Couscous Cafe

by glenn s.

I work a couple of doors down and love to use this cafe for lunch.  The food is wonderful and Aziz is very amiable person.  He creates the art of middle eastern food that is unrivaled.  His catering represents this best in food preparations and professionalism.  Thumbs up!

by Vicki B.

Middle Eastern Cafe featuring regional favorites like falafel, hummus, lamb, couscous, and the like.The prices are a tad on the steep side, but you are paying for the Middle Eastern food experience.  I went here because it's near where I work and the line wasn't too bad on a Wednesday.  I got the falafel and couscous because that was my daily meal in Israel.  Of course, it doesn't compare to actual Middle Eastern food, but it's close. I will probably go again, to try something else that they specialize in, such as the meat or the fish couscous/rice combinations. The portions are hefty.  I would go again just for the experience alone...it's very colorfully decorated  and always full but never a line on weekdays.

by Kathleen M.

Couscous Cafe is a solid lunch alternative. Even in the middle of the lunch rush, I was able to avoid a line completely-- amazing! The staff were all very friendly, even delivered my meal since they weren't busy. I loved the feel of the place: very calm and cozy: a welcome break from the rush of all the other places in the area. I ordered the falafel and it definitely wasn't the best. It was pretty small and the wrap was really tough. When I go back, I'll definitely order something different because they had a lot of options. They had fountain Pepsi (gross!) but also provided Coke products in cans (yay!). It was a little on the pricey side: I paid $9 for falafel and a can of Diet Coke. If I'm willing to wait in line, I can get a much better deal at Greek Deli. Still, I'm sure I'll be back to Couscous when I need to grab something quickly.

by Tony T.

This place is a solid 2.5 stars, the service was nice and so was the soup, but everything else wasn't.Went there because we were hungry and wanted to use the internet at the same time.  Prices are high and the food was mostly mediocre, although the lentil coup was good.  They were willing to make a fresh salad for us, instead of the self serve stuff, which was very nice because the self serve items didn't look too good.

by Christopher C.Harry T.Zach W.Robert M.Catherine R.

This place has been around for five years?!?  I can't believe I never knew about it.  Tucked away on the less frequently traveled 20th Street, Couscous Cafe is a small, Algerian-run operation which, as you would expect, serves dishes from the Magreb region of North Africa (Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia) in addition to your Middle Eastern staples of hummus, baba ghanouj and falafel.  As the name would imply, they make a damn good couscous here.  Served with the chicken tagine with preserved lemons and olives, it was delish and quite generously portioned.  They also serve merguez (spicy lamb sausage) sandwiches, chicken b'stilla (a sweet and savory pie) and, as has been noted, ratatouille (Algeria was French, after all).  The interior is warmly decorated, and I was pleasantly surprised to learn it's open till 9pm, making it more than just a breakfast or lunch option.I walked by today and noticed they were open for dinner so I decided to give it a try.  Usually I ignore restaurants like this as they normally cater to lunch only.  The open sign caught the corner of my eye so I said, "Why not?".  I should should've listened to my intuition and come here during lunch.  I liked the menu options with the vegetarian and meat dishes.  I decided on the chicken couscous.  It was rather disappointing as I was waiting for my food and hear a microwave humming along with my food being warmed up.  I can't blame him for reheating the food, but if it's a stew could you at least do it on a stove?  I don't mind waiting 10 minutes.  The white meat chicken was large pieces and dry.  The bone in dark meat was delicious and juicy with a lot of flavor.  The cut veggies in the stew were cut large and were cooked very soft which I liked very much.  The couscous was a little dry and clumpy.  All signs indicated the food was surplus from lunch.  I'm sure at noon time the food is amazing but at this hour reheated it doesn't have a chance.  I'm going to have to come again for lunch to really see what the food is all about.While the food was a little on the bland side, it had a homecooked quality that I really enjoyed (especially when you find yourself eating fast food everyday for lunch).  The owner was from Algeria (which explains the ratatouille, in response to a previous post), and was really hospitable.  She even brought us some complimentary mint tea towards the end of our meal.  I ordered the lamb tagine, which was one of the specials of the day.  It was cooked with preserved lemon and green olives.  Again, the food was not amazing and was far too expensive.  However, f you are tired of eating burgers and burritos everyday for lunch, sometimes a semi-bland homecooked meal just hits the spot.If you have ever had real Algerian or Moroccan food this place will disappoint, yet if you are used to over Americanized international fare Couscous Cafe is sure to please. The cafe tries to have a North African/Middle Eastern flare but it feels more like another DC lunch spot with mediocre overpriced downtown food. If you're in the mood for something different than a half-smoke or potbelly sub this might do the trick but don't expect anything amazing. I ordered the lamb Couscous which was 8.99 on their website and now has a 9 pasted on top of the 8 on the menu in the cafe. The plate was cold with two small pieces of lamb of which one tasted a bit funky. There was one piece of each vegetable and the sauce was just dumped on one side. I don't think I'll be going back anytime soon to say the least. Oh and they have a credit card limit of 10 bucks! (which goes against visa and most other credit card policies for the companies using them) In today's day and age who carries cash anymore?! This makes it even harder to order a cheap lunch if you don't carry cash!A few caveats: I've only been here once, and I have a bias towards independent cafes and Middle Eastern food.  That said, this is a charming little lunch spot that is a nice break from the Potbelly-Cosi-Starbucks glut in downtown DC.  The food was delicious and affordable.  I ordered a Moroccan mint tea and Chicken B'stilla Pie, which was somehow sweet and savory at the same time.  The service was friendly and fast, and the b'stilla came with a side salad which was drenched in dressing (if you don't care for  gobs of dressing, you might want to mention this when you place your order.)  It was a tad soggy and wasn't the Best B'stilla Ever, Ever, but for an 8.99 lunch platter it was pretty darn tasty, and I expect I'll be ordering it again.  Plus, which would you rather have for lunch, an exotic moroccan chicken pie with mint tea or a squashed ham sandwich from potbellycosistarbucks?  Just saying.  The cafe also has beautiful calligraphy on the wall and an assortment of intriguing goods for your perusal, like harissa and olives and Moroccan arts newspapers.

