Food is always superb. Service is attentive and friendly. The ambiance is chic with a coastal vibe. read more

See all

This is exactly what McLean's dining scene needed. It manages to strike that perfect balance--sophisticated enough for a "proper" date night, but with a relaxed, unpretentious energy that makes you want to stay for a second round of drinks. We kicked things off with a Beet Carpaccio that was on the specials menu. If you see it, get it. It was incredibly vibrant--earthy, thinly sliced beets paired with just the right amount of spices. It set a high bar for the rest of the meal. For our entrees, we decided to split the "land and sea" approach: * The Bird: This wasn't just any chicken. It was milanesa that was beautifully seasoned and with the right amount of crunchy. It was topped with salad greens that were lightly dressed to perfection. * The Fish: evidently the fish type changes frequently, and this was a rock fish. Beautiful presentation and absolutely delicious. The service was seamless--attentive without being hovering--and the atmosphere in McLean feels fresh and modern. It's clear they care about the ingredients, and the rotating specials like that carpaccio keep things exciting. Whether you're a local or just passing through, Neutral Ground is definitely worth the reservation. read more

We were generally pleased by our first visit to Neutral Ground, but having been back a couple of times, we concluded this isn't a place we'd expect anybody would want to eat at regularly. The menu is too limited and the food too heavy (and the dining room too loud -- we kept asking our poor waiter to speak more loudly so we could hear her). In fact, on our 4th visit, we looked at the menu and decided to leave without ordering because none of the dinner main courses that day sounded appealing. If you read these Yelp reviews looking for what to order, know that the menu changes seasonally. i.e., today's THE FISH might not be the same dish as last month's THE FISH. Same with THE PASTA, etc. We've had fish (rockfish), bird (chicken), pasta (rigatoni), a bunch of different sides and several types of salad. The salads are big and shareable, and not as exciting as the lists of ingredients would suggest. The bread basket is lame. The main courses can be interesting but are rich with butter, or even deep fried, and fairly mildly flavored. Fries aren't bad. Mussels aren't bad, when they have them. The bar is nice. Neutral Ground fills a niche in McLean, but unfortunately it's definitely not a destination restaurant. read more

Neutral ground Bar And Kitchen - Seasonal special of mussels + fries. Both just ok. - Wine Bars Near Me - McLean, Virginia

Cute place in McLean which always shocks me how few good spots they have for how much money is here. Food was excellent. Everything we tasted for a party of 6 for brunch. Also very fast. Service was mixed. A little formal and stilted for this kind of place. Refused to make any substitutions. Charged for any change. Wouldn't add onion to one guest's egg dish when onions were on the menu. Live jazz was nice, but made it a little loud and tough for conversation, especially if you have older guests. read more

Neutral ground Bar And Kitchen - Wine Bars Near Me - McLean, Virginia

Great experience for brunch! Live jazz music and great food - what more can you ask for? The banana foster pancakes are fire!!! One of my top favorites. I love to sit at the bar because the bartenders are always supper friendly. Check out this hidden gem! read more

Dinner was outstanding! Creative Yummy Food recipes, Informed, friendly and attentive service and a colorful cozy setting.... We will be back soon!!! read more

News FLASH: The ambiance is perfect for a couple or group setting. The Chef truly knows his craft when it comes to cooking authentic New Orleans tasty dishes. Nolan, our server was a wonderful complement to a wonderful meal. What made our brunch EXTRA special was the live jazz music they play on Sundays!!! They were phenomenal today!! Superb!!! It gave us some good ole New Orleans vibes. We will return. read more

See all

The service and ambiance are fine but this is a restaurant and it ought to offer good food if not great food. It is lacking in the value. $40 for exactly 6 shrimps and that is the only dish available that is gluten free. We also ordered some Asian inspired stir fried udon which was awful. It's borderline not edible. So little noodle and all drenched in overly sweet amd spicy peanut sauce with hardly any sausages which were also drenched in the overly sweet sauce. It was more sauce than noodle and very little noodle. Sigh, we left hungry after this dinner and had to get more food afterwards somewhere else. read more

Family-style worked out well with my three friends. Two dishes from Seconds, two from Thirds, and one from Don't Think Twice were enough to make us satisfied. Our favorite was the Fish, aka a branzino. The potato puree underneath it was amazing. You just got to watch out for the small bones in the fish. We finished off with the Sea Salt Pavlova for dessert, which was fun to chisel at and was a great combination of flavors. The restaurant was busy around Saturday dinner time. I'm not sure if that slowed down some of our service or the speed of our food coming out. Reservations are recommended! Lovely and bright decor as well. read more

