Rooster & Owl

Rooster & Owl is led by husband-and-wife team Yuan Tang, culinary director, and Carey Tang, managing director. The MICHELIN one-star tasting menu restaurant sits at the northern end of Washington, D.C.’s 14th Street corridor. The four-course experience offers multiple choices per course and changes with the seasons, drawing on global influences while accommodating vegetarians, pescatarians, and guests with gluten or dairy restrictions. “We like taking foods that are comforting and nostalgic, and put our spin on it,” says Yuan Tang.

Since opening in 2019, the menu has continuously evolved, with early dishes reappearing in more refined forms. A pomme purée once served with braised oxtail and maple-glazed carrots now features more precise plating and a scallion oil that adds both richness and contrast. A grilled mackerel originally brushed with salsa verde has also been reworked, now paired with buttermilk dashi, compressed celery, and green grapes. “In the end, it tasted like the original, but it looked a little bit more elegant,” says Tang.

One element has remained constant since opening: the restaurant’s golden-hued pineapple buns, a nod to the decade Tang spent living in Hong Kong as a child. Tang estimates the team has made more than 100,000 over the years. Despite the name, the buns do not contain pineapple; it refers to their crackled, textured tops.