by Robert M.

If you have ever had real Algerian or Moroccan food this place will disappoint, yet if you are used to over Americanized international fare Couscous Cafe is sure to please. The cafe tries to have a North African/Middle Eastern flare but it feels more like another DC lunch spot with mediocre overpriced downtown food. If you're in the mood for something different than a half-smoke or potbelly sub this might do the trick but don't expect anything amazing. I ordered the lamb Couscous which was 8.99 on their website and now has a 9 pasted on top of the 8 on the menu in the cafe. The plate was cold with two small pieces of lamb of which one tasted a bit funky. There was one piece of each vegetable and the sauce was just dumped on one side. I don't think I'll be going back anytime soon to say the least. Oh and they have a credit card limit of 10 bucks! (which goes against visa and most other credit card policies for the companies using them) In today's day and age who carries cash anymore?! This makes it even harder to order a cheap lunch if you don't carry cash!

by Will L.

Okay I've only been here once so far - so this is subject to change but I can't really fault this place for anything. Yes, the portions aren't huge for the price but the service is homely, staff friendly, decor tasteful and the menu offers a good range of choices. But most importantly of course the food is delicious (and probably healthy). I also love couscous and I hate going to Corner Bakery, Cosi or Au Bon Pain for lunch (Panera Bread is okay but there isn't one around my office).The owner (and his sister and mother who staff the place) are Algerian (there's an article in the Post). You'll most likely see them there, especially if you eat in. They've recently announced they will be open for dinner. Just a note - if you're in a big group that there isn't a ton of seating inside and the place seems quite popular at lunch.

by alexis g.

Couscous Cafe is a great alternative to the downtown scene, which can get a bit repetitive as far as restaurants are concerned. I definitely recommend checking this place out for lunch if you work in the area. It's housed in one of this neighborhood's many glass boxes, but still manages to have a charm of its own once you get inside. It's decorated in cool, relaxing colors and doesn't try to be overly modern. I'm not the biggest fan of couscous, but they have WONDERFUL wrapped chicken and tomato soup.

by Mary Kay S.

This is the perfect place to come to when you are sick of the usual DC lunchtime merry-go-round of PotBelly, Corner Bakery and Cosi.  Six of us from my office came here the other day and ordered up a mess o' lunch plates.  Aside from some intial confusion stemming from the fact that we didn't want our boss to pay for his own birthday lunch, they handled us pretty quickly.  I ordered the chicken kabob, which comes with rice (only with rice, no salad or bread), and I swear it came out within five minutes.  Boss tried the cold cucumber soup, which he said was good. Another person got a lamb dish, but most of us got chicken.My chicken was tasty and mostly tender. Just a few dry pieces.  The rice was extraordinarily yellow with saffron, and a little oily (as opposed to dry and fluffy).  I thought it was very tasty.We ate at an outside table, and I heard several people walking by say "Oh yeah, that place has great kabobs!"  When we were done, one of the staff brought us a round of hot tea with mint, gratis.  It was a nice touch.All in all the meal was very civilized and filling. Next time I'll probably add a small salad just to be a bit healthier. But seeing as I work only a block away, I'm sure I will be back.

by Harry T.

I walked by today and noticed they were open for dinner so I decided to give it a try.  Usually I ignore restaurants like this as they normally cater to lunch only.  The open sign caught the corner of my eye so I said, "Why not?".  I should should've listened to my intuition and come here during lunch.  I liked the menu options with the vegetarian and meat dishes.  I decided on the chicken couscous.  It was rather disappointing as I was waiting for my food and hear a microwave humming along with my food being warmed up.  I can't blame him for reheating the food, but if it's a stew could you at least do it on a stove?  I don't mind waiting 10 minutes.  The white meat chicken was large pieces and dry.  The bone in dark meat was delicious and juicy with a lot of flavor.  The cut veggies in the stew were cut large and were cooked very soft which I liked very much.  The couscous was a little dry and clumpy.  All signs indicated the food was surplus from lunch.  I'm sure at noon time the food is amazing but at this hour reheated it doesn't have a chance.  I'm going to have to come again for lunch to really see what the food is all about.