Reviewing Patty O’s: Upscale American in rural Washington D.C.’s Little Washington.

Serious foodies everywhere know all about the Inn at Little Washington, chef Patrick O’Connell’s rural dining extravaganza just outside the Washington, D.C area. With three Michelin stars and decades of accolades from the national and international food media, The Inn is sometimes considered the East Coast counterpart to the legendary French Laundry in Napa Valley. People travel to Little Washington from all over the world to indulge.  

Yes but: The five-course tasting menu goes for $348 per person, with matching wines for an additional $200. No couple gets out of there with under $1,000 on their credit card.  

This brings us to Patty O’s Cafe & Bakery, O’Connell’s new casual country restaurant, which lets the Inn-curious sample food that carries the O’Connell culinary DNA at a price that won’t gut your wallet. Most entrees at Patty O’s are $20 to $30. 

Make the drive to Patty O’s; you’ll be glad you did

One summer morning, my wife and I made the 90-minute journey from the Washington D.C. area for the Bluegrass Brunch. It’s a delightful drive, a perfect day visit from the D.C., Baltimore, or Charlottesville areas. Patty O’s sits catty-corner to the formidable Inn, in the tiny hamlet of Little Washington. The new restaurant is located in a former filling station, reclaimed with a whitewashed exterior, a latticework entryway, and a small patio with generous umbrellas. 

Patty O’s has an easygoing, playful vibe. Framing the corner where sidewalks meet are a vintage motorcycle with ram’s head handlebars and a wooden bakery cart suggesting a chuck wagon positioned as if on a stage set.  

The interior summons a nostalgic vision of American rural life. The mural beyond the bar depicts a mid-century barn dance. The walls feature paintings and plates suggesting life on bygone farms. Service touches include a silvery metal riding boot water pitcher and a French porcelain cow creamer.   

Some context for the following review: As one of those lucky enough and spendy enough to have had the full Inn at Little Washington dining experience, I came primed to love Patty O’s.  

And, just as I’d hoped, the Patty O’s kitchen manages to bring some of the Inn’s elevated magic to meals that cost barely more than what you pay at the Cheesecake Factory.  

Patty O’s serves American classics with a twist

The menu comprises American classics with imaginative tweaks. The menu is short, a dozen entrees at brunch, seven for dinner, plus seven starters.  

First, the burger. It was delivered stacked high with a fat, perfectly medium-rare and tender beef patty from Snake River Farms, a melt of nutty Comte cheese (a French import similar to Swiss), lettuce, and pickles. It’s topped with fried onions for some crunch. It was delicious, even a bit beyond, I think my best burger ever.     

The smoked salmon was a platter of gorgeous ribbons of delicately flavored fish, very lightly smoked, with a side of mustard dill sauce. The salmon was topped with a crispy mix of beautiful, finely chopped herbs and vegetables. There is clearly some impressive knife work going on back in the kitchen. 

The meal was served with a basket of breads, said by our cheerful server to be a “gift of the baker” — so unlike in many upmarket bistros, the carbs come at no additional charge. It included two nearly pudding-like discs of cornbread, made from the recipe of the sous-chef’s mom.  

The best Pecan Pie EVER

The meal ended with our best dessert ever. No, I’m not saying it was the best pecan ice cream ever, although it was. It was the best end-of-meal indulgence we’ve enjoyed anywhere — creamy and nutty and just sweet enough, with a sidecar of superbly crafted caramel sauce. It arrived in a colossal glass-and-metal goblet that, when carried through the dining room, makes heads in the restaurant turn.  

Patty O’s Final Review

Not everything we had was worth a 90-minute drive. The avocado toast was diligently executed but unspectacular. The potato salad was creamy and tasty but in no way extraordinary.  

Background entertainment for the Bluegrass Brunch was an all-acoustic trio, its musicians all of a certain age. They played fiddle, stand-up bass, banjo, guitar, and mandolin, unobtrusively but congenially. It all added a crunchy, authentic touch of Appalachian charm. 

Yes, I came to Patty O’s primed to adore it. But I don’t think I’m being lovestruck when I say that, regardless of the expectation you bring, you’re likely to be delighted too. The food is memorable, the setting a delight, the prices reasonable, the dining-pleasure-per-dollar ratio very high — and the speck of Inn at Little Washington DNA worth every penny.