Carlyle in Shirlington: Upscale Dining with a Comfort Food Twist

Introduction

Carlyle in Shirlington in Arlington, VA is one of the best restaurants in Shirlington and one of my favorite restaurant destinations in northern Virginia! 

Its grand decor and delicious, bold-flavored American menu make it especially great for special occasions. In fact, my family regularly loves to go there to celebrate New Year’s Eve!

They decorate the art deco interior with gold balloons to make the restaurant extra fancy and festive for the holiday! 

Carlyle perfectly matches this glamorous decor with a menu that combines comfort food like Jambalaya, Shrimp and Grits, and Deviled Eggs, with fancy dishes like Filet Mignon and Lobster Bisque.

Carlyle Overview

Menu Overview

Carlyle features an eclectic American menu with a good choice of steak, seafood, chicken, and vegetarian dishes. 

My personal favorite is the Hanger Steak, which features a great combination of flavors: roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon, mushrooms with a dark sauce, spiced pecans, and mashed potatoes. The bold flavors go so well with each other to make each bite a treat!  

Other favorites include the Jambalaya Pasta, Crab Cake & Filet Mignon, and Salmon with a Pommery mustard sauce. Carlyle often has daily fish specials that are worth a try too. 

For an appetizer, I love getting the Warm Goat Cheese and Spiced Pecans salad, which includes dates, tomatoes, and garlic croutons. The warm goat cheese really makes this salad special. Like other dishes on the menu, it does a great job of combining bold flavors into a savory-sweet combination. 

The menu also features a large selection of other salads that range from simple staples like the Caesar Salad and Chopped Salad to more elaborate selections like the Mango Chicken and Spiced Pecans Salad, Crispy Two Noodle Shrimp Salad, and the Sesame Crusted Tuna Salad. These salads can easily be a meal by themselves.

Other great appetizers include hearty soups like the Lobster Bisque and the Crab & Corn Chowder. My family orders these all the time and raves about them. They’re especially delicious on cold winter nights.

If you’re more in the mood for sandwiches or burgers, Carlyle has plenty to choose from, like the Coastal Lobster Roll, the Cheddar Cheeseburger, and the Slow Roasted French Dip.

For dessert, one of my favorite picks is the Flourless Chocolate Waffle with vanilla ice cream. The waffle itself is chocolatey smooth but not too rich, and it’s drizzled in chocolate sauce. I also love the decadent Turtle Cheesecake with caramel and chocolate. 

Carlyle has a unique drink menu too. Some of their signature drinks are the Sweetwater Perfect Margarita, Ozzie’s Mojito, made with prosecco, and the Carlyle 75, which is a twist on the French 75 made with basil and cucumber. 

Insider Tip: Carlyle serves fresh bread made right next door at Best Buns Bread Co. Be sure to check them out for some tasty treats to take home! 

Ambiance and Atmosphere

Carlyle is a large restaurant that takes up two full stories. There is a large bar area, plus booths and table seating on both the first and second floors. 

The design is inspired by the bold Art Deco geometric shapes of the 1920s and 1930s. Think bold blacks, golds, silvers, and reds. There are big mirrors and vintage posters decorating the walls as well, which will make you feel as though you’ve traveled back to 1920s New York. 

There are lots of seating areas in the Carlyle, including a large bar on the ground floor, lots of booths, and table seating. 

There is a first floor and a second floor, with even more seating on the second floor than the first. There is also a grand staircase decorated with large mirrors that leads from the first to the second floor.  

The restaurant is located in the fun and busy Shirlington neighborhood of Arlington. Shirlington is filled with several condo buildings, plus a handful of restaurants and boutique shops.

Shirlington is also the home of Signature Theatre, which is one of my favorite theater companies in Northern Virginia. They specialize in musicals and always put on a fantastic show. 

Service Quality

Overall, especially more recently, the service at Carlyle has been great. On special occasions, like New Year’s Eve, they do get very busy, and even with a reservation, we have sometimes had to wait as much as 15 to 20 minutes. 

The service, though, has always been friendly, with food and drinks coming at a reasonable time without too much of a wait. 

In the past, we sometimes had an issue with food coming too quickly, like the main course coming before we were done with the appetizers, but luckily we haven’t had that issue more recently.  

Location and Accessibility

Carlyle has a convenient location right in the heart of the walkable shopping district of Shirlington in Arlington, VA. It’s just minutes off of I-395, which makes it very convenient. It’s also not far from Glebe Road and Route 7. 

There is a large parking garage a block away on South Quincy Street, and we’ve never had an issue finding parking there, even on busy nights. 

The restaurant does have some issues when it comes to accessibility though. There is a handicapped entrance, but we could not open it from the outside (someone from the inside had to open it for us). 

Also, if you’re seated on the second floor, there is an elevator, but it is inconveniently located in the back through the kitchen! 

Final Verdict

Overall, Carlyle is a great restaurant choice, particularly for special occasions like birthdays. We love going there as a New Year’s Eve treat. The decor is fancy and bold, and the food is great without being too expensive. It’s just the right mix to help us celebrate in style! 

Learn about even more of my favorite Northern Virginia restaurants!

Check out my favorite restaurants in Clarendon

Discover fabulous handmade pasta at Sfoglina in Rosslyn

Check out Rafagino, a delightful hidden gem in Burke, VA

Find the best restaurants in Clifton, VA

Check out the best restaurants in Culpeper, VA