Not to be confused with Free State Distillery in Upper Marlboro (though many also call it Arthur…read moreWheeler Spirits haha), this place is located just off of the main street in chinatown, and it's surprisingly lowkey. It's a basement bar with a bit of a dive vibe, but it's hard to ignore the nautical, blue crab theme throughout. Turns out that one of the owners is a Marylander, which is cool to see reflected in the decor in a place in dc, even though it is next door. They have a happy hour and they have a great variety of drinks in general. It's bring-your-own-food (BYOF) and there are a bunch of delicious looking Asian spots nearby, including upstairs. It didn't start getting crowded until closer to 10, which, as I said, is surprising for this part of town to me. Everywhere in Chinatown is not going to be packed and busy, and this place is here to remind you of that. Stop by if you're looking for a more chill vibe. Staff are pretty cool.

Free State is perfect for a chill bar in the Downtown area. It's exactly the kind of place you want…read moreto share a few drinks and be able to hear the person in front of you. I had a delicious orange crush drink and my friend had a sangria. The bartenders are extremely chill and nice; they only come up when you need it which is nice for good conversation. I'll easily be back when I want to catch up with friends without a speaker blaring in our ears. Great place to introduce to more people!

Amazing service and incredible drinks! Graham is the best bartender in the city…read more Also the creativity is unmatched! Order what you want from the menu but they are also willing to make you specialized drinks to your liking.

Love this place because it's such a casual spot to drink after dinner or if you're in the area. I…read morehad never been before to a place that allowed outside food and now I think more should!

Great local bar with large rotating craft beer selection. Highly recommend for any beer…read moreenthusiast. They have wine and cocktails as well. They are happy to recommend beer for your taste, and let you sample. It can be very busy and difficult to get a seat at the bar or get a table on a Friday or Saturday evening. We ordered food, and were expecting elevated bar food. The tater tots were a huge disappointment- they were very large squares , bland, and not crispy. The wings were okay. The cheeseburgers were the best- from the restaurant downstairs- mallard. Huge burger, done perfectly medium.

Here's a review written as part of a visit to both Churchkey and Birch & Barley (the downstairs…read morerestaurant -- together they form the "2 Enjoy Everything" concept by Neighborhood Restaurant Group): A DC Gem That Delivers on Every Level If you haven't made it to Churchkey on 14th Street yet, move it to the top of your list. I visited as part of the full experience -- dinner downstairs at Birch & Barley, then up to Churchkey for drinks -- and honestly, it's one of the best evenings I've had in DC. Churchkey itself is everything a great bar should be. The beer selection is absolutely unreal -- hundreds of carefully curated labels spanning every style, region, and flavor profile you can imagine. What sets it apart is that the staff actually knows the menu. Our server walked us through a few options based on what we liked and landed us on perfect picks both times. That kind of genuine expertise is rare. The tavern pizzas from the wood-fired oven were a wonderful surprise -- thin, crispy, and the perfect companion to a cold draft. The smash burger also deserves a mention: simple, well-executed, and hits the spot. The vibe is warm and lively without being overwhelming. Great for a date, a group, or even just sitting at the bar solo with a good beer and good conversation with the bartender. This place has earned its reputation as one of the best beer bars on the East Coast -- and then some. Highly recommend making a full night of it with both floors. You won't regret it. Feel free to adjust the tone or add any personal details from your actual visit!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

At my recommendation, my son and his girlfriend went here after a day of touring in D.C…read more. Apparently, they ordered the blue crab, mac & cheese, and chicken wings. Both reported, it was an outstanding choice. They enjoy the time before they took the Metro back home. There are no complaints about the service, and they didn't really mention what the place looks like. But it could not have been too bad. They did say, it was clean and nice in the 22-year-olds that's a compliment. They also said it was convenient to get to the metro from there.

I won't be back unfortunately and you should probably keep walking and find something else. Didn't…read morerealize what kind of restaurant this was until I was told to order off an app and then my food would be ran out to me...and that's all you get for customer service. Runners just do that. Run around the restaurant throwing food down on tables and run back to the kitchen. Never checking on anyone to see if they need anything and how the food is. I ordered the SW Salad ($16.50) with a steak add on ($9.00) at medium temp. I also ordered a cup of Clam Chowder ($5.95) as an appetizer. Chowder came out pretty much right on top of my salad, but no big deal. Chowder was decent taste, but only found one clam. Ok whatever. Salad came out looking like a side salad on a large plate with five slices of rare, tough steak. It was so rare, that it was extremely hard to cut through, but again, who was I going to talk to about it. No wait staff would even look my way. I couldn't even get a refill on my water and there is no place in the app to order a glass of water...so that's that. Unfortunately it was just an extremely bad experience for $40. I'll be looking for dinner somewhere else tomorrow night.

While I didn't try the main storefront -- which looked family friendly -- I did have a fab…read moreexperience at the hidden bar. Drinks: fantastic. You tell them what flavors you like; they mix something up for you. No menu, no frills, excellent quality. Service: Good. There were two mixologists who also did the serving and hosting, and it wasn't too busy, so we got plenty of attention. Ambiance: Fabulous. A true speakeasy experience and a luxe decadent interior. Fabulously intimate space. No pictures. And I respect it. Happy hunting, and cheers!

