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Dōgon by Kwame Onwuachi will open along the revitalized Southwest waterfront at Salamander Washington DC. The acclaimed Chef Kwame Onwuachi makes his highly anticipated return to the nation’s capital with a concept inspired by DC Surveyor Benjamin Banneker and his heritage to the West African Dogon tribe. Pronounced “Doh-gon,” the restaurant will serve vibrant cuisine through an Afro-Caribbean lens and draw from Onwuachi’s unique Nigerian, Jamaican, Trinidadian and Creole background.
Address and Contact Information
Address: 1330 Maryland Ave SW, Washington, DC 20024
Phone: (855) 228-6325
Menu Photos
Order and Reservations
Reservations: resy.com
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Reviews
Jasmine Philippe
I’ve always wanted to go to one of Kwame’s restaurants. The service amazing. Out server Ida was very informed on the menu and gave great recommendations. The cocktails were tasty. Everything we ordered tasted exceptional! From start to finish. The oysters were so flavorful. The mushroom too. The crab cake surprised me because I normally don’t like to eat it but I enjoyed the plantain pancake. The oxtail was so tender and flavorful. I have no complaints. Everything was great from beginning to end. The music and ambiance was real good too.
… moreGreg Son
We were really excited to eat here to celebrate my wife’s birthday and it was one of the best dinner experiences we’ve had in DC. Not exaggerating, it’s the best sauce work on dishes we have ever tasted. The sauces for the piri salad, branzino, and shrimp were the highlights while the oysters were the standout. Our server (Cesar) was phenomenal and gave us great recommendations. We are excited to come back here with our friends in the near future!
… moreFrancine Wilson
My husband and I had a 5 o’clock reservation to celebrate his 60th birthday. I let the hostess know that it was his birthday and she said someone would sing happy birthday to him. Once we were seated and placed our order, service was amazing. Our food came out immediately to include the appetizers, entrées and side dishes. During our meal, I noticed a dish at a neighboring table. It looked delicious. It was a ho cake made with crispy edges. Because it looked so good, I ordered the same dish. To my disappointment, my dish looked nothing like the dish on the other table. The other guest agreed. It was a total letdown. Other than that, all of the other food was amazing. The dessert menu was very limited. We only had two choices for dessert, which was very disappointing. .
Although our service was amazing for the first hour, it took a complete nose dive. There were long lulls between visits to our table by our waiter. There was a drastic contrast to between his service when we initially arrived versus an hour later. To add insult to injury, no one sang happy birthday to my husband as requested. That was very disappointing. I say all of that to say the food for the most part was amazing. The atmosphere was awesome. It’s worth a visit.
… moreAlthough our service was amazing for the first hour, it took a complete nose dive. There were long lulls between visits to our table by our waiter. There was a drastic contrast to between his service when we initially arrived versus an hour later. To add insult to injury, no one sang happy birthday to my husband as requested. That was very disappointing. I say all of that to say the food for the most part was amazing. The atmosphere was awesome. It’s worth a visit.
Kushal Banerjee
We celebrated our anniversary at Dōgon by Kwame Onwuachi, and it was an unforgettable experience from start to finish. The atmosphere felt warm and special—perfect for a celebration.
Our server, Oliver, was incredibly attentive and courteous. He checked in at just the right times, and truly elevated the evening with his hospitality.
The food was outstanding. We ordered the Ben’s Bowl, Hoe Crab, Mom Dukes Shrimp, Curry Branzino, and the Rum Cake—and every single dish was packed with bold, vibrant flavors. The Curry Branzino was beautifully balanced, the shrimp had incredible depth, and the rum cake was the perfect sweet ending. The cocktails were just as impressive—creative, well-crafted, and perfectly paired with the meal.
Overall, Dōgon delivered an exceptional dining experience. We’ll definitely be back for another special occasion!
… moreOur server, Oliver, was incredibly attentive and courteous. He checked in at just the right times, and truly elevated the evening with his hospitality.
The food was outstanding. We ordered the Ben’s Bowl, Hoe Crab, Mom Dukes Shrimp, Curry Branzino, and the Rum Cake—and every single dish was packed with bold, vibrant flavors. The Curry Branzino was beautifully balanced, the shrimp had incredible depth, and the rum cake was the perfect sweet ending. The cocktails were just as impressive—creative, well-crafted, and perfectly paired with the meal.
Overall, Dōgon delivered an exceptional dining experience. We’ll definitely be back for another special occasion!
Hiznik K
Getting a reservation here took some effort, but after dining last Saturday evening with my boyfriend, I can confidently say it was 100% worth it.
