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Washington D.C. Nightlife |
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:. Dance Clubs |
(Dupont Circle)
1343 Connecticut Ave., NW
202-530-8844
Cafe and bar by day, club by night, Café Citron is
a great place for dancing to Latin, house, and the ubiquitous
DC international dance sound. Three levels. Line forms at
prime time on Friday and Saturday nights. Generally a friendly
crowd - not quite as much attitude as you find in some places. But beware:
if you are not stylin, you might not get in the door.
1350 Okie Street NE
Washington DC 20002
202-636-9030
Nearest Metro: Red Line - New York Avenue/Galludet University
Thursdays are a terrific college night hangout for those
18 and older. Friday and Saturday, it’s 21 and over. Every
floor has a different atmosphere: Latin, Top 40s, house,
and international music. Tired of dancing? Some floors have
lounge areas.
(SW Waterfront)
800 Water Street, SW
Washington, DC 20024
202-484-6300
During the 2004 campaign trail, Bill Clinton held a fundraiser
at H2O. They have a buffet early in the night (fuel for dancing
and buffer for the booze). Several floors cater to different
taste buds: Latin, hip hop, trance and house music. It can
get a bit crowded and smoky but the music is worth it.
915 F Street, NW
Washington, DC
202-393-3555
Plush Fridays (Club mix and mainstream) and Beautiful Saturdays
(Party mix and Mainstream). With an 18 and up age requirement,
it’s fit for de-stressing from that killer exam or monster
paper. Very large main room usually spins club and party
mixes while downstairs is usually a bit more international.
Both rooms throw in some mainstream tunes. It can get very
smoky in there (more than the average club).
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:. Chillout Clubs |
1212 18th St. NW
Washington, DC 20036
202-466-3922
The door at Eighteenth Street Lounge is hard to spot for
the first time unless the guy charging a cover is there -
it's right between the hardware store and Sesto Senso restaurant.
This is a really great place to chill, especially when they
open the large side lounge which gives more space to sit.
Great electolounge music with bossa-nova and other international
flavors (the place used to be owned
by duo that is Thievery Corporation). Outdoor patio open
in good weather. Easy to strike up a conversation given the
laid back crowd. Great website too.
Chi-Cha Lounge
1624 U St. NW
Washington, DC 20037
202-234-8400
Latin-themed, very comfy lounge on U. Street. Good place
for strategizing with your friends on how to solve the world's
(or at least your own) problems.
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:. Bars and Hangout Joints |
7525 Old Georgetown Road
Bethesda, Maryland 20815
301-913-0026
Next to the Bethesda Metro, it is THE gathering place during
sporting events. With TVs everywhere (20 TVs and 3 big screens),
you’re bound to have a good view of your favorite sport.
Grab a beer and enjoy the non-smoky environment.
(Dupont Circle)
1330 19th St., NW
Washington, DC 20036
202-331-7665
Fine tune your pool skills or just kick back with other metropolitans.
It’s located right next to the Dupont Metro below the circle
and under Front Page. Spacious rooms so there’s no worry
on bumping into people with pool sticks. Cigars available.
(U Street)
1115 U Street NW
Washington, DC 20009
202-331-7665
Cue Bar Washington, DC is a stylish, contemporary basement-level
bar, with five pool tables, 4 high-definition large screen
projection televisions, darts and ping pong tables. There
is also a lounge with large overstuffed chairs for relaxing
with friends. This a cool new bar located on the hip U Street
corridor with a lounge, pool tables, ping-pong and darts.
1831 M Street NW
Washington, DC 20009
202-833-1495
Misplaced your Bon Jovi CD? Nostalgic for 80’s and 90’s bar
music? The bar is on the first floor and the dance floor
starts at the back of the first floor and continues into
the 2nd floor. Madhatter joins the Nightmare on M Street
Bar Crawl on Halloween and it’s one of the best nights to
check them out.
Rhinos - Sports Bar
(Georgetown)
3295 M Street, NW
Washington, DC
202-333-3150
Pull up a stool at the large bar on the 2nd floor; the bartenders
here are especially friendly. Then burn some of the alcohol
in the back of the first floor to the tune of top 40s. Better
yet, get there early and savor the food. Raw bar on Saturday
and Sunday (75 cent blue point oysters, 45 cent clams, 55
cent shrimp cocktail).
Rock Bottom Brewery
7900 Norfolk Ave.
Bethesda, MD 20814
301-652-1311
Metro: Bethesda (Red Line)
Thursday night happy hour is a Bethesda must! (look up web
site for info on $1 pints during happy hour) They tend to
attract young professionals with a specialty for NIHers since
the campus is right up the street. Live band on Thursday
nights. It has a large restaurant and bar areas on the first
floor with pool tables and couches on the second floor. If
it’s your first visit, ask them for a beer sampler. Beer
of choice? Brown Bear for the hint of caramel flavor.
Divino Lounge
7345 Wisconsin Ave
Bethesda, MD 20814
Salsa lessons Tuesday nights! Even salsa connoisseurs can
learn some new moves. Although not Latin Top 40, the Spanish
music is still very good. It caters to the young professionals
crowd. It has a mix of lounge at the entrance and the more
traditional restaurant format towards the back.
4714 Montgomery Lane
Bethesda, MD 20814
301-654-3801
A visitor had this to say: "While never eating the food there,
I am quite an expert on the establishment as a weekend night-time
destination. Friday nights are probably it's most busy night.
The crowd can probably be split into two main categories.
There young professionals who live in the area too weary
from a long work week to do a night out in DC. Then there
are the loser kids who still live with their well-to-do parents
who own houses in the area (and likely give them money to
go out). The crowd as a whole is very hit-or-miss. There
is also a third element of shady older businessmen
who ogle/leer/catcall the younger ladies..."
"...There is a large dance floor in the front which, despite a sometimes
odd song selection, always get a crowd. There is also a large partially
open-air area in the back which sidesteps Montgomery County's indoor smoking
policy. It allows people to smoke without really being outside - a big
plus in the cold weather. A note on the drink prices: EXPENSIVE. There
are never any drink specials and you will pay 4 bucks for most domestic
bottles. The bartenders can be shady with your bill has well. I've had
several friends complain that they were unfairly charged for items they
did not purchase and had to go through the ordeal of getting the items
removed from their tab. I could go on all day about this place and it looks
like i kinda have." -Peter Savelli
More nightspots (awaiting review): Barking Dog,
K. Street Lounge, Bottom Line, Eye Bar, Brickskeller, The
Tombs, Lucky Bar, Front Page, 1223, Dave and Busters, Blacks
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