Throughout our culinary journey, my wife Jun and I often ask after visiting a restaurant, “Would we be happy to visit this restaurant again in the near future?” If the answer is no, more likely than not we end up not visiting the restaurant again. The reason behind the no answer almost always hinges on the quality of food; even where the overall experience was somewhat uneven, there may be one or two outstanding dishes that convince us the restaurant should get a second look. When we first visited Moon Rabbit, from the famed DC chef Kevin Tien, in 2022, the restaurant felt somewhat outshined by the glitzy surroundings of the Wharf area, and I felt we needed to try a few other dishes before we could endorse the restaurant. Since then, the restaurant moved to the Penn Quarter neighborhood in early 2024; I had been keeping the restaurant on my radar and finally pulled a trigger to try Moon Rabbit 2.0 with Jun last month. We were both very surprised how much more we liked our dinner experience this time.

If you think Vietnamese cuisine is just pho noodle soup or spring rolls, you will be wowed by Moon Rabbit’s dishes. Chef Tien’s cooking, drawn from his Cajun Louisiana and Vietnamese roots, really stood out on our recent visit for its creative use of ingredients. Jun was amazed how much she loved the mochi beignet with freshwater eel even though the eel is not her favorite fish, and I couldn’t agree more. If we have to order again from the menu on our next visit, the first thing we will get is this playful dish showing that mochi and eel can be potent combos. Charred cabbage was another a very delicious dish, thanks to the sesame eggplant puree that gave the cabbage a smoky lift. The main dishes were also both successful. Red snapper was spiced with Szechuan sauce to give a spicy kick that worked very well, while the lemongrass pork chop was more or less perfectly grilled, and I was very fond of the braised kale that gave the dish a classic Southern feel. One thing we should’ve done on our visit to Moon Rabbit 1.0 was to order at least one dessert; Moon Rabbit’s desserts have been widely lauded thanks for the pastry chef Susan Bae. This time, we ordered two desserts, one of which was truly memorable. I don’t recall ever trying a cheesecake made of tofu before, and the ethereal texture of the cheesecake with a more savory than sweet flavor was pure magic. Jun thought the cheesecake could’ve worked even better with the Nardello pepper, but I was fine with the spicy kick from the pepper. The other dessert we ordered, consisting of roasted corn mousse and gjetost cheese gelato and coffee granita, also displayed the wide range of imagination with unexpected ingredients.

Getting a reservation at Moon Rabbit is pretty challenging and the dining room, which was by no means small, was nearly packed during our dinner, so booking in advance is highly recommended. The restaurant has a full bar with creative cocktail offerings and a wine list with surprisingly range of geography and grape type (there is even a suggested drink pairing for each dessert). The dining space, unlike the predecessor in the Wharf, felt more inviting and cozier than touristy. The only regret I had from our dinner at Moon Rabbit is that we didn’t visit the restaurant sooner. Jun and I would be very excited to visit the restaurant again and see what else on the menu surprises us. And yes, I hope the mochi beignet and eel is still on the menu on our next trip!  

KenScale: 8.25/10 (Jun’s Score: 8.25/10)

Address: 927 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004

Website: https://www.moonrabbitdc.com/

Reservation via OpenTable