See all

This restaurant has been only open since June and the food and service is on point like an established place. Great, friendly service from beginning to end. We started with the bread service and pimento cheese. The pimento cheese reminded me of being down south in Savannah, truly delicious. The pork chop was perfect. May have been the best pork chop I have had in many years. My wife enjoyed the crispy chicken and was impressed with the entree and would order it again. The restaurant was packed; however, the server made us feel right at home. If you are looking for great food in a casual atmosphere in McLean this is your place! read more

See all

Came here on a Friday night and the place is very loud, even with their sound dampeners. The food was ok, but this place is expensive. The tuna was really good but everything else was ok. read more

See all

Great jazz brunch. Stuffed French toast was amazing The beignets are fantastic The only downside was the banana foster pancakes had no bananas in them and were below average overall. read more

We were eager to try this place since we're fans of Bayou Bakery, David's other restaurant, but unfortunately, this one didn't quite hit the mark. Like others reviewed, it looks like an Anthropologie store inside. Cute decor and ambiance. A bit too bright IMO. I'd say darken the resto a bit. Tuna Croquetas: The batter was nice, but the filling was too mushy--tuna and potatoes just turned into a bland, unappealing mix. It could use more substance inside and a side dipping sauce to enhance the flavor. Crawfish Pasta: The celery in the sauce was overwhelming and masked the overall flavor. The crawfish chunks were good, but the dish needed more seasoning. I asked for red pepper flakes, but they didn't have any, which was disappointing. Wood Oven Roasted Oysters: Quite enjoyable. The Parmesan butter was a nice touch, and the bread for dipping was delicious. Lemon Icebox Dessert: The flavors complemented each other nicely. read more

Neutral ground Bar And Kitchen - Lemon Icebox - Wine Bars Near Me - McLean, Virginia

See all

Wanted to like it because I'm a big fan of Bayou Bakery, overall it was a just okay experience. The beignets were amazing as always, everything else was good. Serving sizes were small unfortunately. Only downside was the service. Our server was short with us & rushing us to leave. Sadly the service really did affect our experience so I'm not sure I would go back. read more

I overall enjoyed this place. But the service is terrible. I would definitely come back because I liked the vibe and I liked the food, but they really have a few serious areas of improvement. I started with the Dogwood cocktail, which was fine but a little more lemony that I would have preferred. The cauliflower appetizer was also fine--the sauce was good but it overall just tasted like eating plain cauliflower. The Bird, on the other hand--Oh. My. God. it was good. That sauce, WOW. I was licking my plate. And the panna cotta dessert with figs was really solidly yummy. Our waiter was pretty present and perfectly fine at the beginning of the meal. But a food runner brought us our dinners, and we never saw him again. I wanted to order a glass of wine but he wasn't there. He didn't ask if our meals were ok or if we needed anything else. So we finished our meals, and flagged down another employee to try to order wine and dessert. He returned to take our order, but couldn't give us any recommendations on the dessert. Then 5 minutes later came back again and said he had forgotten which dessert we wanted. Just not a great ending to what could have been a pretty good experience. read more

Inviting space with beautiful tables and decorations. Not sure what the other reviews are referring to when it comes to the volume, but maybe that has been addressed! The appetizer we ordered, the whipped ricotta, left much to be desired; lacking in flavor and tasted almost sour. The simple bread service (which is $8) was a simple Hawaiian roll stack with some over seasoned butter. The star of the meal was the chicken Milanese, which was delicious. What led me to a lower review, really was the service. Our waiter was kind, but inattentive and rushed. It was around 25 minutes to just get our drinks. When he was at our table he seemed distracted and as if we were disturbing him when we simply wanted to place an order. I think there needs to be some kinks with the service and menu selection worked out before I would return, but has potential! read more

Had a very good experience at this McLean eatery. The town is in need of more upper scale eateries like NG, and the food, service, and ambiance didn't disappoint. We sat outside on a lovely evening so perhaps avoided the din that many speak of here. Our server, Alicia, was terrific and the bussers were attentive and friendly. The menu isn't too extensive but has something for everyone. We ordered a mix of things and split amongst us -- the fries (very good), a spinach and mushroom salad (excellent mix of shrooms), the pasta (interesting flavors) and bone-in pork chop (delicious). A nice mix of cocktails and ample selection of wines, too, which we enjoyed. A little on the pricey side of the spectrum but for this type of quality experience I'll gladly support this newcomer to a McLean restaurant scene in need of some class! read more

Neutral ground Bar And Kitchen - Dinner menu - Wine Bars Near Me - McLean, Virginia

