WASHINGTON — Night after night in Washington, you can find lobbyists and deep-pocketed donors plowing through chafing-dish chow at political fund-raisers held at the city’s hot spots, like James Beard-awarded outposts and waterfront behemoths. Filings with the Federal Election Commission, in which federal candidates report campaign financial activity, show what a big business it is.

Here are the top 11 spots for raising money in the capital since President Trump moved into the White House. The rankings are based on the amount of money that presidential, congressional and political action committees spent on food, drink, staff and other fees.

Gourmands should note that there is not an overwhelming overlap between these spots and the “best of D.C.” dining lists. Because food is usually not the point.

Trump International Hotel

Spending: At least $2 million

It’s President Trump’s town, at least for the Republican Party. The Trump hotel is the most popular place in Washington for political fund-raisers, although unlike other spots that pride themselves on bipartisan service, only Republican committees and groups spend money here. The biggest spenders have been the Republican National Committee and America First Action, a Republican super PAC. Supporters of Representative Greg Pence, an Indiana Republican who is the vice president’s brother, spent more than $30,000 at the hotel raising money for his campaign. Attorney General William P. Barr has booked the hotel for a $30,000 holiday party in December.

Events are held in the ballroom, meeting rooms or BLT Prime by David Burke, the hotel’s steakhouse. The catering menu includes roasted bell pepper hummus and smoked salmon mousseline with fried capers and toast points. And the ubiquitous jumbo shrimp.

Four Seasons Hotel

Spending: At least $1.4 million

The hotel’s first fund-raiser was held 40 years ago, right after it opened, for Ronald Reagan, the former governor of California who was running for president. Today it’s a Georgetown spot frequented by financiers and boldface names of both parties. (On one Friday morning in 2017, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Ivanka Trump were both at Seasons, the hotel’s expensive power breakfast spot.)

Events are held at Seasons or at Bourbon Steak, where wasabi macarons stuffed with ahi tuna tartare are passed before a course of perhaps Colorado lamb rib eye. “People are used to going to fund-raisers with brown meats and brown sauces and we don’t do that,” said Anina Belle Giannini, a Four Seasons spokeswoman.

Charlie Palmer Steak

Spending: At least $1.3 million

Charlie Palmer, one of the closest high-end spots to the Capitol, has a roof deck that offers unobstructed views of the Capitol’s dome and the Washington Monument. The restaurant is popular with Senator Roger Wicker, Republican of Mississippi, who spent more than $60,000 at some dozen events there.

Acqua Al 2

Spending: At least $1.1 million

Acqua Al 2, the Capitol Hill outpost of a restaurant based in Florence, Italy, is a favorite of everyone from Ms. Pelosi to Representative Mike Rogers, an Alabama Republican who has spent $26,077 to hold fund-raisers there. The filetto al mirtillo — a filet mignon topped with a blueberry reduction sauce — is the restaurant’s signature dish.

Bistro Bis

Spending: At least $1 million

The French standard in the George Hotel never seems to wane. On any given weekday morning when Congress is in session, tables are filled with members and lobbyists scooping eggs, bacon and breakfast potatoes from a hot pan — a sort of Denny’s experience for the suited crowd. By 5 p.m., large glasses of wine have replaced the morning coffee.

The restaurant’s proximity to the Senate side of the Capitol has made it a draw for Senator Jon Tester, Democrat of Montana, who spent $29,000 on a fund-raiser there, and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York and a recent presidential candidate, whose team spent $26,000.

Joe’s Stone Crab

Spending: At least $1 million

The Washington outpost of the famous Miami Beach restaurant known for its stone crabs and key lime pie is a relatively new spot for political fund-raising — it opened in 2014 — but has quickly climbed the list. While members of both parties have events there, its formal feel, including servers in tuxedos, seems to give it an edge with Republicans. Representative Steve Scalise, Republican of Louisiana, spent about $67,000 at the outpost. Representative Mike Kelly, a Republican of Pennsylvania, spent nearly $36,000. The cocktail reception menu is high-roller comfort food: lump crab cakes, lobster tails, beef tenderloin sliders and Alaskan king crab.

Capital Grille

Spending: At least $730,000

Of all the Capitol Hill-adjacent fund-raising spots, Cap Grille, as it is known colloquially, best fits the bill for a Netflix show depicting life in Washington as the rest of the world imagines it. The service is solicitous and the food just as you would imagine — steaks, decadent lobster mac and cheese, spinach lavished with cream, shrimp cocktail the size of a Midwestern state. Representative John Shimkus, Republican of Illinois, spent $155,000 at the restaurant, and Representative Scott Tipton, Republican of Colorado, spent $21,000. Mr. Scalise likes this place, too: His spending since 2017 has been about $110,000.

Sonoma

Spending: At least $400,000

If you work on or live near Capitol Hill, chances are you’ve been to Sonoma. If you don’t, odds are equally likely you have never heard of it. Not as pricey as others on this list, it’s filled with congressional aides at lunch, and at night it serves charcuterie and pizzas for the fund-raising crowd. Since 2017, the biggest single fund-raising spending was by a group supporting Representative Mike Conaway, Republican of Texas, for about $15,000.

Carmine’s

Spending: At least $370,000

A New York institution, the 20,000-square-foot Capitol Hill restaurant has pretty much all the elements for a turnkey fund-raiser: proximity to the Capitol, nine private rooms and huge plates of lasagna. “During the height of the political season, it is not at all unusual for nine rooms to be in use,” said Jill Collins, a spokeswoman for Carmine’s.

Its closeness to the Capitol is critical to its success, as is its secret door in a back entrance down an alley, which allows for motorcades. Over the years, cabinet secretaries, the Obama daughters, Supreme Court justices and legislative luminaries have all slipped in. “In no place else but Washington would you consider a Secret Service door when you’re building out a restaurant,” Ms. Collins said.

Trattoria Alberto

Spending: At least $311,000

This 40-year-old unassuming Italian spot is a favorite of former Speaker John A. Boehner, who was here on Thursday night. Mr. Boehner’s loyalty helps bolster its popularity among other Republicans, including Representative Kevin McCarthy, Republican of California, the House minority leader. Favorites for fund-raisers are the veal Parmesan, chicken Marsala and chicken piccata.

Del Mar

Spending: At least $310,000

Chefs who try to stand out in Washington’s crowded restaurant scene with creative menus tend not to lean into fund-raisers, in which uniformity is a perceived virtue. But Fabio and Maria Trabocchi’s most recent enterprise, a Spanish coastal seafood restaurant at the District Wharf, a new mile-long development on the Potomac River, is in the top 11 list — and has paella with grilled wild calamari and squid ink on the menu.

Ms. Trabocchi said the couple built Del Mar, which has a series of private party rooms, with fund-raising at least partly in mind after seeing politicians turn up at their flagship restaurant, Fiola. Bipartisanship is key, she said. “Fabio and I are not American citizens,” she said, and “didn’t really even know who was Republican and Democrat.”

Apparently both like seafood: A group supporting Representative Adam Kinzinger, Republican of Illinois, spent $38,364 at Del Mar, and a group working for the re-election of Representative Richard Neal, Democrat of Massachusetts, spent $17,508. “You want to make everyone happy,” Ms. Trabocchi said.

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