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    Kayu

    4.3 (59 reviews)
    Closed 5:00 pm - 10:00 PM
    Updated 2 months ago

    Kayu Photos

    KAYU ATMOSPHERE

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    Recommended Reviews - Kayu

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    Moreno opening
    Alexis W.

    The food at Kayu is delicious! I attended the grand opening of the Moreno cafe and was a little underwhelmed. The pastries were delicious but the drinks tasted nothing like what they were supposed to be and were very watered down. The buko pandan latte tastes like artificial banana flavoring if you're into that and I personally am not. I will have to give the cafe another try on a regular day because they do Kayu so well that I'm sure once they get into the swing of things it'll be better!

    Asia daisy
    Sydney G.

    Came here for restaurant week with some friends and had a lovely experience. FYI the menu online is a bit different from the one they have at the restaurant, so that threw off some of my ordering choices. We basically did the whole RW menu to split between 4 of us, and that's definitely the way to go. Loved the bao bun, and surprisingly the Chicory Salad and the tofu sisig were my favorite dishes of the night. We did the upcharge for the wagyu and I found it to be a bit of a disappointment -- i found it really tough and chewy, although the sauce and potatoes it came with were good, so it wasn't a total loss. They have a simple cocktail menu, but the bartender was super friendly and made my Asia daisy a bit less sweet per my preferences.

    Sabrina P.

    Had a great experience at Katy in D. The salad was delicious and fresh, and the crab pancit was definitely my favorite. The dumplings could have been a bit more flavorful, but overall everything was well prepared. I would have appreciated slightly larger portion size for the pancit, but still a solid spot worth visiting.

    Ben D.

    I had an excellent experience at Kayu food and drinks were great too. Ube drink was very rich and flavorful. The. We all shared the restaurant week menu starting with Frisée Salad , Dumplings, Ube Bao Bun, and Ensaymada. The dumplings were favorites either wild mushroom broth bring the most flavorful. The other three were delicious with great flavor. For the main courses we got Pork Belly, sig sig, Chicken Inasal, Wagyu Adobo. My favorite was the sig sig it had a ton of savory flavor and richness. The wagyu was very good anad balanced with an excellent black sauce. Pork belly had excellent flavor and texture was an excellent dish. The chicken was good and tender. I thought the other dishes had more complexity than the chicken. For desert we shared the Ube Halaya Chocolate and hamporado S'mores both were great but the smores was my favorite its great chocolate flavor balanced against the cream. Service was excellent and the inside was beautiful too.

    Hajir S.

    Wow this place is so great! The food is all fabulous and the service fantastic. Not one dish was bad and the ube bao bun was so so good! They could use going to a more upscale spot, but the win is the food. Also the drinks could use some more creativity. They're not as good as the food.

    PEI mussels
    Jasmine D.

    Since Filipino restaurants are few and far between where I live, I make a point to try and find one when I'm in a big city and Kayu did not disappoint. We chose their pre-fixe Salo-Salo menu which is family style dining that allows you to try a little bit of everything on the menu for $65 per person. It's not your average pre fixe where normally you get one app, entree and dessert. Instead you get ALL the available apps, entrees and dessert portioned out for 1 person assuming you can finish it all ...which we didn't. Stand outs from the first course were the hamachi and ube bao buns. I did enjoy their reimagined cassava cake which usually is topped with cheese for a sweet and savory combo, but was paired with smoked trout roe instead. Second course faves: tamarind chicken wings and the gem lettuce salad (my pick) and lamb kare kare (hubby's pick). I'm not a big lamb eater but the chops were cooked to perfection- melt in your mouth smooth! Even though we thought we had no room left, dessert came out and we cleaned our plates. I liked the silken tofu , but the malted smores was unique combining the Milo powdered drink with buko pandan. They also serve cocktails and beer/wine, and I enjoyed my calamansi mule. Service was friendly and attentive , and I even got a complimentary glass of champagne to finish my meal. Highly recommend Kayu if you are in DC.

    Kinilaw Hamachi
    Gregory C.

    I was visiting town for a work conference and was looking for a place to eat because I didn't want to eat at the hotel restaurant. I checked on yelp and saw there was a close by Filipino restaurant in the neighborhood. I invited some colleagues to join me and I'm so glad we went. When we walked in the restaurant was buzzing and was pretty full. We had the option to sit at the bar or a high table and chose the latter. Good energy and vibe. Curious what it would be like during the day. We started off with drinks which were made with so much care and tasted lovely. I ordered a pomegranate margarita less sweet and The Bartender made it twice which I really appreciated. The food was a balance of Filipino fusion, hearty portions, and nuanced flavors that made my stomach very happy. I later learned the restaurant is led by Chef Paolo Dunca and was proud to support. Come check this place out the next time you're in DC.