From the moment we arrived, the experience felt intentional and personal. The host was warm and welcoming, and our server (who I regret not asking the name of) was friendly, knowledgeable, and genuinely made us feel taken care of. That level of service really set the tone for the night.
We went the shareable-plates route and started with the coco bread and the piri piri salad, both outstanding. The flavors were bold, balanced, and clearly well thought out. The oxtail, though, completely stole the show. I’ve had oxtail before, but nothing like this. It was unbelievably tender, falling off the bone like butter and packed with deep, rich flavor. When I asked our server about it, she mentioned it’s braised for 16 hours, which absolutely shows. We also tried the suya, which was equally memorable, and finished with the rum cake for dessert, an amazing way to end the meal.
We didn’t get a chance to try the signature cocktails this time, but I’ve only heard great things, so that just gives us another reason to come back.
The ambience, the food, and the service all worked together to create a truly special date-night experience. Chef Kwame Onwuachi did an incredible job curating this menu. Every dish we tried felt purposeful, cohesive, and executed at a very high level.
I would highly recommend Bogon by Kwame Onwuachi. Jumping through the hoops to get a reservation is absolutely worth it, and I’m already hoping to snag another one for our next date night.
… moreFrom the moment we arrived, the experience felt intentional and personal. The host was warm and welcoming, and our server (who I regret not asking the name of) was friendly, knowledgeable, and genuinely made us feel taken care of. That level of service really set the tone for the night.
We went the shareable-plates route and started with the coco bread and the piri piri salad, both outstanding. The flavors were bold, balanced, and clearly well thought out. The oxtail, though, completely stole the show. I’ve had oxtail before, but nothing like this. It was unbelievably tender, falling off the bone like butter and packed with deep, rich flavor. When I asked our server about it, she mentioned it’s braised for 16 hours, which absolutely shows. We also tried the suya, which was equally memorable, and finished with the rum cake for dessert, an amazing way to end the meal.
We didn’t get a chance to try the signature cocktails this time, but I’ve only heard great things, so that just gives us another reason to come back.
The ambience, the food, and the service all worked together to create a truly special date-night experience. Chef Kwame Onwuachi did an incredible job curating this menu. Every dish we tried felt purposeful, cohesive, and executed at a very high level.
I would highly recommend Bogon by Kwame Onwuachi. Jumping through the hoops to get a reservation is absolutely worth it, and I’m already hoping to snag another one for our next date night.
Allison Whyte
I was so excited to try this place and wanted to love it, but just did not. At the price point, I would expect a certain level of service and finish to the dishes that just was not there.
The servers know what they’re doing, Travis in particular was extremely knowledgeable, made great reccomendations, and coursed things well. However, we had 2 courses dropped early by what seemed to be kitchen staff members which led to an awkward swapping out of plates and utensils, leaving us without them for awhile after one of the courses was delivered and an awkward gap between another set of courses.
The service would have been easy to overlook if the food was great, but unfortunately it was not. For our first course we had the mushroom shewers, which were delicious, but very uneven. One skewer had almost double the amount of mushrooms as the other. The second course was the pork small plate, which was just very sweet, minimal spice, and the two pieces of pork were cooked very differently (one significantly drier than the other). The shrimp with bread course was easily the best, the sauce was nice and spicy had a great depth of flavor and the shrimp themselves were cooked very well. The bread was also delicious and perfect for dipping in the sauce. We were most excited for our last course, the oxtail, as we eat it often, but unfortunately it was the most disappointing. It was cooked well, very tender, but the sauce was extremely sweet and syrupy, overly salty, no spice at all, and we could not eat more than a few bites. It came with a side of rice and beans which were not particularly warm. For the $96 price point it was extremely underwhelming, especially as we only able to eat less than half of the dish. We ended up going elsewhere for dessert.
The restaurant itself is beautiful with a really cool design and vibe, but the food is just not worth the price.
… moreThe servers know what they’re doing, Travis in particular was extremely knowledgeable, made great reccomendations, and coursed things well. However, we had 2 courses dropped early by what seemed to be kitchen staff members which led to an awkward swapping out of plates and utensils, leaving us without them for awhile after one of the courses was delivered and an awkward gap between another set of courses.
The service would have been easy to overlook if the food was great, but unfortunately it was not. For our first course we had the mushroom shewers, which were delicious, but very uneven. One skewer had almost double the amount of mushrooms as the other. The second course was the pork small plate, which was just very sweet, minimal spice, and the two pieces of pork were cooked very differently (one significantly drier than the other). The shrimp with bread course was easily the best, the sauce was nice and spicy had a great depth of flavor and the shrimp themselves were cooked very well. The bread was also delicious and perfect for dipping in the sauce. We were most excited for our last course, the oxtail, as we eat it often, but unfortunately it was the most disappointing. It was cooked well, very tender, but the sauce was extremely sweet and syrupy, overly salty, no spice at all, and we could not eat more than a few bites. It came with a side of rice and beans which were not particularly warm. For the $96 price point it was extremely underwhelming, especially as we only able to eat less than half of the dish. We ended up going elsewhere for dessert.
