Tabard Inn (1922)
1739 N Street Northwest Washington, DC 20036
(202) 331-8528
The Tabard Inn is a beautiful old inn, restaurant and bar. It has stood the test of time on a stately old street right off of the hustle and bustle of the traffic on Connecticut Avenue and Dupont Circle. The sitting room, leading into the bar and dining area has an old world, cozy, dark feel, with old pictures, furniture and a large fireplace. It is the perfect dark and cool room to beat the summer heat or to escape the cold winter by the fireplace. The Inn takes you back to the days when Dupont Circle was the elegant home of debutantes and robber barons; especially the sitting room, which really retains the feel of that older time. The dining and bar area is bright and sunny. It is a more modern feeling room, and leads into an outdoor patio area with more space for tables and dining. There is a nice small bar as you first enter the dining area. It is a good spot to grab a drink or maybe a bite to eat, perched apart from the more busy inn and restaurant, which was at full capacity with the lunch crowd and the tourists staying at the Inn.
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Martin’s Tavern (1933)
1264 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
(202) 333-7370
Martin’s Tavern's history stretches back before Georgetown became the fashionable home of the powerful and well healed. Of course Georgetown is the oldest part of the city, and was the kernel from which everything else in DC was built; from Piscataway village to early tobacco port to sleepy southern town, to its current place at the heart of what is the hustling, bustling, sprawling metropolis of Washington DC. Martin’s Tavern brings you hints of that old world, with pictures of horses and fox hunts that went on in the hills and woods around Washington in the old days. The place is really more restaurant than bar, with a menu that offers 20 and 30 dollar meals. Martin’s Tavern has an air of sophistication, and might be a good place to bring a date. Built into the bar, are the original taps. It was packed on the early Saturday afternoon that I went there. The acoustics of the old place absorbed all of the sound of the packed room, so that I could hear the person next to me without any trouble.
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Tune Inn (1947)
331 Pennsylvania Avenue Southeast Washington, DC 20003
(202) 543-2725
The Tune Inn is ancient by DC bar standards. Its history stretches back to the 1940’s. It is in its third generation of family ownership and operation, and sits just a few blocks from the US Capitol on Pennsylvania Avenue.
The bar is one room, with a bar up front and booth’s running back into the rest of the room. It has the comfortable and welcoming feel of a neighborhood bar. There are deer heads and antlers mounted on the walls and some references to the original owner’s West Virginia roots.
It is a nice place to get a casual lunch or dinner and then maybe come back at night have some drinks, take the edge off and get a little loose. This place should feel like home to anyone. It’s the sort of place that you might find anyone from the old timer, who’s been coming in for decades, or the young urban hipster, possibly a Capitol Hill staffer, a tourist or maybe even a Senator or Congressman trying to find some respite from the halls of power just a few blocks away. I hope there is a Fourth generation, waiting in the wings, to continue this classic DC institution.
The bar is one room, with a bar up front and booth’s running back into the rest of the room. It has the comfortable and welcoming feel of a neighborhood bar. There are deer heads and antlers mounted on the walls and some references to the original owner’s West Virginia roots.
It is a nice place to get a casual lunch or dinner and then maybe come back at night have some drinks, take the edge off and get a little loose. This place should feel like home to anyone. It’s the sort of place that you might find anyone from the old timer, who’s been coming in for decades, or the young urban hipster, possibly a Capitol Hill staffer, a tourist or maybe even a Senator or Congressman trying to find some respite from the halls of power just a few blocks away. I hope there is a Fourth generation, waiting in the wings, to continue this classic DC institution.
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The Tombs (1962)
1226 36th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007
Phone (202) 337-6668
The Tomb’s is a bar tucked in the basement of a row house right next to Georgetown University. The Tombs appears to serve as the official bar of the University. It is sitting right next to the campus, and seems to be the place to go for a drink or food after your classes are done. The staff was wearing bow ties, which I imagine is a touch held over from the old days when the world was a bit more formal. It is a small place that serves as both a bar and a restaurant. There is a lot of rowing memorabilia around the place. The crowd at the bar in the afternoon on a Saturday appeared to be a mix of students, a professor, as well as a few visiting parents, and what looked to be a middle aged alum with his wife and kids. It has been well maintained over the years, and has a nice wood bar and a fire place as well. It is a nice clean place to go even if you didn’t go to Georgetown University.
