As our nation’s capital, Washington D.C. is full of history – politicians and businesspeople mix with tourists all day long! But at night, there are some fun and creative places to get some good cocktails - It is a big city, after all!
Here are a few things we note if you’re planning a night out
in DC:
·
The district is very walkable and the Metro makes it even easier to get around.
·
Those city blocks look much smaller on a map,
and you’ll spend half your time waiting for lights at crosswalks.
·
You can grab a taxi or ride share pretty easily
if you don’t want to walk off your drinks.
Allegory is
labeled as a speakeasy inside the Eaton Hotel
library. But the secret is definitely out!
We tried one evening to get in and were put on a wait list just so we
could get a table to wait in the library to get in! We came back the next night before dinner and
managed to get in after a short wait (and a small welcome cocktail) in the
library. And was it worth the wait for sure! This is one of the most creative
spaces we’ve seen… and the menus take it to another level. We won’t spoil it
all for you… but let’s say the menu is a storybook featuring Ruby Bridges, the
courageous six-year-old who helped integrate New Orleans public schools, but
with illustrations set in Alice in Wonderland. We were having so much fun
reading the menu we almost forgot to order drinks! The menu changes often but
the two we ordered were creative and delicious. A #tipsypick for sure!
We should also note that the Eaton
rooftop bar Wild Days is
another great option if you want a cocktail while you are waiting to get on the
wait list for Allegory, or just as a night out. It’s more of a club atmosphere,
but the drinks are good and so is the view. We would consider staying at the
Eaton for these options!
Our other #tipsypick is Off the Record –
another hotel bar! This one is in the basement of the Hay Adams Hotel across the street from the
White House. It has a reputation for being a “tourist bar” but we found mostly
locals on a date night during our visit. The atmosphere is classy with lots of
red leather seating and a classic menu. Don’t miss the political caricature
drawings on both the walls and the coasters! The Maple Bacon Old Fashioned aka
“Smoking Mirrors” was quite tasty!
There are a few other speakeasies worth mentioning before we
move on to other spaces. The Gibson
has been around for nearly a decade, even before speakeasies were suddenly
everywhere. And they’ve lasted this long by doing it right – solid drinks
behind an unmarked black door near the bustling U Street Corridor.
We were able to make reservations, which was helpful! The Black Manhattan we
ordered off menu was spot on! It’s definitely a #tipsypick for any visit to
D.C.
And for a completely different experience, The Mirror is an underground bar with more
of a club vibe hidden behind… (wait for it) a mirror. The music was loud with
lots of heavy bass when we were there, but it was fun and the drinks were
better than we expected - the Old Fashioned and Sazerac in particular! Very
cool!
And finally (but not least) if you are anywhere near the
convention center or Chinatown, we highly recommend checking out Morris American Bar! It could easily be
called Morris “Neighborhood” bar because it’s definitely full of locals,
despite being around the corner from, and on the footprint of, the convention
center. The dΓ©cor is classic art deco and retro, with lots of cool spaces. The
drinks are tasty and the staff can definitely make you something you’ll enjoy.
A couple of honorable mentions – the coconut Old Fashioned at Farmers & Distillers and the Old Fashioned flights at Immigrant Food +… you can find those for yourself!
Our #tipsypicks for this trip (if we have to choose just 3):
- Off the Record
- Allegory
- The Gibson
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