Where to Order a Work From Home Lunch in Your DC Neighborhood

Maybe you don’t exactly miss your not-so-scenic stroll downtown to pick up your desk lunch, but working from home can leave you longing for your old office life – even the bad parts. If you’re one of the lucky Washingtonians who are able to work from home while most of the city is sheltered in place, it can be tough to adjust.

But many DC restaurants are still open for takeout and delivery, and ordering a lunch you can actually look forward to can be a saving grace while you’re stuck inside. Plus, ordering from local businesses can help them keep the lights on during this difficult time. It’s a win-win. So pick up your phone and order weekday lunch from one of these local spots.

Amsterdam Falafelshop
Order pickup or delivery on Uber Eats, Grubhub, or DoorDash
Your late-night healthyish drunchies just became the best work from home lunch you can imagine. Pick a pita or bowl and pile it high with falafel and as many of the 22 Mediterranean toppings and sauces as you’d like.

DCity Smokehouse
Order delivery on Grubhub or call 202-733-1919 for takeout
Mix up your boring sandwich routine with a hearty, smokey version for DCity Smokehouse. This BBQ staple is serving its regular menu which includes a traditional pulled pork sandwich topped with coleslaw for $10 and a famous DC half-smoke for just $9. Complete your order with a side or two, and you’ll have delicious mac and cheese or hushpuppies for a snack ready to cure your 3pm cravings.

&pizza
Order takeout or delivery online
DC’s oblong pizza spot has 10 locations in the District (and some in Maryland and Virginia, too!) that are still open slinging pies. Grab a dirty bird to try &pizza’s take on buffalo chicken pizza or make your own creation, and you can feel good about supporting a company that’s helping the community. Hospital workers get a free pie with proper ID, and the regional chain has given away 13,000 pies in those sleek long boxes so far.

Ted’s Bulletin
Order pickup online or delivery on DoorDash, Postmates, or Grubhub
You can get a WFH lunch of diner classics from Ted’s Bulletin. But you can also replace those handy oatmeal packets and cereal cups that became your everyday office breakfast with some better options from Ted’s. Famous Ted’s tarts are available for $4 along with the diner’s entire menu out of its two DC locations and other spots in Maryland and Virginia.

Daikaya
Order takeout or delivery on Daikaya’s website or on Uber Eats
Put that ramen packet back on the shelf -- you don’t need to dig into your just-in-case stash just yet. Daikaya is offering takeout and delivery during lunchtime to fill all of your comforting warm soup needs. The shop is serving its signature ramens like shoyu or shio in a deconstructed style, so it will travel well and just needs a little reheating and rearranging before you’re ready to dig in.

RARE Steakhouse & Tavern
Call 202-800-9994 for carryout and delivery orders or through Grubhub, Seamless, Caviar
You may not be taking meetings downtown anymore, but that doesn’t mean you have to retire your old power lunch spot. Along with its dinner menu and butcher shop offerings, RARE Steakhouse is open for lunch every day from noon to 4pm and will deliver within five miles of the restaurant for free. The menu is updated daily, but expect classic steak cuts and hearty deli sandwiches piled high with cured meats.

CHIKO
Order takeout or delivery through Caviar
Chinese and Korean food mashups are CHIKO’s specialty and they will draw you from your makeshift desk. From spicy soy-glazed double-fried chicken wings that might be a little too messy to eat near your laptop to house fried rice with smoked blue catfish that’s safe to eat deskside, the menu gives you plenty of options.

Good Stuff Eatery
Order takeout online or schedule delivery on Postmates
You can have a presidential lunch break by ordering Obama’s namesake burger or just get a milkshake for lunch (we won’t judge and neither will your coworkers!). While 44 likely frequented the Capitol Hill outpost and that location is now closed, Good Stuff Eatery’s locations in Georgetown and Crystal City are still open for business.

Fare Well
Order pickup or delivery through Grubhub
Log in to Slack, prop your laptop open on the kitchen counter, and get ready to make a DIY lunch from Fare Well. Wednesday through Sunday you can order kits to make a personal pizza for $12 or sticky buns for $6 for an extra-long lunch break and a little activity to take your mind off of the news. The veggie-forward diner also offers reheatable meals like rigatoni with caulifredo and shepherd's pie that you can hang onto for dinner.

Chicken + Whiskey
Order pickup and delivery through Grubhub
This Peruvian chicken joint has everything you need for a perfect work-from-home lunch. You can grab a ready-to-go sandwich or opt for a whole rotisserie chicken (or a half or quarter) and sides like yucca fries, beans, rice, and more -- so you can have plenty of leftovers for dinner.

Mola
Order pickup and delivery via Postmates
There are three different ways to enjoy Mount Pleasant’s adorable Spanish tapas joint if you wait until after 2pm to take your lunch break. You can order from a selection of dips, snacks, charcuterie, and heartier main courses -- or use the restaurant like a corner market or full-on grocery store. The market has prepared foods to reheat, wine, and baked goods that you can pick up or have delivered. Plus, Mola Grocery stocks items from local purveyors like loafs from Bread Furst and meat and dairy from Path Valley Farms. Grocery orders must be placed on Sunday and picked up or delivered on Tuesday, but you can get the regular menu or market items any day of the week.

Timber Pizza Company
Call 202-853-9746 or use Caviar to order takeout and delivery
This DC favorite recently reopened to offer four of its signature wood-fired pies, a selection of beer, and a spring salad with almonds, goat cheese, sugar snap peas, strawberries, and a lemon-honey dressing. The menu is available from noon to 8pm on Tuesday through Sunday.

Tiger Fork
Order takeout and delivery on their website or through Caviar
Have a (mostly) liquid lunch from Tiger Fork. Take your state-sanctioned walk to Blagden Alley for pickup or opt for delivery from noon to 3pm and you can get smashed cucumber salad and a cocktail in a juice box for about $15. You can always leave your cocktail out of the Zoom meeting frame, or just wait until after 3pm to eat so you can choose from the full menu of dim sum classics and Hong Kong-style street food.

Sign up here for our daily DC email and be the first to get all the food/drink/fun in town.