenly.

i wanted to love it based on the premise of a book store and a cafe but i merely liked it. we visited it for dessert one evening. theplacewas pretty crowded and very loud. it was hard to have a conversation. the bathrooms were inconveniently located a couple of flights up. however, the peach cobbler was amazing. the peaches were tender and juicy and not too sweet. the vanilla ice cream was crisp on top of the warm cobbler. i could have done without the raspberry puree on top but the dessert was enjoyable. it was a cuteplacefor a late night dessert and cold brewed coffee was good.

i love thisplace- maybe because i once worked at the bookstore. but where else can you have an excellent selection of books to buy, a quaint and lively little bar tucked away in one corner and a big spacious cafe on another side, all connected? crab cakes with poached eggs are excellent, salads are big and staff are friendly both those serving food/drinks and those at the bookstore, who really love to read and know their stuff and can give excellent recommendations.

affectionately referred to just as "kramers," kramerbooks and afterwords cafe feels like a national monument in dc.  first opened in 1976, afterwords cafe was the first bookstore/cafe in the country to feature cappucino, espresso, a full bar, and food. back in the day, i spent a lot of time at kramers as it was one of the few places in the late 80's that was open 24 hours on the weekends. so, we'd find ourselves at the cafe at 3 a.m. enjoying a huge entree or salad and talking until the wee hours of the morning. my days of staying up late are over, but apparently the enjoyment of kramers can continue. kramers is now hosting author talks and book signings and after attending one, i went to the bar for drinks and dinner. i ordered the catcher in the rye, which was absolutely fantastic. it was made with rittenhouse rye, orange turbinado syrup, and peychaud bitters. i might have had two, but i'm not telling. i inquired if there was anything vegan and was told there was only one entree that was vegan as-is. i ordered it and patiently waited. after about 30 minutes, i inquired about the status and it was brought to the bar soon thereafter. i ordered the cafe whole grain and veggie platter. it didn't sound exciting, but it actually was. when it arrived on the bar, chris exclaimed, "it's a thanksgiving feast!" and, right, he was. this huge platter was loaded with all kinds of good stuff. the mushroom crostini made with wild mushrooms was spectacular. in fact, everything was quite good. my favorite veggie -- broccoli rabe had been sauteed with sliced garlic and roasted red peppers. there was a black bean and corn salad, quinoa salad, grilled corn, and pan-roasted root veggie hash with sweet potatoes. it was all seasoned well and tasted delish! for $17, kramers isn't the cheapestplacein the city, but i was quite happy with my meal and drinks. and who couldn't love the vibe. it's a hip bookstore that existed before busboys and poets and continues to survive in this cutthroat

delicious and unique. we are both book lovers, so thisplaceimmediately appealed to us. we dined here for dinner and sat outside. the menu offered unique selections for a diverse palate. we sampled each others and both were pleased. i had the thai wings for an appetizer and the coconut grouper. the flavors were a delicious combination that pleased our group. save room for dessert. those were exceptional as well.

low key brunch and late nightsnacks. minimal decor in the cafe part and lovely brunch food that is much more low key than a lot of other spots in dc. thisplaceis great to pop in early or late with a friend, browse the books, and chat over a drink.

finally, a unique brunch menu!!. delicious. a crab omelette, really?? soo good. big portions. wish we had aplacelike this in toronto. 10/10 for brunch!

a wonder of dc. this shop is really lovely & quaint. the people who work here are all friendly (shop and cafe). the store sells a ton of books i can't even find in the bigger chains and the cafe is awesome. thisplaceis open really late at night and you wouldn't think it at first glance because it's a bookstore front but it's truly a "hidden gem" just about. the food is good at the cafe and so is the service.

cultural hot spot. i had never heard of kramerbooks until a recent friend of mine suggested it as a good dinnerplacein dupont circle. as a fellow washingtonian, we are aware that anyplaceworth knowing about is through word-of-mouth. it was last friday and i wanted to go out in dupont, but also wanted to have dinner with two of my close friends, mike and stacy. we all have drastically different schedules, so it's nice to sit down and catch up once and a while over good food and delicious cocktails. kramerbooks is a cultural hot spot located in the heart of dupont circle; a go-toplacefor the yuppies of washington d.c. it is literally located within a book store, and not a situation where you have a seattle's best coffee to the side. people hover around some of the most eclectic book topics i've ever seen as they wait for their name to be called at this local gem. we waited about 30 minutes for our table, but it wasn't so bad knowing we had a plethora of books to keep us entertained.

