Dionne's Good Food

Dionne’s Good Food is the heart of Sycamore & Oak, a retail center in Congress Heights. And like any good heart, the American restaurant pumps life—and great food—into the community and its customers.

Sycamore & Oak is a two-story outdoor complex on the St. Elizabeth’s campus that houses a dozen Black-owned businesses. But Dionne’s is the one place where you know there will always be a bartender ready to hand you a cup or a platter full of burn-the-roof-of-your-mouth crab fries for you to dive into. Grab a (reusable) adult juice pouch from the walk-up window that you can sip on while you browse artwork and buy a new pair of kicks. Or pull up to the shellacked bar where you can suck the marrow from deep-fried chicken wings over a gin and juice.

Sycamore & Oak houses locally owned Black businesses like Dionne's. photo credit: Nina Palazzolo

The menu here is simple. There are the aforementioned wings, plus salmon sliders and crab fries. That’s it. But like an album you can listen to from start to finish, whether you get everything or skip around, you’re winning. 

The crab fries are covered with more meat than any other version we’ve seen—fresh lump crab meat, too, not the imitation mess you find in a lot of places. And the crispy wingettes taste more like Sunday dinner chicken that should be served with candied yams and collard greens than your standard restaurant wings. 

photo credit: Nina Palazzolo

People here are posted up at one of the many tables, playing giant chess with friends, beatin’ their feet to go-go bands like Rare Essence, and belting out karaoke. It’s a family-friendly spot where yelling and screaming is OK (you’re outside, fam) and there’s a play area in the back where kids can run around freely.

The heart has a simple, but important job: Keep the blood moving. And Dionne’s Good Food—as it turns out piles of crab fries anytime Sycamore & Oak is open (and sometimes after if there’s a Mystics’ game)—does just that.  

Food Rundown

photo credit: Nina Palazzolo

Crab Fries

We’ve never seen crab fries with so much crab. In addition to that crab, the crispy fries are topped with a sweet sauce. You can get them on their own or as a side with your sliders or wings—but whatever you do, just get them.

Salmon Sliders

These mini sandwiches are deep fried and slathered in the same remoulade-style sauce as the crab fries. They’re cooked hard, so the salmon is well-done, but still flaky.

Wings

These aren’t your typical restaurant wings. These taste like family reunion fried chicken. They’re juicy, crispy, and it’s clear that both the flour and the chicken were seasoned.