Came for a live music session over the weekend. First time in the place and it's so cute! Only…read morereally saw the second level in its fullness but the vibes were great. Servers were visible and around, but moving. I was able to grab one to order the lamb pops and the fries, both of which were amazing and so flavorful! I had a strawberry spritz to drink (I think, as it was ordered for me) and it was pretty good. Overall would come back again for an event or nice date night stop!

Awesome spot to spend an afternoon outside! Service is always great and beer is affordable pricedread more

got beer spilled on me, very upset, not worth it.- Ethan Ravlin…read morep.s Beer doesn't grow on trees stop calling it a garden and it tastes like they sprinkled dirt in the beer

More of a 3.5, rounding up because I would have probably liked it a lot more if I ate meat…read more Which probably makes it clear that if you are vegetarian this is not the friendliest menu. The beer selection is incredible, vibes are solid - it is pretty old world and upscale for a beer joint - but if you are looking for a full meal vegetarians should go elsewhere. They *have* vegetarian options but it's one of those things where they do the bare minimum because they have to and your choices are like...the one thing. Which leads me to the one vegetarian entree, the risotto. It was fine. Not mindblowing. Small portion for the price - small portions all around, frankly. See my pic. Our server, who was impressively attentive/efficient given that he was the only person making the rounds to all of the tables in the upstairs room, which were packed because of the World Cup, recommended getting.the brussels sprouts small plate without bacon, so I did. I did not like it. It came with pomegranate seeds and a sauce that were sweet but then had parmesan and savory flavors that did not go. I suspect the salty, fatty bacon was important to balancing out these flavors. People I was with got house pickles, fries and meatballs which all appeared solid. The portions for the fries and meatballs were pretty teeny for the price IMO. Like I said, beer selection is out of this world. Not mad at the prices or portions there, especially given that it's largely imported. Is this personally a place I would make a go to? No. Only if I am taking out a friend who is super into beer tasting. But if I were super into French and Belgian beer and or really liked that kind of food (eg mussels and very meaty Northern European dishes) ? Maybe. So my personal recommendation is to come, have beer, enjoy the ambiance, and treat food as an afterthought for if you need something to eat.

The Sovereign is alright. I went here for a work thing. It was PACKED on a wednesday night which is…read moreimpressive. Not sure what to make of DC crowds but there were a lot of people. I had a hard time making an order. I really don't like standing around at a bar aimlessly hoping for the bartender to call on me. That was the situation I was in here. Once I got the bartenders attention it was easy and quick to get my drink, it just took a while and its annoying when they go to other people who got there after you first. The bar is full of seating too, so you have to stand behind people who are already sat and drinking to try to flag them down which feels awkward. The drinks were good though and the atmosphere was decent.

Went during HH on week days but it also has an all day HH on Mondays!! Very good and fall glass of…read morebeer, fried pickles were actually so filling couldn't even finish my sandwich which was amazing! Highly recommend Service: 5/5 Food: 5/5 Ambiance: 4.5/5

It was fine. Not really my vibe. And, it was really hot. Surprised they didn't have fans on the…read moreceilings. I had one of their beer cocktails. It was okay. Honestly, I might just be too old for the place. We didn't have any food. So no thoughts on that.

I recently visited Jackpot Bar and really enjoyed the overall vibe. The ambiance is super chill…read morewith a speakeasy feel--dim lighting, cozy atmosphere, and the kind of place you can actually relax and have a conversation without shouting. It feels tucked away in the best way, like a hidden gem. The service was solid--friendly, attentive without being overbearing. What stood out most was their beer selection. There's a great variety, so whether you're into something light or want to try something more unique, you've got options. Overall, it's a great spot if you're looking for a laid-back night with good drinks and a cool, low-key atmosphere. Definitely a place I'd come back to.

Friends and I were looking for a bar for a drink before an event at Capital One Arena. We found…read morethis Jackpot (pun intended). If you're not paying attention, you'll miss the door for this downstairs bar. With happy hour every day from 4-8pm, you can't really go wrong. There isn't food for purchase but you get a free basket of popcorn to munch on. The location is small, so it did get pretty packed / busy when we were there. Patience with the bartenders as they try to get everyone's drink orders. Super easy spot for a quick drink in general or before a show at CapOne.

This was such a fun night. Stumbled upon them having bingo on a Monday night, such a fun group of…read morepeople! The bartender, Rich, gave us a history lesson and we took his recommendations and enjoyed each place we visited. We loved that they had board games, free popcorn, you can bring outside food and then the best part: no talking about the outside world!

I've been hearing about this place for years but never actually stopped by. They're currently on my…read morelist of weekend happy hour spots, having it all day on Sundays. I made a last minute change to meet a friend here, but much to my surprise... they had a PS5 and Tekken booted up at the bar. I am by zero means a Tekken player. Yes, I'm a huge gamer, but I'm terrible at Tekken. But the mere concept of being able to watch and play it at a bar is incredible. That aside, they got a bunch of board games like Trouble, Uno, Trivial Pursuit... the classics man! Oh right, the bar part. Their drinks are great. The staff are great. The specials are great. And they give you popcorn! And they have a whole little table with all the popcorn fixings if you don't want to eat it plain. You can literally bring in food from anywhere on top of that. I'm not sure if it's a Sunday thing, but the place really doesn't get too busy. It's quite a vibe. If you've never been and you're in the Logan Circle area, go.