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Mr. Henry's (1966)
601 Pennsylvania avenue SE Washington, DC 20003
(202) 546-8412
Mr. Henry’s is a great neighborhood bar that has survived the changing decades on Capitol Hill. It has been serving up drinks on Pennsylvania Avenue since 1966. There is a front room with a bar, an upstairs with a bar and outdoor seating as well. Take your pick; the downstairs has a cozy feel, with its wood paneled walls and red and white checked table cloths. If you prefer watching the parade of people and cars outside, it could be a good choice on a pleasant spring or fall day. The place retains its classic look and feel, back to when the first owner had a number of Mr. Henry’s around town. This Capitol Hill Mr. Henry’s is the only one that still stands.
The upstairs room at Mr. Henry’s is where, Robert Flack got her start. She played multiple times a week at Mr. Henry’s before she made it big. She honed her craft back in the late 60’s and crowds packed in to hear her sing. There is a sort of worn in beauty to this place. Step inside, order a pint and take in this DC Classic.
The upstairs room at Mr. Henry’s is where, Robert Flack got her start. She played multiple times a week at Mr. Henry’s before she made it big. She honed her craft back in the late 60’s and crowds packed in to hear her sing. There is a sort of worn in beauty to this place. Step inside, order a pint and take in this DC Classic.
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The Guards (1966)
2915 M Street Northwest Washington, DC 20007
(202) 965-2350
The Guards is another great DC bar and restaurant. It is a perfect place to take a date, but also a comfortable and classy place to grab a drink with yourself or friends. The Guards is cozy and darkly lit. It was pretty crowded, when I was there on a Saturday afternoon, but not loud at all. I think the old wood interior helps to soak up the sound of the room. The music was playing loud enough to hear, but quiet enough so that you could hear the person next to you without straining at all. The place has a sort of old world charm to it, with the dark wood paneled bar and walls. There is a beautiful old fireplace with carved wood around it, as you head towards the back room. There is a downstairs bar as well.
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Chadwick’s Georgetown (1967)
3205 K Street NW Washington, DC 20007
(202) 333-2565
Chadwick’s is a restaurant and bar combo. It has a great comfortable worn in feel. There is a big bar downstairs and plenty of restaurant seating upstairs and downstairs. If I lived in the neighborhood, I might make this place my “Cheers”. The food is good; Chadwicks has really well done classics, from burgers, to sandwiches, to steaks, to ribs, to soups and salads. Chadwicks is what TGI Fridays wishes it was. It’s the sort of place that can be many things to many people; it’s a great place to get lunch with the family or drink the night away with friends. A true DC classic.
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Third Edition (1969)
1218 Wisconsin Avenue Northwest Washington, DC 20007
(202) 333-3700
Third Edition is another Georgetown classic that has been around since 1969. You wouldn’t know it from the interior, which has been redone and has more of a modern feel. The ceiling is newly done with some sort of a modern wood finish with mirrors and there is a modern look to the walls as well. The old wood paneled bar hints at the earlier days of the bar. It is one large room and fairly loud for not being too crowded on a Saturday afternoon. The bar is still standing, with its new look, to service the parched and hungry of Georgetown. If you use your imagination you can picture the place packed with young revelers, back in the 70’s and 80’s, when Georgetown was the heart of the city’s nightlife. If you want to see what the bar used to look like, just watch the movie St. Elmo’s Fire; apparently Third Edition was the main bar from the movie.
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Mr. Smith’s (1971)
3104 M Street Northwest Washington, DC 20007
(202) 333-3104
This bar is a true Georgetown classic. The dimly lit wood interior of the front room is a perfect place to escape the rush of M Street. This place is a must visit for any self respecting bar fly. After my many years of taking in DC bars, somehow I have missed this classic. The place definitely gives you a feeling of years gone by. There is a piano that is in the front bar. Apparently there are a couple of piano players that come in at various times throughout the week and play. The bar has a touch of class without being pretentious. It has beautifully carved wood work as well as Tiffany lamp shades in the front room. There is a back, open air room that has a bar that opens up at night time. The place seems to attract a lot of people to their Saturday morning brunch, so I’m guessing the food might be pretty good. I need to come back to this place when the piano man comes to play.
