bars in dc
 

any fun bars in dc that my friend and i would like to go too? not looking for fancy clubs with huge prices. from green bay wisconsin. like nice bars with good people and beer on tap. will be staying at club quarters, wont have rental car. july8-10

mitch

Head north to Dupont Circle (5-6 blocks or 1 Metro stop away), it's your best bet for bars. Three places come to mind: Big Hunt, Frontpage and Buffalo Billiards.

Big Hunt is fun, laid-back, and no pretense. Good place to hang out if you don't want the martini-swilling crowd. Frontpage and Buffalo Billiards are slightly more upscale as are the crowd. Still very laid-back and the crowds are great. Frontpage has an outdoor area and Buffalo Billiards is a huge underground (doesn't feel like it) space. All three are within 1 or 2 blocks from each other. All three are cheap and cheerful. If you're after a younger crowd, head to McFadden's (24th/Penn) near GWU. Super-popular Irish bar overflowing with college kids and a preppy crowd.

There's also Cap City Brewery 7 blocks to the east/1 Metro stop away. Great brew pub, bar food and crowd. It's a popular chain. Farther east are the fun places around MCI Center. On game nights, this is the place to be.

Note: Metro's last train is at 3am on weekends, after last call. Cabs are available for the truly inebriated ;)

Adams Morgan

grbflyer, blueDC had some good suggestions. I would also add, the Bottom Line. It is 1/2 a block from your hotel on I (Eye) Street. It is underground but has seating on the sidewalk. They serve food pretty late there. A closer and also popular Irish bar is Mackeys on L street between 18th and 19th. The Big Hunt (don't say that too fast :) ) noted above, has a small roof deck. No view, but atleast you are outside. A few other places that are pretty much right next to each other (and on the way to Frontpage/Buffalo Billiards) are Rumors, Sign of the Whale, Mad Hatter and Porters. All those are right around the intersection of 19th and M.

There's the Brickskellar, a genuinely unpretentious place in the Dupont Circle area which has hundreds beers available: http://www.thebrickskeller.com/ . It is a straight bar in a mostly gay district. Lucky Bar, which is near the Big Hunt, is also casual.

In Georgetown we find ourselves more often than we'd like on the top level at Third Edition and Garrett's. They are probably preppier/cheesier than most places in Green Bay, but not necessarily so for DC. Old Glory is good for cheap blues and decent barbecue.

In the Capitol Hill area on the Senate side, Irish Times is always fun. Capitol Lounge on the House side is chill and laid back for the neighborhood and we go for wing night sometimes (10 cents a wing). Hawk & Dove is OK

Check out www.ontaponline.com for specials.

You'd be lucky if they have one third of their beers in stock though. 4 out of 5 times I ordered something there I had to go to choice two or three. Same thing with everyone else I know who goes there.

Not saying that it doesn't happen, but we had a FT event there in the last year and I don't recall anyone having that problem. I've been there a dozen or so times and can't remember them not having what I wanted, certainly not 4 out of 5 times.

FYI...They also have a tabletop Ms.Pacman at the Brickskeller :)

If you want cheap and crowded, this is the area. Reef has a good rooftop bar, Madam's Organ gets packed and loud, Kokopooli's is a basement bar, dark and smelly, but not usually too crowded (haven't been there in a couple of months). Basically, you can just walk along 18th Street there and wander in any place. A real dive is Dan's. They sell liquor by the small bottle (not airplane bottles, more like flask size). You buy the bottle, get a couple of mixers, and a bucket of ice. Needless to say, you can get pretty banged up in there.
Millie and Al's is a pretty cheap place, as well. A much younger crowd, jello shots, great fun atmosphere, loud and crowded.

For sheer concentration of bars, Adam's Morgan is the right area.

Don't forget about the bars in Georgetown. (Tell the Cabbie Wisconsin and M, which drops you in the heart of Georgetown). J Pauls (hang out), The tombs (young), Third Addition (dancy and young) etc.

I little farther afoot is the Grog and Tankard in glover park with good live music

just got back
 

thanks much to everyone. just got back from dc and used some of your advice. we went to the big hunt and it was good. higher prices than i am used too. does it really cost 6.50 for a captain and coke everywhere in dc? and such a little glass. wow! and 3.75 for a bottle of miller lite. yikes! it was a good time. i also went to harrys cant really remember where it was i think 19th. it was by barnes and noble. i was there two years ago and went there it was fun to go back. they have a great CHEAP menu.

mitch

Welcime to the big city