Stepping inside northwest Washington’s The Hitching Post feels like walking into your grandparents’ house for dinner. Alvin and Adrienne Carter, the husband and wife team who have run the restaurant for more than 40 years, treat their dining guests like they’re family. The pair enjoy chatting with their guests and lovingly prepare each entrée to order in plain sight right behind the counter.
The interior décor is not first-class dining, by any stretch: The tables might wobble a little, the stool might have seen better days and the shockingly dark coral pink Naugahyde covering the booths is a bit jarring. But it doesn’t matter – this is the way a restaurant like The Hitching Post should look: Lived in and used to butts in the seats.
But the real charm is Alvin and Adrienne: They greet all their guests warmly and are very attentive to make sure you are satisfied with your food. The Carters’ personality transforms what might be a pretty dim atmosphere into one that feels like home immediately.
One word of warning, however: Just like home, dinner isn’t without its hitches. The restaurant may take a long time to get your entrée to you, and you may not get everything all at the same time. It’s a slightly different experience than you might have elsewhere, but it doesn’t detract from The Hitching Post’s excellent southern staples. And hey, side orders coming first just makes for an interesting appetizer.
The portions here are enormous: A half chicken dinner ($11.75) comes with two sides, but is way more than half a chicken. This particular platter included two legs, two wings, three breasts and a thigh, but it doesn’t seem to be an exact science. It’s definitely enough for two people to share, if not three. Expect leftovers if each person orders individually.
The sides are handled as well as the entrees are. Typical southern fare, such as collard greens and macaroni and cheese are available, as well as options such as broccoli, French fries and potato salad. They range in price from $4 to $5.
Macaroni and cheese and potato salad stand out among the sides. The macaroni and cheese strikes an excellent balance between cheese and noodles – the only thing one might add would be a crumb topping, but that is a small knock on an otherwise great experience. The addition of chopped pickles to the potato salad adds a little bit of a tart zing to the creamy egg and mayonnaise base, and heightens the flavors.
Don’t bother looking for desserts – the few that the restaurant offers are store-bought, and they make no secret of this, with the boxes on display for all to see. But you can certainly eat your fill of Southern-style entrees here.
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Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Take the Metro to the Georgia Ave/Petworth Metro station. From there, you can take the H8 bus, which drops you at the crossing of Upshur Street and Rock Creek Church Road, just a short distance away. Otherwise, it’s a bit of a long walk (but certainly one worth taking). The Hitching Post is open Tuesday through Saturday.
