WASHINGTON — More than an hour before it was set to open Monday evening, people were lining up under the hot summer sun in front of a white door on 17th Street NW. There is no sign, but everyone in line knows that the door belongs to Little Serow, a popular Thai restaurant.
The hot spot is among several restaurants in D.C. where reservations are not accepted, and with only few tables inside, diners must often wait hours before even sitting down.
“It’s awesome, it’s worth the wait,” said Mike, who didn’t want to provide his last name because he left work early to get in line.
Some foodies will tell you August is one of the quietest months for restaurants, because vacations are in progress and the heat is on, but Mike says that is not completely true.
“I generally have found that on hot days other people think it is going to be less of a line, but it turns out to be just the same,” he said.
Joey Katona’s wife is 39 weeks pregnant, so when she asked to go, he agreed to wait in line for the table.
“I think otherwise from that I would be more likely to wait for cooler weather,” Katona said.
When the weather is nice, some diners say they’ve found themselves in line for more than three hours, but for most the wait is worth it.
Katona said his game plan was to get to the restaurant early and wait in his air-conditioned car for people to begin showing up. When they did, he grabbed his chair, book and Gatorade and got in line.
The restaurant saves a lot of trouble and hassle by not accepting reservations, Katona believes.
“The annoyance is on the customer, we are willing to deal with it and still spend a significant amount of money to eat at the restaurant,” Katona said.
Advice from the dedicated diners: arrive early and prepare to wait if you want a meal at one of D.C.’s most popular dining destinations.