We have eaten here several times and the food has been excellent. The burger is one of the best you'll find in the area also The Bird is very tasty and a lot of food. We ate here recently for my wife's birthday and I let them know ahead of time. They went above and beyond. There was a birthday card for my wife on the table that the staff had signed for her and everyone made sure to say happy birthday. Great food and great service. If it's your birthday make sure to let them know. They will make you feel special. read more

Disappointing. Food was unremarkable and service was amateurish. They were out of rockfish for The Fish dish and substituted flat fish option was a poor decision. The Bird (chicken milanese) was a schnitzel buried under a salad. Other dishes we tried have already been forgotten. Service was a shocking combination of unapologetic superiority and confusion. I entered as my party was being seated passing by two servers who were making negative comments about members of my party. Food and drink delivery always began with the question "who has the such and such?" As more tables were seated the service level declined. Really, truly, hoped for better. read more

We went to Neutral Grounds recently on a Saturday night and were underwhelmed at best. Service was ok, not great. The biggest problem was that we had a vegan in our group, and the Neutral Ground staff was either unable or unwilling to make adjustments so that she could have a reasonable meal. First sign of trouble was when we found out that our waitress was the only original employee left in a chef driven restaurant after only 18 months. When the waitress found out that one of us was vegan, she brought over the front of house manager. Not a good sign that this was not something that the restaurant was prepared for in current times. Our guest first offered I'll be happy with "anything the chef wants to send out.". Oh no you have to tell us what you want. Do you have any allergies? Fair question, but no she did not have any allergies. She tried to get the noodle dish without shrimp and maybe with a different sauce that did not contain shrimp stock or dairy. "Oh no the chef doesn't like to do things like that". They kept asking about allergies, saying that they didn't want an "epi-pen moment". It went round and round, chef doesn't like that or won't do that. In the end she ended up with a couple of side dishes that were pushed out in a couple bowls, not even plated to pretend to be a main dish. Our guest was made to feel less than welcome and that somehow this was her fault. I spent 20 years in restaurant kitchens in the mid 80's to mid 00's, we always had vegetarian, vegan, and kosher (adjacent) dishes in our back pockets for just such occasions. That was 20 years ago. To not be able to or unwilling to make adjustments these days is just a sad statement to the ability of the chef and the staff overall. Remember, you're in the hospitality business, be hospitable. As for the rest of the meal, pretty much hit or miss. The pork chop, ordered cooked medium, was dry as shoe leather, and the collards with country ham was unbelievably bland. Tuna tartar was ok, but nothing to write home about. Roasted beets and goat cheese was good, but just kind of basic. Shrimp and noodle dish was at least cooked properly. read more

Really wanted to enjoy this restaurant . Sat outside and the weather was beautiful ! First we ordered drinks . Wine took too long to come to the table and one person's cocktail took 20 minutes with no explanation from the server. Appetizers arrived before the cocktail . Dinner entrees - shrimp was undercooked so inedible .( no one eats shrimp under ). Steak - ordered medium and served like shoe leather . It was sliced in the kitchen too so chef knew it was coming out wrong . Chicken was good . We were unable to return the meals to the kitchen because server never came back to check on us . Finally at the end of the meal when the server finally showed up I told him about the shrimp and the steak . He said he would mention it to his manager . The manager came to the table and apologized and asked if she could bring us a round of drinks . We said no . She asked if she could give us a desert - We said no . She brought the two dishes back to the kitchen to show the chef . Sometime later the server came back with the bill and said the manager took the wine off the bill ! The wine ? There was nothing wrong with the wine ! How about taking the 2 terrible entrees that equaled $100 off the bill and admitting your mistake ??? The waiter came with the handheld bill payer . I told him I had a $30 off dinner coupon from one of their partner apps . He said sorry that their WiFi was not working so I could not use it . Then he stood over me and watched me fill out the gratuity ! Rate this place a C . They definitely need to train their kitchen and wait staff better if they want to stay in business ! read more

The food was excellent. The service was good and the proprietor and chef were very friendly. I will be back - alot. read more

Neutral ground Bar And Kitchen - Cute place with great food. - Wine Bars Near Me - McLean, Virginia

Really enjoyed a night out at this relatively new spot in McLean Rate the apps really highly and the portions large enough that you could get three or four plus one entree and be quite full. We enjoyed the cauliflower and the burrata special. The burger was fantastic as well. A bit like Le Diplomates. read more

Our family loves this new spot in McLean -- Excellent food, service and ambience. Highly recommend the wood oven roasted oysters, bayou pimento cheese, radish plate, cauliflower steak, and the branzino!! read more

