The Number One New Restaurant On Yelp's 2025 List Blends Fine Dining With Afro-Caribbean Flavor

Tucked into the sleek Salamander Hotel on the southwest waterfront of Washington D.C. is one of the best new restaurants to open in 2025. Dōgon (pronounced "doh-gon") by James Beard Award-winner Kwame Onwuachi topped Yelp's Best New Restaurants of 2025 with its Afro-Caribbean menu that pulls from Onwuachi's Jamaican, Nigerian, Creole, and Trinidadian roots. Onwauchi is no stranger to Yelp's best new restaurants lists; his Lincoln Center hot-spot Tatiana came in at 25 in 2023 and has been nearly impossible to get into since then.

Where Tatiana is about New York, Dōgon is centered around the history of the nation's capital. The dark, modern interior evokes the night sky with its mood lighting, purple hues, and blue-tinted mirrored glass, all inspired by Benjamin Banneker. Banneker was born a free man in 1731 and through both formal and self-taught education, became an astronomer and surveyor who worked on the initial survey of Washington D.C., wrote a yearly almanac, and confronted then Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, about his hypocrisy of not wanting to be a "servant" to the English while being a slave-owner himself. 

Benneker's roots went back to the Dōgon people in West Africa, master astronomers whose oral traditions referenced the moons of Jupiter and rings of Saturn long before white Europeans discovered the same. All of this history links to the greater African diaspora, which is a major theme of Onwauchi's cooking. So, while a night at Dōgon might make you feel like you're up in the stars, the plates will bring you back to earth with rich flavors from Mali, Trinidad, and Ethiopia (whose culinary inspiration here shows that Ethiopia is so much more than just the birthplace of coffee).

Currently, Dōgon holds a 4.3-star rating on Yelp, with most diners praising not only its excellent menu, but its equally good service. The Chicken and Rice — or more specifically, berbere chicken and West African joloff rice — is a highlight, with reviewer Shanell D. saying "t'was not your grandmas chicken & rice...bold, fragrant, and absolutely unforgettable." The New York Times agreed, calling the dish "soul-reviving," and noting that in this restaurant, "Classics are not exalted but simply permitted to be all that they are, both humble and luxurious."

Other stand-outs include the BBQ Greens with candied cipollini, the Corn Bread with spiced shero butter (Margie A. seconds the server's recommendation to get enough for everyone to have their own), and Ben's Bowl — an homage to Ben Ali, a Trinidadian immigrant who was an important figure in D.C. in the 1950s and '60s. Ali's restaurant, Ben's Chili Bowl, was a hub for Black folks in D.C. in the 1950s and 60s, and Ali offered people food and shelter during the Civil Rights protests in 1968. Onwauchi pays tribute here with a lamb version of Ali's favorite dish, curry beef. 

Whatever you order, don't forget to save room for dessert, as the Rum Cake is known to steal the show. Considering gastronomy-centered Washington D.C. has plenty of upscale offerings, like the Michelin-rated restaurants peppering the neighborhood of Ivy City, it's not difficult to imagine Dōgon becoming a mainstay on foodies' lists of the city's best.

Not surprisingly, it's not exactly a piece of (rum) cake to get a table at Dōgon. Reservations aren't mandatory, but they're highly recommended. Reservations through Resy open about a month in advance, and Fridays and Saturdays fill up quickly. Dōgon is open for dinner only, from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Tuesday to Saturday. There's no formal dress code, but many folks show up in dressy attire as it's a special occasion destination, although more casual jeans are acceptable too. The menu at Dōgon is family-style, so it's best to go with friends (or a hungry date, as it's a date night hot-spot), and note that the meat and seafood-focused menu has very limited vegetarian and vegan options.

A two-person dinner can cost around $300 including alcohol and tip (and about $250 without booze), so this isn't exactly the place to go on a budget. As Yelp user Shanell D wrote, "It's definitely more than your average night out; this was an experience." So you can count dinner at Dōgon as one of the best activities for adults in D.C., whether you're visiting or a local, particularly since it's just over 10 minutes from the National Mall.