The restaurant itself is beautiful with a really cool design and vibe, but the food is just not worth the price.
Baymax T
Initially, I did not really care about Caribbean and African food. This restaurant is one of the top 2 restaurants in Washington Magazine. That made me try this restaurant to celebrate our wedding anniversary.
The restaurant is located inside the Salamander Hotel.
The lighting is very dim, so we used the iPhone flashlight to read the menu.
The curry/Sauce that came with the dishes is amazing. It is not something that I can make at home.
It is a mix of Indian/Caribbean/African. The branzino is the best dish. The fish was so meaty.
The steak was very good as well, but the sauce that came with it was a little bit sweet.
I would love to come back and try another dish on the menu.
… moreThe restaurant is located inside the Salamander Hotel.
The lighting is very dim, so we used the iPhone flashlight to read the menu.
The curry/Sauce that came with the dishes is amazing. It is not something that I can make at home.
It is a mix of Indian/Caribbean/African. The branzino is the best dish. The fish was so meaty.
The steak was very good as well, but the sauce that came with it was a little bit sweet.
I would love to come back and try another dish on the menu.
BR J
We thoroughly enjoyed the food at Dōgon. We ordered small plates. My husband ordered the Ben’s Bowl (crispy lamb meatballs), and I ordered the Suya Pork Belly. We also ordered the Piri Piri Salad and Coco Bread to share. These are definitely small plates. At first i was very disappointed with the size vs the price, but turns out it was the perfect size for two people with no waste. Our favorite dish that night was the Piri Piri Salad. Good lawd that salad was fabulous. The sauces, the mix of the tomatoes, avocados and fruit was seriously a huge celebration in our mouths. I would have loved to have done nothing more than literally lick the plate . The other great dish was the coco bread.so soft, so good. Using it to sop up the sauces from the meat dishes was definitely enjoyable .
We also had a fantastic server who’s name I unfortunately can’t remember. He was so kind and helpful. He recommended the Piri Piri Salad and coco bread. Explained the restaurant’s layout. Answered every question. Seriously his niceness was better than our food.
Why then is this not a 5 star review? Blame it on the music. The music completely dimmed the atmosphere. I understand the owner is from New York and, I can only deduce, he wants to pay homage to his roots. But dude it’s hard to have a romantic evening hearing the n word and all the curse words from Nicki Minaj, Drake, Jay Z, Nasir Jones, or Wu Tang Clan. Given the size of your dishes and the cost for those dishes, the least the restaurant could do is play the clean version of the song if you’re seriously going to play hip hop. Or you can play a different genre of music that still represents NYC or hell try any of the Nigerian or Ghanaian music out now. I just think the music set you back .
… moreWe also had a fantastic server who’s name I unfortunately can’t remember. He was so kind and helpful. He recommended the Piri Piri Salad and coco bread. Explained the restaurant’s layout. Answered every question. Seriously his niceness was better than our food.
Why then is this not a 5 star review? Blame it on the music. The music completely dimmed the atmosphere. I understand the owner is from New York and, I can only deduce, he wants to pay homage to his roots. But dude it’s hard to have a romantic evening hearing the n word and all the curse words from Nicki Minaj, Drake, Jay Z, Nasir Jones, or Wu Tang Clan. Given the size of your dishes and the cost for those dishes, the least the restaurant could do is play the clean version of the song if you’re seriously going to play hip hop. Or you can play a different genre of music that still represents NYC or hell try any of the Nigerian or Ghanaian music out now. I just think the music set you back .
P NW
Excellent from start to finish. We hit traffic and arrived a few minutes late on a busy Friday night, and the staff still worked us in.
The curry branzino was great — perfectly cooked, deep flavors. The charbroiled oysters and the rum cake were also excellent.
Get a reservation. You might be able to sneak a two top into the bar. But it’s a busy place.
… moreThe curry branzino was great — perfectly cooked, deep flavors. The charbroiled oysters and the rum cake were also excellent.
Get a reservation. You might be able to sneak a two top into the bar. But it’s a busy place.
Rach K
What a cool place!!! The lighting really sets the mood but the food, my goodness THE FOOD!!!! My first time ever having oxtail and I literally can’t stop thinking about it. Travis our waiter was not only adorable but very knowledgeable about the menu and really helped us make a decision on how many courses we needed to feed four people. The flavors, gosh I don’t even want to brush my teeth tonight. Amazing.
… more