Located in Blagden Alley in Washington, D.C.’s Shaw neighborhood, Causa is a two-story restaurant marked by black-and-white murals depicting rainforest creatures, including a parrot, a snake, and a butterfly. The intimate tasting menu restaurant on the first floor is helmed by James Beard Award–winning chef Carlos Delgado in partnership with Glendon Hartley and Chad Spangler. The menu draws inspiration from the coastal, Andean, and Amazonian regions of Peru.
Meals begin with a series of small bites before moving into seafood courses, much of the fish sourced from Tokyo’s Toyosu Market. Delgado oversees a dry-aging program for select seafood, a technique used to deepen flavor and refine texture before preparation.
In addition to the tasting menu, guests may order à la carte dishes such as cebiche (also known as ceviche), sashimi, thinly sliced tiradito with ají amarillo leche de tigre, or whole fish prepared in a variety of ways. Later courses feature more land-based dishes, including preparations built around Peru’s many varieties of potatoes and asado-style Wagyu beef. Beverage options include wine pairings and selections from the restaurant’s pisco list.
The tasting menu concludes with dessert, which may feature mocambo, a native Peruvian fruit grown in the rainforest by a collective of Indigenous women and known for flavors reminiscent of mango, papaya, and Key lime. One presentation shapes the dessert like a Michelin star and finishes it with a small amount of caviar, referencing the seafood-focused opening courses.
Above Causa is Amazonia, a rooftop space focused on Peruvian pisco culture and casual dishes. The menu includes items such as hearts of palm salad with passion fruit, ceviche with cancha (corn kernels) and sweet potato, and lomo saltado prepared with Wagyu beef.
