Vittorio’s Gelato Bar

Closed as of January 2015. Huge renovations starting in the lower food court of Union Station, and this gelato stand was an early casualty.

I have been coming here since I was a kid, when I moved away from D. C I always made sure to stop here when I was visiting family. Their chicken salad sandwich the best ever and I HATE chicken salad. I don’t want them to ever go away, this place is like a childhood home to me.

Augustine [Mathis] was extremely kind to my 95 year old grandmother. He greeted my grandma as «young lady» and catered to us as if at a fancy restaurant. Bringing extra dressing, a plate and even brought us water.
$ 8 was very reasonable for her salad given its size and freshness. Best looking food in the food court

Friendly staff that goes above and beyond. Fresh delicious sandwiches that are large and filling. The salads are great too. A gem in the back of the food court. Check it out!

Best chicken salad ever. Period. Great bread and lots of garlic. Skip the chips and go for the pasta salad.

Get the sandwich and salad special and then have a cup of Gelato too!

Hard to beat the prices at this place. Huge sandwich on fresh bread baked daily with chips and your choice of salad or gelato for only $ 7.49! Great tasting chicken salad sandwich. Even better gelato. Smooth and creamy.

coconut gelato is quite good

OK so I technically didn’t eat here, but I feel like I had enough samples of the food to rate. As others have noted, they do some rather aggressive marketing with free samples to attract customers. And why wouldn’t they? They have prime real estate, catching the hungry masses just as they get off the elevator. «Suckered in» is a bit harsh to say though … you’re definitely not a sucker for choosing to get their chicken salad sandwich. The homemade focaccia bread is outstanding and the chicken salad mix was balanced perfectly. (Many chicken salads suffer from overmayonification, but Vittorio’s was on point.)
They serve the sandwich with either your choice of a side or gelato for $ 7. The wife and in-​laws were sold. Myself, being the food explorer, decided to wander the food court and settled on Bold Bite (and was glad I did.) When I returned to the family, I tried a bite of my wife’s pasta salad — it was good, but nothing special like the sandwich. Although looking at the mixed reviews on the gelato, getting the salad and going to Haagen Dazs for ice cream seems to be the better choice.
I encourage visitors to the Union Station Food Court to explore the other options … but there’s no need to feel «suckered» if you bite on their free sample bait. You could do a lot worse there.

Suckered in by the sample like everyone else. But seriously, this place inexplicably has the most amazingly flavorful chicken salad I’ve ever had in my LIFE. So delicious. And I’m not normally a big fan of chicken salad. Not mayo-​ey at all. The fresh bread it’s served on is also great.
Protip: put some of the chips on the sandwich. Crunch heaven.
Gelato was nothing to write home about.
Staff are friendly and engaging.
Vittorio’s: If you’re reading this, BUY A FOOD TRUCK and cater to the lunch crowd! I would SO buy these sandwiches more often than I should if you were near my office.

Stopped in here which waiting for a train in the DC station. After reading Unilocal reviews, all I kept reading about was the chicken sandwich so I decided to stop by this place and try it.
I honestly think that some of the reviews were a little over rated. The sandwich was delicious, but in my opinion isn’t wasn’t the life changing experience that I was expecting based on the reviews. Again, it was a delicious sandwich. Fresh bread and very well made chicken salad with fresh chicken breast. The portions are also very generous. The sandwich itself is enough for a whole meal, but it also comes with a side of potato chips.
What’s really awesome about sandwich is that it’s only $ 6.99. It’s a heck of a deal for a delicious sandwich in a place that you would least expect. I’ll definitely be back to this place whenever I’m back at the DC train station.

Like everybody says, the chicken-​salad sandwich is AMAZING! However, tonight I tossed my sandwich in the trash after seeing how horrifically unsanitary they can be when preparing food. Once I saw the girl with the obviously dyed blonde hair handle my food I decided that I will never return there. Go to the Corner Bakery on the first level; they also make great sandwiches and you are not likely to get sick.

You find yourself in Union Station, and the lines for Chipotle, Chop’t, and Potbelly are unbearable. You want food, and you want it to be delicious. Do you have an option that can save you? Absolutely. And I’m not talking about Bojangles.
Part of Union Station’s previous charm lay in the humble independent storefronts contained in the bottom floor food court. These businesses are disappearing in droves due to rising prices for floor space within Union Station. So if you want to enjoy these places, you better do it now while they still exist.
My favorite of the last standing independents? Vittorio’s Gelato Bar. And not for their gelato. The key to happiness at Vittorio’s can be found in their incredible chicken salad sandwich. I’ll admit I generally avoid those things like the plague, but Vittorio’s makes the best one I have ever had. It’s not even close. It is not some mayonnaise soaked disaster like what you are probably imagining in your head. Instead, the chicken itself has a pleasant firmness, the vegetable and mayo are not overpowering, and the homemade focaccia is the perfect golden crown to this amazing sandwich. How much does this glorious sandwich plus a salad cost you? Seven measly dollars plus tax.
I don’t hand out five stars like candy. But the plain fact is that this is going to be the best chicken salad sandwich you will ever eat, and you will be lending support to the businesses in Union Station that need it the most. If you like win/​win situations (and can tolerate mayonnaise), you should try out Vittorio’s.

