President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama have dinner with three winners of "Dinner with Barack" fundraising contest on Aug. 20, 2012 at Mintwood Place in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Pete Marovich-Pool/Getty Images)
1813 Columbia Rd. NW, Washington D.C. 20009
Chef Cedric Maupillier, who works at Mintwood Place in Adams Morgan, served President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and three couples for a campaign event called "Dinner with Barack" in August. A photo of the president and first lady with Mintwood Place employees hangs on the kitchen wall behind where Maupillier is standing. (WTOP/Stephanie Steinberg)
818 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington D.C. 20006
Chef Todd Gray and Ellen Kassoff, owners of Equinox on Connecticut Avenue, served Barack and Michelle Obama during their first dinner outing in the District in January 2009. (Courtesy of Darko Zagar)
2132 Florida Ave. NW Washington D.C., 20008
Restaurant Nora's Gallery room, where a surprise birthday party was planned for First Lady Michelle Obama, who turned 46. (Courtesy of Restaurant Nora)
1910 14th St. NW Washington D.C., 20009
President Barack Obama ordered the Spruce Street Hoagie and took it to-go along with a bag full of hoagies for Congressional Leaders on May 16, 2012. (Courtesy of Taylor Gourmet)
575 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington D.C., 20001
Mrs. Obama celebrated her 47th birthday at Wolfgang Puck's Asian fusion restaurant, The Source, located next to the Newseum.
The Source was named "2011 Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year" by the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington. (Courtesy of The Source)
1110 Vermont Avenue NW, Washington D.C., 20005
President Barack Obama hosted a campaign event, "Dinner with Barack," on June 15, 2012 at Lincoln Restaurant where he ordered a cheeseburger and kale salad.
"Serving the President can be viewed as a restaurateur's greatest accomplishment and President Obama's visit did not disappoint," says Lincoln Restaurant owner Alan Popovsky. "He was gracious and genuinely interested in how the restaurant was doing. It was the perfect beginning to the summer of 2012."
1625 I St. NW, Washington D.C., 20006
First Lady Michelle Obama had another birthday dinner out in the District at BLT Steak on Jan. 17, 2012 to celebrate her 48th birthday.
Mrs. Obama had a red velvet birthday cake and dined with Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett and Attorney General Eric Holder and his wife, according to the blog Obamafoodorama. (Courtesy of BLT Steak)
2800 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C., 20007
The Obama's 20th anniversary fell on the first presidential debate, and Mr. Obama was a little occupied, but he made up for the evening a few days later on Oct. 6, 2012 when he took Mrs. Obama to Bourbon Steak at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown. (Courtesy of Bourbon Steak)
1245 H St. NE, Washington D.C. 20002
Obama hosted another "Dinner with Barack" event at Smith Commons on Oct. 12. His guests included supporters from North Carolina, Ohio and Colorado.
Some restaurant owners have been more liberal about sharing what the president ate during his visit, but Smith Commons manager Miles Gray says he promised to stay mum.
"It was life changing experience and an absolute honor to serve President Obama," Miles says. "His staff was incredible and they were a real pleasure to work with." (Courtesy of Scout Tufankjian)
110 South Pitt St., Alexandria, Va. 22314
The Obamas celebrated their 19th wedding anniversary in October 2011 at Restaurant Eve in Old Town Alexandria.
(Courtesy Restaurant Eve)
303 Pennsylvania Ave. SE Washington, D.C. 20003
President Obama visited celebrity chef Spike Mendelsohn's Good Stuff Eatery on Aug. 3, 2011 -- one day before his 50th birthday.
Obama treated members of his staff who were working on debt negotiations and also paid for the lunch of a woman standing next to him in line, according to Good Stuff Eatery's website. (Courtesy of Joe Shymanski)
Stephanie Steinberg, wtop.com
WASHINGTON – Ellen Kassoff is used to the Secret Service randomly sweeping through her restaurant.
Over the past 14 years, Equinox on Connecticut Avenue has served a slew of high profile customers — the Israeli prime minister, Hillary Clinton, President George Bush Sr. and the occasional celebrity like Jon Bon Jovi just to name a few.
But Kassoff was caught off guard after one security inspection when then President- elect Barack Obama and his wife Michelle waltzed through the doors.
“We’re used to security sweeps quite frequently so we thought it was just another routine check for another type of dignitary,” Kassoff says. “We didn’t know it was actually the president.”
A few days before the 2009 presidential inauguration, a party of 11 people celebrated Mrs. Obama’s 45th birthday at the restaurant that appears to falls in line with Mrs. Obama’s healthy eating initiatives. Chef Todd Gray, Kassoff’s husband, strives to use organic ingredients grown within 100 miles of Equinox, according to the restaurant’s website.
Though it was four years ago, Kassoff hasn’t forgotten the Obamas’ orders: Mr. Obama had striploin steak and winter field green salad with roasted beets, shaved parmesan and cherry walnut vinaigrette dressing. Mrs. Obama chose pan-fried Rappahannock oysters with pineapple caper brown butter sauce
