oyamel

good, not great. thought the food here was really fresh and tasty, but some dishes had almost overpowering flavor of the sauce or spice and you couldn't actually taste the fish or vegetable underneath. i know the guacamole is like $13, but get it, it's really good. yes, the small plates can add up, but that's true of every tapas place.

overall service was very good - we got a little 'tude from our server at first, but when he realized he forgot an iced tea he was more attentive and didn't charge us for it.
atmosphere is cool - but can get very loud.

during snogasm i had plenty of time to eat. on the first day of snow a girlfriend of mine and a friend of hers decided to grab something to eat for a late lunch. her friend was from brazil and highly recommended we meet up at oyamel. i've always walked pa

good, but not excellent, in our opinion...

wait time doesn’t phase me, especially when i’m in good company, but at oyamel we had the added bonus of good drink. we ordered a pitcher of blood orange chile pequin, and were we ever so glad we did. ms. classy was a little hesitant, but became a fan of the drink after the first sip. it is a refreshing citrus margarita, but the pequin puts a zing that warms your lips and will make your tongue ask for more. we all really enjoyed the flavorful complexity of this drink.

creative mexican tapas. the food was wonderful and very original; the service good but quite slow. we were left to languish at our table for a long time before ordering drinks, and then again before being able to order our food. i would definitely go again if i had plenty of time.

oyamel has a great buzz, vibe and energy. the food is good and some of the offering like the cactus and grasshopper dishes are down right unique. be mindful though that the place offers everything as 'small plates' so you just get one-piece-of, one taco per order.

muy bueno!. this was my fourth or fifth meal at oyamel and it has yet to disappoint. my latest meal was lunch with some friends. we settled in with a pitcher of their version of sangria. white wine and citrus with diced pineapple added which made it a surprising change from the dank sangria offered most places. guacamole made table side was surprisingly good. we were asked how we liked it and it was spot on. i think they should have used lime juice instead of lemon - and been more generous as a little more acid would have added a little oomph to the buttery salad. the tortilla chips are how i remember them from mexico and not the good but rather limp, bland things one gets in dc. i had one of the lunch tortas; a ham, turkey and cheese sandwich basically layered in flour tortillas. it was rather good (perhaps another few seconds on the grill). another diner had the "gazpacho salad" which looked wonderful except had no relation to what one comes to expect. not a tomato in sight but it looked crisp and refreshing with kohlrabi and grapefruit. her quail tapa had to be sent back as it was partially raw. the chef remade the dish and it looked perfect and she loved it - crisp and pungent with herbs. everyone at our table was sated. the service was excellent and we were seated promptly without a reservation. my recent dinner experience here has been equally rewarding, although the wait for a table can be taxing.

treat your taste buds. wecalled to reserve but there was nothing. since we are traveling and found ourselves close, we walked in and were told it would be a hour wait. we decided to wait and had a drink once we got a bar seat and in only half an hour we had a table. what a menu, there were all kind of choices i decided on a gazpacho salad and the favors were great! this was followed by shrimp wit an aged black garlic that was also good. after my margarita i decided to try the grasshopper taco, abit salty but crunchy and with guacamole in it they balanced the flavors well. also a tip from the bartender i ordered a ron cooper margarita, you get a margarita with a shot of this smokey tequila...oh wow that was a treat. we spent a little more than we expected but then the places with t.hat assortment and the small dishes tends to run that way. it was fun with good eats.

guacamole is something i ordered and i did really love it man it was fresh and lovely and it did taste good for me to try and love perfect for my dinner appetite but not ideal.

overall i wouldn't seek this place out for a meal. but if i had to go here, i'd have the margaritas and meatballs. i had the margarita of the day (something with blueberries and pears in it) which pretty much kicked ass and the meatballs (albóndigas enchipotladas con queso doble crema) were delicious (that sauce! yum!)

everything else i had was mediocre. taco de hongos con crema (mushroom taco) was salty, pancita y jitomate (pork belly sandwich) was uninspiring, churros were overdone, coctél de camarón y jaiba (shrimp & crab ceviche) was fine - nothing memorable, and the pescado mexicano (fish taco) was bland.

if you're looking for a great meal walk one more block to the sister restaurant jaleo for better tasting tapas and good cocktails, but if you must go to oyamel, i recommend margaritas and meatballs.

all in all a good experience but when you live in a place as varied, happening and vibrant as the d.c restaurant scene, i'm ready to move on.

on june 15, 2016, chef josé andrés will be hosting his 4th annual dine-n-dash with proceeds going to support world central kitchen, a non-profit organization that focuses on smart solutions to decrease world hunger and poverty.

you couldn’t ask for a better event where you can pay one price (general ticket or vip ticket), walk into 30 restaurants in one night, sample some of the venue’s most popular dishes and libations and walk right out without pulling out your wallet throughout penn quarter and the 14th street neighborhoods.

sunday’s media tour offered a sneak peak into 4 of the restaurant options.

oyamel cocina mexicana

first stop was oyamel and this was by far my favorite stop for food and drinks.  a few of the dishes that were offered were the oyamel margarita, taco -carnitas estilo michoacán, pescadilla sinaloa, and table-side guacamole.

oyamel is mexican food that packs a punch from your standard street foods.  their margaritas are topped with “salt air,” so there’s no need for a messy rim of salt around the glass, you get a pinch of salt with every sip.  the pork taco was topped with a crunch chicharrón satisfying the soft and crunchy textures.  their take on the fish “empanada” which is steamed not fried, is a surprisingly flavorful moist ingredients tucked inside of a crisp shell.  table-side guacamole, need i say more? ...

amazing food! comfortable atmosphere, speedy and hospitable service. reasonably priced overall an a++!!

oyamel is a lot more down-to-earth. stepping into the restaurant, we immediately noticed the colorful metal butterflies on the ceilings, the open space and abundance of daylight, as well as the fact that all tables were occupied. this is what i call busy.

fancy mexican. really liked the tapas style of ordering. got to taste a bunch of different things. drinks are to die for.
the tequila infused quest and chicken enchiladas were my fav.
service is a little slow so go when u have lots of time.