Executive chef Eric Ziebold left The French Laundry in Napa Valley, California to lead CityZen.
[2] CityZen was located in a very high-ceilinged room decorated with soothing colors and soft, warm lighting.
[4] Washingtonian magazine named it one of very best of the city's top 100 restaurants and gave it similarly high praise in 2013, concluding, "It's not the palatial setting, the impressively informed service, or even the virtuosic range of this restaurant's contemporary American menu that lingers long after the meal is over.
"[5] WUSA declared CityZen "the place to go when you're looking for an elegant evening of gorgeous cutting-edge, modern cuisine."
The anonymous reviewer especially liked the restaurant's tasting menus, which it called "visually stunning and highlight only the best of fresh, local, seasonal ingredients.
Calling CityZen "a favorite special occasion restaurant", reviewer Melanie Renzulli also praised the tasting menus and the fowl entrees.