Republicans and Democrats are divided over almost everything in Washington. That includes where to eat.
The Washington Sun analyzed more than 1.6 million Federal Election Commission operating-expenditure records and identified 829 restaurants in the D.C. area where campaigns plunked down over $9 million during the 2026 election cycle from Jan. 1, 2025, through Aug. 11, 2026.
Not only does the culinary campaign survey confirm the hyper-partisan vibe around the capital these days, it also finds the parties noshing true to their stereotypes: red meat for Republicans while Democrats’ choices for blue plate specials have a multicultural flavor.
Republican campaigns reported spending over half a million dollars at The Capital Grille in the Washington area this cycle, making the steakhouse their prime choice by a wide margin. Other GOP favorites include Joe’s Seafood, Ocean Prime, Trattoria Alberto and Bobby Van’s restaurants.
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Democrats reported spending the most at Paraiso, a Mexican restaurant and mezcaleria on Capitol Hill, and also delivering hearty portions of cash to Osteria Morini, Ama, L’Ardente and Bistro Cacao.
Tom Sietsema, The Sun’s legendary food critic, took a look at the data and divined that the parties’ hotspots can be explained by two things: “convenience and proximity to power.”
“It doesn’t hurt that Cap Grille, Joe’s and Bobby Van’s are close to the halls of power (either the Hill or the White House),” he said. But as a diner, Sietsema said he’d prefer the Democrats’ usual haunts over “the less imaginative GOP restaurants.”
“The best places, food-wise, are Osteria Morini, L’Ardente and Del Mar on the Wharf,” Sietsema wrote. “There’s an Italian/Mediterranean affection going on with the Dems’ list. Carmine’s is BIG, a plus for large groups.”
Democrats spent over $62,000 at Del Mar, a Spanish seafood restaurant. The two parties split around $150,000 roughly right down the middle at Carmine’s, an Italian restaurant in Penn Quarter.
One current senior GOP aide agreed with Sietsema that proximity (with a private event space) is an essential component for campaigns and lawmakers, but added: “I just think Republicans like steak.”
The places where the partisans dine don’t just reveal cultural affinities. They also reflect who has the money and the power.
Republicans, who control Congress and whose party committees have been hauling in more campaign cash than Democrats this cycle, reported dropping substantially more operating expenditures at restaurants in the Washington area, roughly $5 million compared with around $3.9 million for Democrats.
The gap can’t be explained by there being more GOP campaign committees in the analysis: 330 Republican campaigns reported qualifying restaurant spending, compared with 329 on the Democratic side.
The numbers pencil out to roughly $15,300 per Republican group and about $11,900 per Democratic committee. Republican campaigns were also more concentrated in their favorite restaurants: The 10 spots where they reported the most money accounted for nearly 41% of all GOP spending captured by the analysis. In food, as in 2026 politics, Democrats had a bigger tent, with their top 10 locations accounting for just 29% of their expenditures.
The biggest spenders at restaurants are some of the most powerful and ambitious people in Washington. The campaign of House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who has been aggressively stumping for other Republicans and hopes to keep his leadership post, leads the pack, spending nearly $517,000 at 79 identifiable establishments around D.C. His favorite was Ocean Prime, where the Louisiana Republican spent nearly $117,000 — more than some campaigns spent at all restaurants combined.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is the big spender on the Democratic side, with his campaign doling out more than $160,000 across 31 restaurants. The New Yorker spent nearly $45,000 at Osteria Morini, an Italian spot in Navy Yard. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Virginia) was close behind the minority leader at about $149,000, including nearly $25,000 at L’Ardente.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s campaign spent nearly $100,000 — more than $86,000 of it at Franklin Hall, largely on reception, catering and facility costs.
Osteria Morini, Jeffries’ favorite spot, has a history with Democratic leadership, serving as a longtime destination for former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s political and fundraising operations. Pelosi hosted House Democrats there in 2018 when she was campaigning to become speaker again, and a Washingtonian analysis found her campaign spent $26,800 at the Navy Yard eatery during the 2022 cycle.
Democrats are watching to see how Jeffries uses the restaurant circuit if he becomes speaker next year.
“I’m interested to see what [Jeffries’] strategies are when it comes to these kinds of things,” David Thomas, a top Democratic strategist who is a partner at Mehlman Consulting, told The Sun. “When Pelosi was doing it, she obviously would host events, but she also spent a lot of time visiting other members’ events and helping her caucus. She was a great draw for any event. I suspect he will do something similar.”
Thomas, however, admitted he frequently finds himself behind enemy lines. Ocean Prime, where Republicans spent about $210,000, is under his office. He calls it his “satellite office.”
“We’re pretty lucky in D.C. to have an amazing restaurant scene where you’ve got so many different options of places that aren’t just good restaurants, but are able to host events,” Thomas said.
Sean Kennedy, the National Restaurant Association’s chief advocate officer, said large “heavy hitter” restaurants in Washington are experts at meeting the strict schedule demands of members of Congress, but that “there are lobbyists who do get tired of eating at the same restaurant five nights a week.” Kennedy argued fundraising in new locations can be a hook to draw guests.
“There are members of Congress that do smaller events with a smaller number of people, and they move into smaller restaurants,” Kennedy said. “There are an awful lot of smaller folks that are consistently getting tables for six, eight and 10 that exemplify the diversity of the cuisine coming to D.C.”
The spending does not necessarily mean that campaigns were sitting down for dinner every time they booked a restaurant. Often it is for fundraising and catered events.
The Sun carried out its analysis using payments reported to the FEC as operating expenditures, the standard category reported for ordinary campaign expenses, and counted spending when the recipient could be identified as a specific restaurant or other establishment with prepared-food service. The analysis excluded caterers, delivery-only businesses, event venues, retailers and other vendors that could not be tied to a qualifying restaurant. Campaign committees sometimes report restaurant, meal or catering payments under other FEC disbursement categories; those payments are not included in the analysis.
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