Little chaotic experience, but overal good. Gelato was tasty. We had tiramisu and mint chip. The mint chip was missing chips… but was still very tasty. Nice alternative to ice cream.

well the dude (Vittorio?) suckered me in with his chicken salad sandwich sample (tasty) and «free salad» but I didn’t want that much mayo for lunch so I ordered the scottish. No, he said, not at that price. NO? okaaayyy so then I got his fromage sandwich. Terrible! The sandwich had 2 pieces of cheese, lettuce and tomato on a greasy panini bread. Disappointed in the extreme. Also, I was asked four times if I wanted salad or gelato. SALAD. SALAD. SALAD. Yes the SALAD.

By far my favorite place in the food court.
Friendly staff
Very good chicken salad sandwich (and I don’t even like those)
great gelato.
One of the best values in the food court.

When we’re at Union Station, my mouth almost immediately starts watering for this place. BUT, not for their gelato… for their crack, errrrr, chicken salad sandwiches! They give samples of this bad boy all the time and that’s how they hook you… and the crack they lace it with. I tend to not like chicken salad but this one has me salivating at the thought of it! The flatbread they use to encase the goodness must also be sprinkled with crack. It is homemade and ridiculously fresh… often hot out of the oven. You have to try it… now. The price is actually very reasonable as well for a sandwich and two sides.
BUT, one thing to skip… the gelato. I hate to almost say that, but it’s true… my kids couldn’t even finish theirs… even The Son who loves all things creamy, frozen, & sweet.
If you’re in Union Station… get. this. sandwich. NOW.

Best spot in the Union Station food court. Their chicken salad sandwich and salad is a super deal at $ 6.99. The chicken is tasty, and the portion is very generous. I always try to pick up that combo when I’m here at Union Station. And the guy behind the counter offers service with a smile.

Only had the gelato. a cup of chocolate mocha gelato. Really wasn’t very good. Not served very cold and it was chunky. Cream had clustered. Looked and tasted like bad homemade ice cream. I do give them credit for ample portions. The food looked wonderful, especially the chicken foccacia sandwich.

Wow — So my bf brought me home a chicken salad sandwich from this joint. He’s been raving and raving about great the Chicken Salad Sandwich is. But we’ve all had one and they are fine but rather unremarkable. But OH MY. I don’t know HOW they do it but between the chicken salad and the fantastic, crispy and chewy bread… it really is out of this world! I haven’t been truly blown away by food — but to have it done by something that is usually mediocre was a nice surprise! Anyways, ignore the ABP and CB upstairs. Head to the food court, get the SW… and a gelato. Who needs a salad? :)

Going down the escalator at Union Station and I get flagged down by a guy offering samples of a chicken salad sandwich. I usually find chicken salad boring, but this was warm, on flatbread, and was really good. I then found out that for $ 6.99 I could get a full sandwich with chips and two scoops of gelato? I was sold. I got the chicken salad sandwich with chocolate hazelnut gelato, and I don’t think it could of been any better. Not bad considering I was flagged down to try a sample.

I was walking around Union station food court, I work next to it and I never really eat there. I finally came across the last food spot and I was offered a sample of this chicken salad on foccacia and I died. it was so good they sold me with just one bite. For $ 6.99 I got a huge sandwich and salad.
I told my co workers about it and apparently they too were sold in an instant and they said it was really good…
You get either free gelato or free salad. :)

When I think gelato bar, I hardly imagine anything but. BUT… the chicken salad sandwich is delicious! I’m hardly a chicken salad eater, but they serve it on this airy flatbread which makes the sandwich tasty, not to mention they don’t drown the chicken salad in mayo. I highly recommend the chicken salad sandwich special (sandwich, side of chips, either side of salad OR scoop of gelato). You totally get the best of both worlds. I needed a caffeine pick me up so I got the coffee gelato flavor. The scoop was just the right size, smooth and creamy. They have other fruity flavors, but while I was there, I think they mixed up a couple of their labels.
I wax poetic about the chicken salad and I would’ve given them more stars, but the sub-​standard service knocks them back a couple. Ordering is a pain, you wait in line and sometimes you get held up because you’re waiting for fresh flatbread, or the person before you can’t decide between gelato or a salad. And if you decide on gelato, you have to pick up your sandwich, pay and then walk around to the gelato area to order up your flavor. For the amount of people stuck behind the counters, you’d think they would have a system down. I know the gelato man and the sandwich maker man have their duties down pat, but the cashier/​salad person is lacking in multi-​tasking skillz.
Should you venture here for lunch, you can find Vittorio’s Gelato Bar on the lower level of Union Station in the Food Court.