Matchbox

This post is divided into the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

THE GOOD: This Chinatown hot-spot has a prime location. Everyone likes pizza, beer, and burgers, which fares well for a place that is known for the 3.6.9 logo (that's the number of mini burgers you want).
1. The burgers themselves are delicious, from your cheese choices (gorgonzola, cheddar, and !SMOKED GOUDA!) down to the silver dollar-sized pickles that line the bottom. The buns are a comforting consistency and temperature.

2. Pizza is another safe bet at Matchbox, although I'd almost rather have a burger. If you go with friends, get both and mix it up. The salads are okay, but the last time I ordered one to start with it came AFTER my burger, and being a Strict American I prefer to eat my salad before my hot food.

3. The mozzi carozzi is a comforting heart-attack-on-a-plate appetizer, basically like a deep-fried eggplant parm sans eggplant. Cheese, basil, tomato.

4. The girly cocktails are fun, especially the Slingblade and Berry Blast.

I wish I could remember the desserts, but they aren't on the site and we ordered 4 different things...I should revisit before I post about them.

THE BAD:
1. I know (I do know) that I'm nitpicky, but your mini burgers come with little ramekins of ketchup and mustard, and no tiny spreader. So you have the teensy top of a bun, a small plate, a little ramekin of your chosen condiment, and a HUGE CLUNKY BUTTER KNIFE. I'm sure I'm not the only one with bun fatalities, and my heart goes out to other sufferers. If you won't allow us to squeeze out our ketchup, then at least provide us a decent way to apply it. Tools are everything.

2. The Ginger Snap (girly) drink just isn't Gingery enough to warrant its name.

3. You can't get seated if your party is not complete, which sucks if you want to do appetizers and then wait for others to join you later. Not everyone gets out of work at the same time!

4. Expanding your restaurant is GREAT, FABULOUS, even WONDERFUL. Having a zillion stairs and like half a bathroom is ridiculous. Why must I walk down a few flights for a restroom? The expansion is funny, because when you say you are "upstairs" at Matchbox, there are TWO different upstairses. Once we got moved from one upstairs to the other, and literally went across the room, down the stairs, around the corner, up the stairs, across the room, and sat down again. Why is there not a hallway connecting these? What is the deal?

THE UGLY: Last time I was there we saw a rat. Upstairs (right). Yuck.

Matchbox
www.matchboxdc.com
713 H Street NW
Metro: Red/Green/Yellow line to Gallery Place/Chinatown