Washington D.C.

Restaurant awards — usually a celebration of excess — are suddenly a salute to survival. 

This year's RAMMY Awards, from the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, were grounded in adversity and disruption, rather than luxury or decadence.

The new COVID-inspired categories highlight how the pandemic's existential threat forever changed the industry.

"Chef of the year" was ditched for more inclusive categories.

Some of the winners from our brave new world:

Finer Dining in a Box: Cranes in Penn Quarter. 

Prime Pandemic Patio Scene: Le Diplomate (more on them below).

Outstanding COVID-safe Redesign: Clarity in Vienna.

Most Innovative To-Go Packaging Game: Oyster Oyster on 8th Street NW.

Most Impressive Pivot to Provisions or Market: Neighborhood Restaurant Group/Neighborhood Provisions, based in Alexandria.

And there were a slew of "to-go" awards ... Coolest Cocktails and Beverages (Cactus Cantina) ... Standout Family Meal Packages (Ristorante i Ricchi) ... and, of course, wine (which highlighted 10 area institutions in its special "honorable mention" category).

The bigger picture: After a year where social justice advocacy upended society, other new categories honored restaurants that supported marginalized communities. 

Employees of Immigrant Food, a restaurant that also supports immigration-related advocacy and education work, took home the Good Neighbor and Employee of the Year awards.

D.C.'s RAMMY Awards drive home COVID's existential restaurant disruption

There were a ton of "to-go" award winners.

Fiola Mare's dining igloos, as seen in December. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

Washington, D.C.

Food and Drink

The politicization of pandemic policies has reached the online review platform Yelp, and has resulted in an increase in negative restaurant reviews targeting COVID-19 safety policies,

Why it matters: The food and service industry doesn't need any other hurdles to overcome following almost two years of constant COVID-related setbacks.

An influx of negative reviews from people who are angry about vaccination or mask policies can do real damage to businesses struggling to climb back from pandemic-induced financial problems.

What's happening: "Review bombing" or bombarding a restaurant with inauthentic reviews after it gains media attention or implements a new policy has become increasingly common for restaurants with vaccine requirements, Yelp says.

In one recent instance, restaurant Reliable Tavern tweeted about a spam user seemingly targeting local restaurants with the same negative Yelp review; the spammer was later banned. 

Yelp does have multiple systems in place to flag and remove reviews that aren't based on first-hand customer experiences. 

The company tells Axios it's removed over 17,000 reviews nationally that violated its special COVID Content Guidelines since the start of the pandemic.

Businesses do have the option to opt-in or out of the platform's "proof of vaccination required" and "all staff fully vaccinated" attributes.

Business owners can't remove their business from the platform entirely.

Yes, but: Some D.C. restaurant owners say the company isn't doing enough to combat fake reviews—COVID-related or not. 

Josh Saltzman, co-owner of Ivy & Coney, says websites such as Yelp just allow annoyed patrons, who often don't reflect the rest of an establishment's clientele, to air out their complaints.

"There's no way that this guy went to 90 restaurants and ... writes the exact same review," Saltzman says of the spam review that also targeted Ivy & Coney. "That should automatically be caught by a filter." 

Chris Kennedy, who owns Reliable Tavern, says they haven't gotten pushback on their pandemic policies outside of that spam message, but negative reviews, pandemic-related or not, serve as another blow to struggling businesses.

Kennedy adds that he doesn't know how much reviews impact business as it's difficult to measure, but adds that numbers do matter to people glancing at Google to find a place to go and eat. A negative review can drag down ratings, he says.

Be smart: Earlier this year, some bars and music venues pushed the city for a blanket vaccination requirement for indoor venues. D.C. government instead encouraged individual restaurants to implement (and enforce) their own policies. 

At Ivy & Coney, Saltzman says, people have largely been supportive — just as they were on the first night vaccine cards were required, as Washington City Paper reported. 

"But you know, the reality is that it shouldn't be individual restaurants and bars," Saltzman adds. "It should be the D.C. government, and it would move a lot smoother."

Zoom out: Both New York City and Los Angeles have issued a blanket vaccine mandate for some indoor settings. 

