The Kitchen
Eric Ziebold came up inside the Thomas Keller orbit — years at The French Laundry in Yountville, then opening chef de cuisine at Per Se in New York — before Washington claimed him, first at CityZen and, since 2015, at his own Kinship in Mt. Vernon Triangle with his wife and partner Célia Laurent. Kinship earned a Michelin star in DC's inaugural guide and has held it every year since; Ziebold is a James Beard Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic winner. What makes the room unusual is its structure: rather than lock you into a tasting, Ziebold organises the à la carte menu around five ideas — Craft, Ingredients, Indulgence, History and For the Table — so you assemble your own progression.
The signatures are where the Keller schooling shows. The lobster French toast — a brioche raft under butter-poached lobster, around $30 — is the dish regulars order on sight; the caviar chips and a whole lobe of foie gras (about $150) sit in the Indulgence column, and the Catalan-spiced confit squid and lacquered duck carry the savoury spine. A chef's tasting runs roughly $135 per person for diners who would rather hand the kitchen the keys. Set against DC's other Michelin Americans — Jont's locked tasting counter, the Keller-adjacent precision at Per Se itself — Kinship is the rare star kitchen that still lets you eat à la carte at this level. The address is 1015 Seventh Street NW.
The Room
The dining room is deliberately formal without being stiff: white tablecloths, leather banquettes, and hand-painted murals of Washington's classical architecture. Lighting is low and flattering, tables are spaced for conversation rather than turnover, and the room is small enough that Ziebold himself often works the floor. Dress runs from smart business to cocktail. It seats far fewer than its ambition suggests, which is why the banquettes book first.
The wine list is among the city's deepest, and the service carries the Keller-brigade polish — present, precise, never hovering. It is the kind of room that makes a table of four feel looked after without being performed at, which is exactly what most of the occasions below require.
Best Occasion Fit
Close a Deal: Book Kinship to close a deal because it carries the signals a serious meeting needs — a Michelin star, a Keller-trained kitchen, a quiet, well-spaced room — while the à la carte format lets the conversation, not a fixed menu, set the pace. Order a shared lobe of foie gras for the table and let the evening run long.
Birthday: A birthday here is a grown-up one — the lobster French toast as a built-in showpiece, the murals and banquettes doing the celebration's set design, and a kitchen happy to acknowledge the occasion if you flag it at booking.
Impress Clients: Visitors who know dining read Ziebold's French Laundry and Per Se pedigree instantly, and the Michelin star removes any need to explain the choice. For impressing clients, it is one of DC's safest credible bookings.
Not For
Skip Kinship if you want a fast, casual supper — the room is formal, the cooking is deliberate, and the bill lands at full fine-dining level. And if you specifically want a long, hands-off tasting-menu ritual where the kitchen decides everything, its sister room Métier (in the same building) or Jont fits better; Kinship's whole point is that you build the meal yourself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Kinship worth it? Yes, if you want one of Washington's most precise kitchens without the lockstep of a tasting menu. Eric Ziebold trained under Thomas Keller at The French Laundry and Per Se, and Kinship has held a Michelin star since DC's inaugural guide. The à la carte format lets you build the meal you want — a $30 lobster French toast and a shared course of foie gras rather than a fixed sequence.
How much does dinner cost? Kinship is primarily à la carte, with a chef's tasting around $135 per person. Signature plates anchor the spend: the lobster French toast runs about $30 and a whole lobe of foie gras around $150. Expect $150 and up per person before wine for a full dinner, more if you pull from one of DC's deeper cellars.
How hard is it to book? Plan about two weeks ahead for prime weekend tables; weeknights are easier. Kinship books through its own site and OpenTable. The dining room at 1015 Seventh Street NW is intimate, so the best banquettes go first — ask when you book if you are marking an occasion.
What is the dress code? Smart, from business to cocktail. This is a white-tablecloth room with Keller-trained service, so jackets read correctly at dinner though they are not mandatory. Dress as you would for a celebration rather than a casual night out and you will fit the room.
What should I order? Start with the lobster French toast — Ziebold's signature — and the caviar chips, then a roasted bird or the Catalan-spiced confit squid. Finish with the roasted Maui pineapple dessert. The kitchen's French technique shows most clearly in those dishes. See more of our Washington DC dining guide.
