The Room
Roberto Santibañez opened Mi Vida on the Wharf in 2018 — the Mexico-City-trained chef's DC concept dedicated to a serious modern-Mexican programme at full waterfront-restaurant scale. The two-floor dining room runs a casual cantina downstairs and a more-formal dining room upstairs.
The Washington Post has held Mi Vida on its top-Wharf rankings every year of operation.
The Food
The masa programme runs in-house. The seasonal-rotating Mexican preparations, the cochinita pibil, the seasonal-mole programme handle the menu's spine.
Tequila and mezcal programme runs deep. Cocktails are mezcal-led.
Best Occasion Fit
First Date: The upstairs dining room at Mi Vida is one of the Wharf's most-reliable first-date seats.
Team Dinner: The downstairs cantina handles tables of ten to twelve.
Birthday: Birthdays at Mi Vida are warm, Mexican-led, Wharf-waterfront affairs the room handles with seven years of practice.