Cocktails, wine bars and dives: drinking in Washington DC for grown-ups.
Cocktail bars, wine bars, dive bars and gastropubs: drinking in Washington DC for grown-ups.
Columbia Room in Washington DC is Derek Brown's Shaw Blagden Alley cocktail destination since 2010, James Beard Outstanding Bar Program winner with a tasting-menu Spirits Library room.
Signature drink: Tasting Room cocktail flight
Food: Cocktail snacks and small plates
Tip: The Tasting Room flight requires a reservation; the Spirits Library walk-up room runs the menu without booking pressure.
Service Bar in Washington DC is Glendon and Chad Hartung's U Street cocktail bar since 2016, the city's busiest neighbourhood cocktail room with a James Beard semifinalist program.
Signature drink: Frozen Painkiller
Food: Fried chicken and bar food
Tip: Cash and card both accepted; the frozen Painkiller and fried chicken combo is the bar's calling-card late-night order.
Hawthorne in Washington DC is the 14th Street four-floor cocktail bar and rooftop in Logan Circle from the El Centro group, with a James Beard-nominated bar program and a wraparound roof.
Signature drink: Old Fashioned with house bourbon
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: The roof opens from April to October; the basement Speakeasy below the ground floor takes the same menu year-round.
The Passenger in Washington DC is the Brown brothers' Shaw 7th Street cocktail bar, a beat-up wood-and-tile dive with a strict bartender's-choice menu and the city's loudest karaoke nights.
Signature drink: Bartender's choice
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Walk in and tell the bartender three things you like; the menu is the bartender's read of the room. Cash and card.
Off the Record in Washington DC is the Hay-Adams Hotel basement bar across Lafayette Square from the White House, with political-caricature coasters and the city's most-photographed political bar.
Signature drink: Political-caricature cocktail
Food: Hotel bar snacks
Tip: Steal the caricature coasters; the bartenders expect it. The bar takes hotel-guest seating overflow first.
Round Robin Bar in Washington DC is the Willard InterContinental Hotel's circular Pennsylvania Avenue bar, the bar where Henry Clay introduced the mint julep to DC in the 1850s.
Signature drink: Mint julep (the bar's original)
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Order the original mint julep; the bartender will recite the Clay-1850 introduction story while building it.
Tune Inn in Washington DC is the Capitol Hill Pennsylvania Avenue dive bar since 1947, a four-generation family-owned room with a deer-head wall, the city's longest-running staffer bar.
Signature drink: Bud Light and a shot
Food: Diner-grade American food
Tip: Cash makes the night faster; the diner kitchen runs the same menu past midnight and is the Hill's late-night staple.
Denson Liquor Bar in Washington DC is the F Street Penn Quarter cocktail bar from the EatWell group, a narrow speakeasy-style room with a James Beard-nominated bar program after dark.
Signature drink: Variety of New York-style cocktails
Food: Bar snacks and burgers
Tip: Walk in before 19:00 for a counter seat; the bar fills with theatre-goers from the Shakespeare Theatre across the street.
The Green Zone in Washington DC is Chris Hassaan Francke's Adams Morgan 18th Street Middle Eastern cocktail bar, with arak-based drinks and a Lebanese-Iraqi-American food menu.
Signature drink: Arak-based Middle Eastern cocktails
Food: Middle Eastern small plates
Tip: The Bedouin Punch sharing bowl for two is the bar's editorial signature; sit at the bar for the build show.
Hank's Cocktail Bar in Washington DC is the Dupont Circle Q Street upstairs cocktail room above Hank's Oyster Bar, with a tight classic-cocktail list and an oyster bar from the kitchen below.
Signature drink: Hank's classic Manhattan
Food: Oyster bar from the Hank's group
Tip: The upstairs room takes walk-ins; the downstairs Hank's needs a reservation for the oyster bar.
Right Proper Brewing Brewpub in Washington DC is the Shaw T Street brewpub from Leah and Thor Cheston since 2013, the original DC craft brewery with a 10-tap counter and a kitchen behind it.
Signature drink: Raised By Wolves saison
Food: American gastropub
Tip: Raised By Wolves is the flagship saison and the brewpub's editorial pour; take it with the steamed mussels.
Marvel Room in Washington DC is the 14th Street upstairs cocktail bar above the Black Whiskey, a vinyl-leaning small room with a heavy tropical-cocktail program and live jazz on Tuesdays.
Signature drink: Marvel Mule
Food: Snacks
Tip: Tuesday night jazz from 21:00 is the room's calling-card event; arrive at 20:30 for a seat.
Lulu's Wine Garden in Washington DC is the Shaw 11th Street outdoor wine garden from chef Hamilton Johnson, a covered patio bar with frose carafes and a wood-fired pizza counter.
Signature drink: Frose by the carafe
Food: Snacks and pizzas
Tip: Open April to October only; the patio fills by 19:00 on Saturday. The roses-by-the-glass list is the wine value.
Wunder Garten in Washington DC is the NoMa First Street beer garden from a German-American owner, an outdoor lot bar with 14 German beers on draft and rotating food trucks parked alongside.
Signature drink: German-style beer steins
Food: Pretzels and bratwurst from a food truck
Tip: Open year-round but heated covered seating runs from November to March; the patio fills for Sunday-football and Oktoberfest.
All Souls Bar in Washington DC is the Shaw T Street cocktail bar from Adam Bernbach and Dean Cottrill since 2014, a 22-seat room with a tight classic cocktail menu and a whiskey-deep shelf.
Signature drink: Whiskey neat from the bar's deep American shelf
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: The bartender's choice is a $14 pour; describe what you like and let the room build. Cash and card both accepted.
Peak food season in Washington DC is year-round.
Local dining hours: lunch around 12:30, dinner from 19:30.
service is typically included; small extra is welcome but not expected.
Ask the next local you meet what they would order. Washington DC rewards trust.