If there’s one thing that all Georgetown students learn about the neighborhood, it’s that restaurants on M Street are usually pretty good, but also pretty expensive. It is because of this that when I entered Maxime, the latest addition to the Georgetown dining scene, I prepared my wallet for the monetary beating that was sure to come from its tantalizing French fare. But quite to my delight, my expectations proved unfounded.
Located at the far end of M Street, Maxime has an unassuming outward appearance. The decor of the restaurant is inspired by the French Revolution, with flags and portraits from that era hanging on the wall. With a fireplace and warm-hued lighting, the ambiance of Maxime is cozy and seductive, ideal for a casual date or a relaxed group dinner.
The menu is short and simple, with a huge emphasis on the “La Formule,” a prix fixe menu offering warm baguette with butter, mixed green salad, and a choice of steak, salmon, or vegetables with fries on the side. The rest of the menu focuses almost exclusively on mussels, which can be enjoyed with eight different types of sauce. The wine and beer selection is extensive, while the non-alcohol beverage offering was somewhat limited.
The baguette is clearly freshly baked, but the butter that came with it is cold and hard to spread. The salad, however, is mixed and tossed with a perfect amount of ranch dressing that makes the dish light but satisfying. Yet the true winner among the appetizers is the French Onion soup. With two slices of gruyere cheese melted on top, the soup is flavorful with a balanced texture of smoothness and chunkiness from the soaked bread. A bit on the heavy side, the soup could very well be enjoyed as a main dish.
The ultimate highlight of the meal is definitely the steak. Medium-rare and medium-well are both executed to perfection; the “secret sauce” that comes with the dish had a citrus taste, one that is unexpected, but actually paired well with the steak. The salmon is fresh and prepared with great care. The skin’s crispy, flavorful, and fatty execution produces just the right balance. It is garnished with the same “secret sauce”, whose citric taste also pairs harmoniously with the tender fish.
Dessert at Maxime is a must. Their Moelleux Au Chocolat is presented in a white ramekin with a scoop of ice cream on the side. Its opposing textures and flavors—firm and smooth, warm and cool, sweet and bitter—complements each other perfectly, presenting a delicious, yet not overly cloying, decadence.
When the bill came at the end of my meal, I was expecting an exorbitant price for the amount and quality of the food that I just enjoyed. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find quite the opposite. The prices at Maxime were surprisingly reasonable: the three-course “La Formule” cost less than $20. With prices like that, Maxime is a delightfully revolutionary change from the expected exquisite yet expensive M street cuisine.
2915 M Street N.W.
Open daily from 4 p.m. – 11 p.m.
maximedc.com
Photo: Maxime