Very disappointing. We went for brunch. Our reservation was for 10am, they open at 10. We walked in at 10:01am and they were not prepared for customers. It was very awkward and not welcoming. They needed to locate their iPad for check in. It took only a minute or 2 but was unwelcoming. They seated us which was fine and came back a few minutes later to take our drink orders. We ordered coffee, and were told they had not brewed any yet there would be a slight wait. We also asked for cream and sugar and were told they don't have cream, only milk. Again this is weird, we were there for brunch. Seems like coffee should be made and there should be cream for coffee. We ordered 2 virginia benedicts and 1grits and grillades. Both Benedicts came out cold. I can't understand why because we were the first group there. It was early in their service. Seems like everything should've been fresh. The ham was very salty. Not enjoyable at all. We were also there for a birthday, which we noted in the reservation. It literally asks when you make the reservation if it is for a special occasion. The birthday was not even mentioned. The restaurant itself is a nice setting and the music was good. However, we will not be back. Too many good restaurants in the DMV. read more

Four adults went for dinner and it was not exactly pleasant. It's impossibly loud. Like yelling across the table at one another loud, and it was only half full. Not a good place to enjoy dinner with someone. The service is extremely weird. I'm not lying when I say the server insisted on reading the whole menu to us. Literally we went through the cocktail list, firsts, seconds, and thirds with the server effectively reading at least every other dish to the whole table. We can read. It took forever and was quite annoying. She did it again after we said we didn't want dessert, rattled off a paragraph for every dish. Please don't. Just bring the check. It's pretty inside. Looks like a Anthropologie a Vera Bradley designed a restaurant. Lots of florals, brass, bright oranges and greens. Not New Orleans-y at all. Food: the food was all fine but nothing was fantastic. Cocktail: it was good. But I'm 90% they brought us the wrong thing. It tasted like a Vieux Carre the (shade on their menu) but we ordered the neutral ground. The neutral ground we were served tasted like Benedictine and banana... ingredients listed in the Shade. I acknowledge that Maybe I'm just totally wrong here. That said it did taste good. Burger: it's a $20 griddle burger. It's a smashed patty so you can't get it cooked to order. American cheese. No veggies, just mustard, ketchup and a tiny pickle slice. Very greasy. Comes with fries pitched as "inspired by McDonald's" which I have to say is a weird sales technique. Also no ketchup for the fries, but it's on the burger... 2.5/5 Caesar salad: it's reconstructed for lack of a better word. Romaine heart split down the center with dressing over it. Parmesan croutons. Three anchovy filets on top. 4/5 White fish spread: it's fine but nothing to get fired up about. Same as any spread from a jar at any grocery store. 4/5 Mushroom and greens: exactly that. Mix of reconstituted Shrooms on greens. 3/5 Tuna croquettes: these were pretty good. Nicely fried but rather dry. Didn't come with any dipping sauce and one incredibly small lime slice. 4/5 Pork chop: this was good. The person who ordered it was very happy. So 5/5 on that one. Steamed spinach: exactly as described. Not sure why it's on the menu. 2.5/5 Cauliflower almandine: this was surprisingly the best reviewed dish of the night. 5/5 Dinner was underwhelming and took forever so we were ready to go well before dessert was offered. The exec-chef is a pastry guy, so I'm sure those are good and probably better than the mains. The black pepper pavlova sounded fun. The desserts seemed significantly more thoughtful and creative than the mains which were just mediocre versions of upscaled standards. All things considered it's pretty inline with my experience and expectations from their other place, Bayou Bakery. If I was in that part of town and wanted a cocktail I'd give their bar another shot. I might split a dessert at the bar with a date. But I won't be returning for dinner. read more

First visit service started very good then they forgot us. Two entrees -- steak and quail overcooked. Steak was ordered medium came out very well done. Appetizers were good but not special. One appetizer-bread- arrived 5 minutes after rest of the appetizers were served. Very nosy. Second visit service was terrible-- 20 minutes to get a bottle of wine. Entrees were good, especially the pork chop,but appetizer served after entrees were put on the table. Noise level even louder than first visit. Not sure how long soft opening is supposed to last but lots of training needed for service. Timing of food delivery may be a service or a kitchen problem. Space is very attractive but noise level needs to be addressed if one wants to have a conversation while dining. read more

Food was mediocre and expensive. Be sure to wear earplugs when the restaurant is full. Terrible acoustics. It was difficult to have a conversation with our guests. read more

I miss McGeever's, this is NOT a hometown hangout. Overpriced, lame atmosphere, miserable staff.

