Photo courtesy of Nasime.
A dish from Nasime.
Washingtonian has published its "100 Very Best Restaurants 2026" in the DC metro area (and some as far away as Middleburg) this week.
The lone Alexandria restaurant on its list? Nasime, the Japanese restaurant at 1209 King St. in Old Town Alexandria. The restaurant was ranked high on the list of 100, at #12.
Chef and Owner Yuh Shimomura, trained in the prestigious Ginza district of Tokyo, brings over 20 years of mastery in Japanese cuisine.
Nasime posted their reaction to their latest honor on its Instagram page:
"It is truly an honor to see our very small, suburban restaurant included among Washington’s most celebrated dining destinations. Our sincere thanks to everyone at Washingtonian for this recognition."
The #1 restaurant on the list is Albi, a restaurant featuring Palestinian cuisine, located in the Navy Yard neighborhood of DC.
Based on a tab including taxes and a 20% tip, the magazine noted the price for a meal for two at Nasime would be in the "expensive" category, between $201 to $299. The restaurant's hours are 6-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 5:30-10:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. It's closed Sundays, Mondays and national holidays. The restaurant has earned 4.5 stars out of 5 on Yelp.
Here's what Washingtonian had to say:
Fewer than 20 seats. Seven courses. Only one chef in the kitchen. Ginza-trained Yuh Shimomura turns out one memorable bite after another at this Japanese gem in Old Town. Seasonal highlights of the set menu might include seared Japanese Wagyu with truffled shoyu; charbroiled lamb chops in a decadent foie gras/miso sauce; or lightly fried, tender Spanish octopus in rich dashi broth with lotus root and slippery nameko mushrooms. Some dishes are staples, including a beautiful assortment of sashimi (served with tongue-tingling buzz-button flower) and a bubbling noodle soup, recently bolstered with duck and matsutake mushrooms.
