We owe the staff of River Inn our heartfelt thanks
We came here with extended family for the funeral and burial of our father at Arlington National Cemetery. The staff at the River Inn were exceptionally kind and attentive to our requests and needs. Special thanks to sales manager Monique, who arranged for our group's accommodations, and also arranged the funeral reception at the hotel. The food at the reception, from the hotel's Dish restaurant, was attractively presented, offered an excellent variety, and was delicious.The front desk staff were all uniformly helpful, as were the bell captains. Housekeeping staff, food and beverage staff, and engineering staff likewise were all pleasant, and desirous of being helpful. 
An example of helpfulness: The room my mother was originally assigned had a heavy, unpleasant odor from a previous smoking occupant. The front desk clerk immediately changed her room assignment, came up with us to assist in moving her to the new room, and was very concerned that a guest had been smoking, as the River Inn is a non-smoking hotel, and will fine anyone who is caught smoking. He later inquired of us to ensure that she was happy with her new room.
The River Inn has an intimate, neighborhood atmosphere. The location can't be beat, in my estimation. The Foggy Bottom area of D.C. is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city, and it was delightful to look out our windows and view the old townhomes on the street, and the mews behind the hotel. The sidewalks are all brick, and somewhat uneven, so be careful when walking! The hotel is within easy walking distance of grocery and convenience stores, the Foggy Bottom metro stop, decent restaurants, and easy access to the tourist destinations of D.C. You're in the middle of the city, yet it's relatively quiet. The restaurant is cozy and can get busy. My husband and the male members of our family group enjoyed the bar!
We used the small business center to do our online air travel check-in, and to print our boarding passes. WiFi is free, but the internet connection is not always the best, at least in our experience.
After consideration, I give the hotel four stars instead of five. We had some lights that didn't function properly in our room, nor did our television work. We weren't in our rooms enough for that to matter, however. Our Potomac suite had nice big windows that let in lots of light, and good black-out curtains for sleeping at night. The climate control systems were wonky in some of our rooms, the saving grace being the windows which can be opened to let in fresh air, and are provided with screens, so one doesn't have to worry about bugs getting in, or children falling out. The hotel makes heating available in the cold weather months, and air conditioning available in the warm weather months, but guests do not have autonomous control over their individual room systems. 
Engineering staff did come to attend to our t.v., although not at our request. I think housekeeping might have reported the problem to them. I know if we had contacted the front desk and asked them to fix the inoperative lights in our room, they would have accommodated us. We just didn't make the effort to do so. The kitchen can best be described as functional, ideal for refrigeration, heating food, and making coffee (did appreciate the 4-cup coffee pot and coffee beans available to guests there). Valet parking is expensive, $34 per night plus tax. My brother and his family did not receive their wake-up call on the day of departure, although others in our group did receive theirs. Room service was prompt, and the food was decent, but not inexpensive. A local pizzza, sub, salad and gyro vendor called Manny and Olga's provides room delivery, if you want to order out. The food is pretty good, the service is prompt, and the prices are reasonable. You can get the order form from the front desk.
In closing, I'd like to reiterate how helpful, friendly, accomodating, and informative the hotel staff are. The front desk staff and bell captains helped us in many ways, from arranging airport transportation, to answering tourist questions, to handling laundry requests,to expressing their condolences for our loss.We are very grateful to all of them. They were all uniformly patient with our demands and questions. I don't know what aspect of management is responsible for their postivie demeanor, but kudos to the River Inn management for hiring good people.