Everything, save for one thing, about this restaurant is terrific: warmly welcomed when you enter, good service and excellent food. What is the one drawback? There is not one soft surface, not a table cloth, carpet, etc. to absorb sound. When the restaurant is busy, it is loud and that ruins the ambiance. I have been several times and will continue to dine there, but I just wish they would add something to soften the noise levels. read more

I just had an amazing dinner at Neutral Ground. Definitely try the pimento cheese for a starter! I was with a large group and we shared dishes. Everything that I tried was delicious to include: the pork chop, the crispy chicken, the prawns, shoestring onions, crème caramel and chocolate candy bar. I'm definitely going back soon!! read more

Do not dine here. We tried to provide feedback to the owner privately but never heard anything back. The service we had was terrible and all the food was mid tier at best. They overcharged us for items we never asked for. The waitress was also not professional at all. We wanted to support our local establishment as we are resident in the neighborhood but I'll no longer be coming back. Everything is overpriced and for an award winning chef I was expecting a lot more. For example for brunch you'd expect fresh coffee but it was from a concentrate here. Absolute price gouging for not real coffee. I've seen Simone, the owner, try to defend that their restaurant is a small business and if you have nothing nice to say, don't say it... but how will they improve if we don't give them feedback. Overall the experience and responses from Simone gave me a bad impression and I won't be recommending this place to anyone. Also the jazz bunch music is way too loud. read more

Neutral ground Bar And Kitchen - Forager mushroom toast? - Wine Bars Near Me - McLean, Virginia

Dined with my husband and two friends tonight at Neutral Ground. On the upside: service was attentive (perhaps too much so), and the restaurant has a lovely atmosphere. Our cocktails (sunset spritz and bee's teas) were perfect. Both of my friends ordered a special, sockeye salmon, and both said it was delicious. My husband and I, however, both found our entrees (the chop for me, the bird for him) to be very bland. Did the chef lose his salt shaker? The food had absolutely no seasoning. I hate eating out and feeling like I could have easily made the dish better at home, but that was my takeaway from tonight's dinner. read more

We had a Sunday brunch. The vibe, live jazz, and food, everything was great. Love this place!

This food was delicious. We had the steak, the mushroom salad, two burgers, the cauliflower steak, and the bread service. Not sure what some of the reviewers experienced, but every dish we had was mucho flavorful and thoughtfully composed. The service was friendly and attentive. We're already planning to come back! read more

What a fantastic addition to the benign McLean restaurant scene! This place has it all, ambience, service and exceptional food and beverages. We chose to eat at the bar, although the restaurant and patio looked inviting. Our bartenders, M and Nick, were super friendly and attentive. The food was excellent. We tried the fried onions (delish), the Caesar salad (cold and crisp) and the Branzino (so light and flavorful). We skipped dessert but I kind of wish we hadn't! ( lemon icebox cake). This is by far the best restaurant to ever occupy that famous McL space! Please lets keep them. read more

Fresh, creative offerings. Started w/pimento cheese & elevated crackers-wow. Moist, Wood-grilled pork chop, wood grilled octopus, fab spinach salad w/sautéd shiitake mushrooms. Creative mixed drinks& great wines by the glass. We will return as often as possible. Bright cheerful room & comfortable chairs. read more

Neutral ground Bar And Kitchen - Special for the night: wood grilled octopus w/amazing sauce cumin (?) sauce, black beans & corn. - Wine Bars Near Me - McLean, Virginia

To say this restaurant was a great disappointment is an understatement. It was painfully loud--to the point we skipped dessert even though we love sweets--and served tasteless food. It was shocking considering the great reviews and neighborhood buzz. Add to that, the seating in which either the chairs were too low or the table was too high---or both. There were some good dishes: the oysters in particular. But the cauliflower appetizer was undercooked and needed salt. Similarly, the charred cabbage was tasteless. It desperately needed salt or more. But there are no salt or pepper mills/ shaker on the table and the wait staff just disappeared after serving our food so we couldn't easily ask for one. The crawfish pasta was ok, not as stellar as reviews had suggested. read more

Took my wife to Neutral Ground last night for Date Night. Great choice! Tastefully decorated (she called it "super cute") and cheerfully staffed, it was pleasant start to finish. The food and drinks were excellent as well. I especially enjoyed the wood roasted oysters and the octopus over heirloom tomatoes that was the special. The icebox dessert was also superb. We will definitely be back. read more

No complaints about food. Excellent. Cant say the same about service. They called us before the reservation to ask if it was a special occasion. It was a birthday celebration as noted in my reservation. not sure why they needed to know because there was no mention of the birthday occasion by the staff etc when we dined there. Service was at times slow and uneven. Al in all a good experience. Glad Mclean has a new restaurant worth a good review. -Adarsh read more