Embers Grill

If I had ordered a pita salad, Ember’s would have a higher rating. But I ordered a gyro and it came with 4 bacon thin strips of meat taken from the freezer.
Prices are a bit ridiculous considering the quality and quantity. They even added a hand-​written note to their wall menu that breakfast sandwiches with eggs would be 50c more expensive. I wonder how much more it would have ended up costing you if they had actually re-​printed the menu.

What a disaster! The food trucks didn’t impress today, so I decided to try out Embers Grill. I ordered the lamb skewer entrée, which is served on rice with salad, chickpeas and a half piece of pita bread. It was inedible! The lamb tasted like it sat in a pot of soy sauce for at least 24 hours. That was the only, overwhelming flavor. It was so salty I also couldn’t taste the lamb. It was also woefully overcooked and dry. The rice was bad, but not as bad as the old salad, and the chickpeas flavor was bizarre.
While I was waiting for my food, someone who I could only assume was a regular came in and asked for a grilled chicken sandwich. They were completely lost, as that was not actually listed on their menu board. However they had a chicken bacon ranch sandwich, and they also had a grilled chicken salad. Stands to reason they could put grilled chicken on a bun for the guy. After several attempts, he gave up and left.
I downed my soft drink pretty quickly due to the saltiness of my meal. I took a double glance at the empty bottle and discovered it had expired months ago.
This place is food poisoning waiting to happen.

2 things drew me in when I first came here: steak & cheese sandwiches and samosas. Two things that I normally don’t see on the same menu, which is exciting and puzzling at the same time. While the steak & cheese doesn’t equate to a Philly cheesesteak, it’s a solid sandwich and pretty meaty compared to other limp sandwiches I’ve seen around. The samosas are pretty good as well. They make them to order, so don’t be upset when you see the empty samosa heater case with nothing in it. My favorite that I probably will be getting consistently whenever I come here has to be the kufta kabob burger. Basically it’s a lamb burger with amazing Indian spices. It’s not overly spicy in my opinion, but if you have a sensitive pallet, be careful. It’s definitely not something you find at your everyday burger joint, so if you’re in the area and want to try something a little different, definitely go for that. I’ve also had their sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich, which is generally good, but I’m particular about my bagels. There’s a lot of other stuff on their menu that I have yet to try, but this is a great spot to grab a quick lunch on the go if you’re in the Union Station area, so check it out!

I’ve gone to Embers off and on and today I ordered the hot wings and I realize why I don’t go that often. The hot wings they have don’t have source so it’s different from most other places. The price is okay but the wings are smaller (see my picture).

The prices here are cheaper than most places at nearby Union Station. The falafel wrap is fairly large and comes with the standard veggies (onion, iceberg lettuce, tomato) and tahini. Hummus is extra. I asked for added hot sauce, which was vinegary and mildly spicy (think Tobasco). By halfway through the wrap, I had a drippy mess on my hands. These guys could learn something from the wrapping experts at Freebirds. Also, they were frying a lot of things when I was there; don’t expect a lot of healthy options. Overall this is a solid, if unexciting, option. Service is fast.

+For lunch, got the burger about 8 times and steak and cheese 2 times.
+Burger was spot-​on with great toppings first few times, but has fallen off since. Several times even after I requested not to –they doused the burger with way too much mayo. They got sloppy when they got busy. When I requested peppers or no cheese they forget.
Yes, much better than Sunspots burger. Much much better than the Bill Goat. But disappointing now after 10 visits.
+Pretty good fries, much better than Sunspot.
+They take credit cards, which for some unknown insane reason Phillips does not!
–I wish they had a Pickle Bar like Billy Goat. I also wish the condiments were not those annoying to-​go packets.
— When I called to order my food (because it takes them 10 minutes to make the burger) no one answers the phone!!! Pick up the phone!
–It also takes them 5 – 10 minutes to make an order. I guess this is unavoidable but if you need it asap go to Phillips.
UPDATED: THEY NEVER ANSWER THE PHONE TO TAKE MY ORDER AHEAD. VERY ANNOYING!!!

This review is only for the breakfast. I have gone twice for breakfast and gotten my usual order: a bacon, egg, and cheese on a bagel (no poppyseed here, so I opted for plain). DC doesn’t have a single good bagel in the entire area, so I can only say that for the area it is par for the course — bready, not quite bagel-​y, but perfectly acceptable. I specifically asked for my bagel to be toasted, and watched it get toasted, only to receive it, open it, and find that the bagel was warm and soft, but not «toasted.» Perhaps I am too particular about my breakfast sandwiches, but a mushy, not crispy bagel is a pretty big turnoff. I usually don’t like scrambled eggs, but the ones here would be passable if they were not overcooked. Overall, it was an acceptable breakfast, but missed the mark on several points. All in all, it does not give me high hopes for their lunches.

Waited to review this place because my first lunch experience was not so good. This new restaurant just opened in the neighborhood by my office so I was excited for some competition because Phillips café and west wing are so overpriced. Embers is a better bargain than those other cafes. I got my bacon egg and cheese bagel (a little too heavy on the cheese) for under 4 dollars and it did not disappoint. My first lunch of falafel platter though was blah. The falafel was dry, the tahini sauce was gross. I only likedthe hummus. Today I tried again because one of the guys that worked there raved about his chicken last time. So I got the chicken wrap which was huge came with mixed greens tomato an onion and dressing of choice for 6.50, and the marinade they are using was quite flavorful. I would get this again — just not the falafel ever.