Tabard Inn   

There are many good reasons to visit the Tabard Inn. Among these are the romantically lit lounge with its cozy fireplace and the comfy dining room with its Shaker furniture. Sunday evenings the lounge is packed with people enjoying a weekly string jazz performance. The small, well-stocked bar hosts a rotating crop of local professionals and political types, visitors and couples on dates. There's also the brick-walled garden with its tangle of trees, vines and flowers that can make you feel like you're a million miles away from Washington's chaos. You almost forget about the food -- the inn has that, too. Start out your repast with a gratin of lump crabmeat with black trumpet mushrooms, spinach and garlic confit. Move on to a comfort-food main course: grilled veal chop with mashed potatoes, mushrooms and beet greens. Everything on the menu is fair game, but half the reason you visit Tabard Inn is for the atmosphere, especially during winter when you can order a glass of port, curl up on the sofa with your sweetie and stare into the crackling fire. They'll have to kick you out at closing time. -- Jon Bowen