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The Dubliner (1974)
4 F Street Washington, DC 20001
(202) 737-3773
The Dubliner, along with the Irish Times, are the two oldest Irish bars in the city. This venerable old establishment takes you to a different place when you walk in the door. It takes you to a cozy, friendly Irish pub, where you might find an Irish musician singing and playing old melodies on his guitar; songs that echo back to Swampdoodle, the old Irish neighborhood that developed in the second half of the 19th Century, and used to stand just to the North of where the Dubliner stands today. Swampdoodle hasn’t existed for over a hundred years, ever since Union Station was built in 1907, but between, Gonzaga High School, The Irish Times and the Dubliner, the ghosts of Swampdoodle still have a home.
The Dubliner has a bar in the front room and the back room, as well as an outdoor seating area. It is as much restaurant as it is a bar. It is a good place for lunch, dinner or drinking the night away. It is a hidden emerald that should not be missed.
The Dubliner has a bar in the front room and the back room, as well as an outdoor seating area. It is as much restaurant as it is a bar. It is a good place for lunch, dinner or drinking the night away. It is a hidden emerald that should not be missed.
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Kelly's Irish Times (1979)
14 F Street Northwest Washington, DC 20001
(202) 543-5433
Had a bad day at work? Is life getting you down? You might want to head to the Irish Times for a pint of Guinness or a Jamison on the rocks, or even better, both. Actually it is a good place to go if you are having a good day or even a mediocre day. This is an old Irish bar with a comfortable lived in feel. There is a long bar and a bunch of Booths as well. There are many police badges behind the bar and other memorabilia on the walls, with an Irish theme. It’s a great all purpose bar, without any pretense. Old, young and in between will feel comfortable bellying up to the bar and settling in for some drinks.
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My Brother’s Place (1980)
237 2nd Street Northwest Washington, DC 20001
(202) 347-1350
My Brother’s Place is a true hidden gem. I wouldn’t be surprised if you worked a couple blocks away and had never seen it. It’s tucked away on a side street surrounded by stark concrete government buildings. It sits in a small row of the old row houses that used to fill this part of town. The buildings are a reminder of what the old downtown used to look like before it was abandoned to economic blight and eventually filled in with soulless blocks of concrete and glass. It is a comfortable and casual place that makes you feel at home as soon as you walk in. It’s the kind of place that makes you want to pick out some songs on the internet juke box and settle in for a bunch of hours. The night I was at My Brother’s Place the music ranged from country to classic rock to modern pop dance music. Like any place that has been around for a few years it has the bumps and nicks that give it character and are a reminder of all the people that have passed through over the years that give a place a spirit and soul.
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Tunnicliffs (1982)
222 7th Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
(202) 544-5680
The original Tunnicliffs stood at the corner of 9th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. The old Tunnicliffs was a hotel and tavern that had been around since the days of the founding fathers. The new location, next to Eastern Market, on 7th Street, is relatively new but old enough to make the 30 year cut for this exclusive line up of DC bars. The bar has been nicely redone, giving it a new look and feel. It is both bar and restaurant, with a casual yet classy feel to it. The place has a nice outdoor seating area under an awning and appears to have a good wine selection as well.
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More to come...Post Pub (1955)
Millie & Al's (1962) Dan's Cafe (1965) Blue's Alley (1965) Fox & Hounds (1967) Hitching Post (1967) New Vegas Lounge (1968) Black Rooster (1970) Phase One (1970) Colonel Brooks Tavern (197?) The Player's Lounge (1973) The Bottom Line (1980) Stan's Restaurant (1980) Bullfeathers (1980) Stetson's (1980) Charlie's Bar & Grill (1981) Chief Ike's Mambo Room (1982) Chadwick's Friendship Heights (1982) As well as others under consideration. |