    Bourbon cocktail. Can't remember the name.
    Marisa H.

    What a great addition to the neighborhood! I love what they did with this space and I look forward to going to their patio for drinks. Their cocktail list is awesome. I had a bourbon drink with calamansi, and I could drink three of those (dangerous). They also have a really unique wine list with wine from Arizona and MD. The food is really good and hard to define. I've only had Purple Patch and friend's Filipino food to compare. This is definitely more Filipino flavors with a twist on presentation--in a great way! The pimento dip with crab chips is a must order! I'll get two next time. They're sides should not be slept on. They have delicious roasted veggies and great yellow rice. We did that with their crispy chicken wings small plate and that was enough for a meal. Their sizes are better for sharing/a group. The main plates are good for sharing, but my friend and I had some dietary restrictions, so we didn't order those. It seems like their menu is constantly changing, so I'm excited to go back and try something new! But please, keep the chips and dip on the menu!! Pretty reasonably price for two people. The service is very friendly and our waiter was great about explaining items on the menu we were unfamiliar with.

    Elizabeth S.

    Love supporting local restaurant. Highly recommend reservation. We had the $85 tasting menu, since we had 3 people we ended up almost trying everything on the menu. The food was great, our friend who follows the chef really wanted to meet them again, so when the chefs were done with cooking they ended up coming upstairs to chat with us which was awesome. Loved the food and the service. Parking is a little rough though. We would out there are only two chefs and they cook the entire night by themselves in a small kitchen. Now that's what i call being Pros.

    Drinks menu
    Kelly F.

    Kayu (a newly moved location from what I could understand) was amazing from cocktails to mains to vibes! The space was warm and inviting and service was great. We were treated to delicious Filipino inspired and flavored dishes and delicious cocktails with a tropical twist. Standouts were the perfectly cooked pork belly of the pork and beans appetizer, the umami-bomb mushroom tea that we had delicate dumplings served in, and the crispy skin of our chicken tocino. Everything was so flavorful, and by the time we were done with dinner, the dining room was deservedly full. I can't wait to go back and eat through the menu, knowing each bite will be crafted with a dedication to cuisine and deliciousness!

    Pork and beans, second only to the tocino
    Jordan T.

    Kayu is a fantastic foray into Filipino cuisine - one that isn't the pancit and lumpia you may be familiar with. Starting off with a Red Horse was the best decision I've made at dinner, but the food didn't need the bliss provided by the strong kick. The food (pork belly and beans, mushroom dumplings in mushroom broth, and the best chicken tocino I've had that wasn't made on a ship) was all seasoned to perfection and presented beautifully! The service was extremely kind and attentive, while the atmosphere, less a few items indicative of Pinoy culture (read: boxing gloves) highlighted the stark transition from an amazing experience of the Philippines to the bustling street outdoors. The calm and collected atmosphere really made it feel like we were in a whole other place. 10/10, will eat here again. Welcome to the new spot!

    Toni R.

    I love the way Kayu elevated Filipino dishes. We ordered ala carte instead of their course dinners and had plenty of food to take home because of the generous portions. The flavors were flavorful and reminiscent of traditional dishes but they definitely put their own spin to it. The only reason I gave 4 instead of 5 stars is because some of the cooking was a bit uneven like for the chicken, and some of the descriptions in the menu do not reflect the dish exactly. Still a great experience. The service was attentive and the space is warm and inviting.

    Jess Y.

    The restaurant is nice but definitely do not order their adult jolly meal. It's just a basic cheeseburger with regular fries. It took a really long time to come out for 3 of us, and we noticed a lot of other people who came in after us were getting served, even when they also ordered the same burger as us. Our fault for choosing that and felt like we should've chosen the actual entrees on the menu instead. The fries were also cold but they were nice enough to make hot ones for us. I will say that while the food choice was subpar, the service is amazing here. The staff was so nice and accommodating, and they were very apologetic about the long delay in food and made up for it with us with their service recovery. Will def go back just for the wonderful staff and to try the actual menu again next time

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    3 months ago

    Excellent cuisine and very tasty. Cocktails can be very skimpy on the liquor. You are better off just drinking water.

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    8 months ago

    Fantastic food and fantastic service. Jm our server was great and the beef ribs are maybe the best beef i have ever tasted.

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    Page 2 of 2

    Ask the Community - Kayu

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