D.C. restaurants hit with "review bombs"

Yelp says it removed around 4,500 hundred reviews nationally that violated its content policy between January and August.

Illustration of Yelp logo with an angry face.

Business

COVID

Campaigners to raise tipped minimum wage began collecting signatures yesterday for a similar ballot initiative that voters approved in 2018 — only to be overruled by council members.

Details: Initiative 82 aims to gradually raise the minimum wage of tipped workers to full parity with minimum wage in D.C. 

Under current law, D.C. minimum wage for tipped workers is $5.05 with the assumption workers will make up in tips the difference between that wage and the $15 minimum wage for non-tipped workers. 

Initiative 82 aims to raise the minimum wage to full parity with non-tipped workers by 2027.

Flashback: A similar ballot initiative — Initiative 77 — was approved by voters in 2018 but was overturned by the D.C. Council.

Two council members who had voted to repeal Initiative 77 are no longer on the council and one — Brandon Todd — was replaced by a council member — Janeese Lewis George — who has expressed support for tipped wages. 

Between the lines: Initiative 82 contains almost identical language to Initiative 77 with one addition: It says tips will continue to be the property of workers and will be in addition to the minimum wage. 

Back in 2018, the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington opposed Initiative 77, urging voters to vote no with the argument that the initiative would replace tips altogether. 

Former restaurant worker and initiative organizer Ryan O’Leary tells Axios that the organizers have received no pushback from RAMW on Initiative 82. RAMW declined to comment to Axios. 

Zoom out: The pandemic has exacerbated an existing restaurant staffing crisis in D.C., Washington City Paper has reported. 

O’Leary tells Axios that raising the minimum wage for tipped workers while allowing workers to retain tips makes restaurants more competitive. 

“Any restaurant at that point that still allows tipping, which I imagine will be nearly all of them, will be seen as a more ideal workplace for service workers,” O’Leary says.

Seven states have already raised the wage to the full minimum wage with tips included.

What’s next: To get the initiative on the ballot, organizers must collect around 26,000 signatures over the next 180 days—reflecting 5% of registered voters citywide with a distribution that reflects at least 5% of registered voters in at least five wards. 

The D.C. Board of Elections tells Axios that the number of registered voters at the end of August was 517,682 although that number may fluctuate a bit. 

D.C. organizers start petition for tipped minimum wage

Initiative 82 aims to gradually raise the minimum wage of tipped workers to full parity with minimum wage in D.C.

News

Politics

D.C.’s restaurant scene is enormous, so we’re targeting specific neighborhoods for some of our food roundups.

Today, we’re zoning in on affordable lunch options around Columbia Heights, because it’s one of our favorite neighborhoods and it has quality food that doesn’t break the bank.

Taqueria Habanero: The 99% Mexican restaurant has some of the most flavorful tacos you’ll eat in D.C.

What we’re ordering: One chorizo and one carnitas taco ($3.50 each) and a side of Arroz Mexicano ($3.50). If you have a little extra to splurge, order the agua fresca of the day for a refreshing drink ($3). 

Heat Da Spot Café (technically Park View): The Ethiopian restaurant has a menu full of filling, affordable entrees. Plus, they serve breakfast all day.

What we’re ordering: The pancake with heat special for $9.99. It comes with eggs, potatoes, onion, green pepper, and a choice of sausage, bacon, or ham.

El Chucho - Cocina Superior: The popular restaurant is a great lunch option, but keep an eye out for their weekend brunch specials too. 

What we’re ordering: Chicken tacos (2 for $6) and elote callejero ($4.75). 

Sonny’s (also technically Park View): Thanks to the highly coveted elementary school pizza party, pizza continues to be a top-tier lunch, ioo (in our opinion).

What we’re ordering: A slice of pepperoni ($4.25) and a slice of arugula and chili oil ($4.25). 

What’s next: You tell us. Which neighborhoods should we scour next for lunch deals? Let us know at dc@axios.com. 

Low-cost lunches: Columbia Heights

Three open-face tacos on a bright yellow plate with a lime wedge and radish on the side.

Taqueria Habanero tacos. Photo: Paige Hopkins/Axios