we sat down at this little table; it was sort of a neighborly place. everyone was seated close together that it felt like a small-knit community. thisplacehad a sense of warmth and coziness to it - the dim lighting, intellectual conversations, and over abundance of cloth hats and scarves made it known that it's aplacefor stimulating conversation with young intellectuals. we were greeted by our waitress, april, who gave us a drink menu and ran down the list of specials. i started off with the real espresso martini, a delicious combination of vanilla vodka, brewed espresso, kahlua, and frangelico. it was late and i knew i needed a drink that would give me a little extra boost to get me through the night. (hey, this isn't college anymore; working all week exhausts me!). the drink was a very rich, smooth cocktail and is a must-have for coffee lovers. stacy ordered an amazing glass of white wine; i think it was a sauvignon blanc. it was so good that she went to total wines that same weekend to find it in the store. mike was the adult of the group and just stuck with water. :)

now in regards to our meals, there was a wide variety of different dishes to choose from, all within the $20-$30 range, which is pretty reasonable for the heart of dupont. much to my surprise, the waitress recommended getting any dish with seafood since it's brought in fresh everyday. i was torn between two salads, and the waitress recommended the crab, tomato & avocado salad, which was jumbo lump crab cake, sliced california avocados and tomatoes, over market greens and red onions drizzled with a little extra virgin olive oil and balsamic dressing. i love seafood, so i was very excited when my salad came with a nice portion of crab meat. it was a simple, clean, healthy salad - the avocados and tomatoes were perfectly seasoned and the dressing added just enough sweet and tangy to the crab meat. it's appearance was exquisite. it was a good-size meal, but i wouldn't say i was exactly full after my meal, but that's okay since the meal had a lot of other great qualities. my friend, mike, i think made the best choice by his smoked pork cuban sandwich. at just around $15, he had a great portion of slow-smoked porked, pulled from the bone and piled onto a grilled baguette. it was layered with aged gouda (that's enough to say yum already), aioli, prosciutto and pickled jalapenos. with that, he got a nice side of market greens and "dirty" rice and beans, made with black beans, sausage, bacon, garlic, onion, and red peppers. he labeled the meal as "delicious" and i'd have to add that i tried a little of the pulled pork and it was delectable and extremely tasty. and, last but not least, my friend stacy got the lobster dish with a side of mac & cheese and succotash. unfortunately, her lobster was sub-par, and seemed to be very bland. it was a huge amount of lobster, but was not appropriately adorned with the right fixings. when you order lobster, you expect great things, so i'm not surprised by the disappointment.

i think, overall, mike and i give kramerbooks a 4 out of 5 stars, while stacy might come out at more of a 3 stars out of 5. the location was perfect for fellow dupont circle-ers and was a nice mix up from the upscale lounges. this is that perfectplaceif you still want to go "out" on a friday night, but want something a bit more low-key with a little bit of flair!

great buzz - niceplacefor weekend brunch. it was a lovely sunny winter's day when my friends took me to kramerbooks for saturday brunch as it's meant to be one of the trendy spots in dupont circle. there is a nice vibe to theplace- a good space designed to satisfy both one's intellect and appetite.

it took us awhile to be showed our tables (the front of house was off somewhere and not simply doing what she was meant to be doing - showing guests their tables), and it seemed there was no clear demarcation of responsibilities for wait staff. but when we were eventually showed our table by the manager, our server was prompt and polite. our orders were taken efficiently and food was served quickly.

our entrees were tasty enough, though not the best i've ever had the pleasure of tasting in a bistro/café of similar ilk. the coffees were weak and somewhat forgettable.

but having said that, it's still aplacethat draws crowds which gives the café a great buzz. nice to have visited!

kramer and afterwords disappoints. if good service and reasonable pricing is what you're looking for in a nice, relaxing sunday brunch, kramerbooks & afterwords cafe is the wrongplaceto go. my criticism should not be taken lightly, as i am from downtown manhattan and am more than used to crowded, exclusive restaurants being too busy to go the extra mile for their customers in the courtesy department - but thisplacetakes the cake.

we arrived for sunday brunch, put our names in and were issued a 20 minute wait - not terrible, but we asked if it might be possible to have a cup of coffee while we wait. at a cafe, this doesn't seem to be an unreasonable request, but apparently it was. the one-earringed manager looked around, and barked "not now." at us. this, however, is the least of my complaints.

we were given a table and issued menus. we were given our coffee, which was, by consensus of 3 avid coffeephiles at my table, absolutely terrible. burned beyond belief. i had never tasted worse.

ok. we moved on, opened the menus and discovered not a single item for less than $15.25. we mentioned this to our waiter, who laughed it off. the manager, the one who barked at us for asking for coffee at a cafe, came over and asked what the problem was. we told him and he replied "this is dupont, things are expensive." i have had many brunches on sunday mornings in greenwich village, aplaceslightly more well known for its cuisine than is dupont, and never have i come across such a gouge.

among the "cheapest" choices on the menu was the "oatmeal, granola, yogurt and fruit: slow-cooked steel-cut irish oatmeal
greek yogurt spiked w/honey; toasted granola
fresh berries & seasonal fruit." i'm pretty sure that i can purchase those ingredients and make a portion four times the size of theirs for half the price.

overall, this was one of the worst dining experiences of my life, and sure, theplaceis designed in a trendy way, but if you want more than trendy style in your food, i strongly recommend you reconsider visiting kramerbooks and afterwords cafe.

it's funny. when official co-writer of dcwd cc and i came up with this blog, kramerbooks was the example i would use; at least, when you first move here, it's exactly the kind of hiddenplacethat is perfect for dates (then, you realize that everyone know