Rooster & Owl
The BBQ carrots at Rooster & Owl are dry-rubbed and charred like Carolina barbecue, then served with a scoop of cornbread ice cream.
Why go
Yuan Tang was a federal auditor before he trained at Rogue 24 and at Dovetail in New York. He and his wife Carey Tang, both from Falls Church, opened Rooster & Owl at the Columbia Heights end of 14th Street in 2019 and named it for themselves: she is the early-rising rooster and he is the night owl (Washingtonian). The MICHELIN inspectors, who gave it one star, describe cooking that meanders from the Middle East and Mediterranean all the way to Asia
(MICHELIN Guide).
You pick your dinner from four seasonal choices in each of four courses. Thomas Rose of The Infatuation wrote in 2026 that vegetables are the star here
(The Infatuation). In the first months, in 2019, Ann Limpert of Washingtonian found each plate in Tang's kitchen sized so you leave sated but not stuffed
and built so each person gets that magic bite
(Washingtonian). She called the carrots the dish everyone in the food world is going nuts over
(Washingtonian). Rose still found them on the menu in 2026. The kitchen spends one day a week testing recipes, so the menu will change often, seasonally
(Rooster & Owl).
Washingtonian's critics warned in January 2026 that the menu can feel all over the place, but that's also the fun of it
(Washingtonian). Their meal went from cacio e pepe remade as a Bartlett pear salad with Tête de Moine cheese to fried Japanese yam, crisped outside, creamy inside,
with lime yogurt and Thai-chili jam. Then came a short-rib Diane, a perfectly cooked steakhouse ode,
with Hasselback potatoes and creamed spinach (Washingtonian). Rose found the same range in 2026, from charred snap peas on whipped tofu to a duck tagliatelle under fermented chili oil. He ate in a room of 50 seats with pantry shelves of flour and spices in front of the kitchen and copper owls on the walls. It felt to him a bit like that couple who loves to cook expanded their kitchen into a 50-seat restaurant
(The Infatuation).
Order this / avoid
- Order: the BBQ carrots. Rose in 2026:
A side scoop of sweet and cool cornbread ice cream somehow perfectly rounds out the smoky heat of the carrots.
2 - Order: the charred snap peas with whipped tofu, naan and nam jim (a Thai dipping sauce). Rose in 2026: the bite
releases a spicy afterbang from the nam jim.
2 - Order: the duck tagliatelle with ricotta, the heaviest dish Rose tried in 2026.2
- Order: the pistachio olive oil cake with goat cheese mousse and blackberry. The MICHELIN inspectors: it
will leave a lasting impression.
5
What locals & experts say
- Rina Rapuano, Northern Virginia Magazine (2019): the pineapple buns were
inspired by the chef's childhood years in Hong Kong.
4 - Tom Sietsema, Washington Post (October 2025): he kept Rooster & Owl on his final list of the 40 best in the area.7
Good to know
- When: dinner, Tuesday to Saturday (the house site, September 2026).
- Booking: book on Resy.
- Price: Washingtonian put dinner for two at $201 to $299 with tax and tip in January 2026.
- Wine: the bar matches wine to the dishes each guest chooses, the MICHELIN inspectors wrote.5
Verdict
should-visit — Book it to build your own tasting menu from a kitchen that puts vegetables first and has kept its barbecue-rubbed carrots since 2019. Washingtonian's critics liked its swings between cuisines in January 2026. Dinner for two ran between $201 and $299 that month.