I've been to Penn Social a few times. Came again to watch Super Bowl. Thought it would be a fun place to watch the game unobstructed AND being able to hear the game. It delivered on both. They generally have corn hole and other games available to play, but they added tables/chairs in that area that's generally open. Who can blame them. Paying customer makes it a business, right? Highlights: Food: - jalapeño sausage was the bomb - buffalo wings -nachos Food came promptly! For the amount of people it had to serve, the kitchen deserves a bonus. I was impressed and surprised. Opportunity: - more people available to clean tables. You were pretty much on your own for keeping tables clean. I got there early to secure a great table. Food was good. P.S. get some dominoes! read more

I like the concept of Penn Social -- board games, shuffleboard, cornhole, skeeball, shooting hoops, ping pong, a photobooth, etc. plus alcohol, all in one place. I came here for my BFF Justine S's birthday. They were charging $10 cover that night, but nicely waived it for the birthday girl. Dress code is casual. We didn't partake in any of the food, but the drinks were flowing throughout the night. The pitchers of beer were decently priced, the bartenders were friendly, and the venue itself is huge (2 floors). The downstairs area has a huge open space for dancing, with a few tables where you can just sit down and hang out. It gets pretty crowded but overall, it's a cool place to hang out. I can foresee Penn Social being an option for future birthday celebrations or casual nights in DC. read more

The mixed reviews scared me a bit, but I arranged a little happy hour and decided to pick this place. I'm not gonna lie, the promise of corn hole and a life sized connect four drew me in. Oh yeah, and the beer. I'd been to this place a handful of times when it was Riot Act and I liked the space then. Hell, I like it now. The top floor worried me because everyone there was pretty damn quiet. We ventured downstairs to wait for everyone else, and this huge place filled up fast. It seems Friday is Penn Social day. Yes! Since we had a large group already, with people coming and going throughout the night, I wasn't really checking out the crowd too much, but what I DID see, I liked. Everyone seemed pretty kewl, chatty, and were just out to have a good time. All the games were being played after a while. That's kewl too. I was wondering if they'd just be there for show. The DJ rolled in about 10PM and started playing some old school hip hop which I like. Nothing to dance to, even though peeps moved some corn hole in what seemed to be an attempt to clear the floor for awesome dancing, though no one bust a move. OK, 2 guys I was with were groovin' at our area, but not so much anywhere else. Again, not a problem. The music was good. I couldn't hike the rating up cuz the food was standard bar fare. Yes, food is that important to me. You know you can do better, Penn. Anyway, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised - and we ended up staying for a long ass time. I'm sure it makes a difference who you're with. Note to everyone: Chill with kewl ass peeps ALWAYS. read more

This place is huge! There is an upstairs area with a bar, and ample tables for even larger groups. There is a shelf with a lot of board games to be played while you enjoy your libations. The downstairs has a large wide open area with smaller bar height tables, but still plenty. There are TVs on all around, you're sure to have a decent vantage point of any event! There are also plenty of games, such as corn hole and ping pong. They even started up a game of beer pong - with a chance to win $30 off your tab! The food menu is quite small, just your typical bar food (ie. nachos, pretzels, etc.). I would wager it tastes a little better after you have been drinking a while. Caution! Some of the beers are only on tap at one bar - I found myself going up and down the stairs for a new brew I tried. This was well worth based on the happy hour prices ($2 off drafts). If you are looking for a casual environment to hang out and grab a beer, I'd say this is the place! read more

Penn Social - TVs that display the current prces for pitchers & pints. - Sports Bars Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

I cannot believe I've been in DC for years now and have just finally discovered Penn Social! I've gone in a few times now (happy hour, late night dancing, fooding) and have had a positive experience every time. They certainly have a lot of things working in their favor. From giant jenga sets to a huge cornhole/dancefloor area to craft beers to tasty chicken wings to life-size connect 4 and tons of other games in a 1990's-esque atmosphere, there is no shortage of things to do or see or eat. The upstairs area is smaller. It hosts District Trivia on a regular basis (and from what I understand, karaoke from time to time too?) It houses the board games, the abovementioned jenga, a decent sized bar and lots of window to people-watch. It is definitely the area to sit-down and eat, socialize, and enjoy good beer (aka: slightly less crowded/loud). The downstairs is huge! It has 2 bars, a big dancefloor, a mini-stage (which the bouncer will quickly tell you to get off of), a DJ area, and lots of murals on the walls. Here, you can play Connect 4 and cornhole for free, but I believe all the other games (shuffleboard, skeeball, pool, etc) have a charge. They are also pretty decent for sporting events as they have a ginormous projection TV as well as tons of others scattered around the joint. Overall, it's a very adaptable space in downtown DC that seems to always have a fun, lively crowd. read more

Came here to cool off with a few friends after kickball. It's a short walk from the national mall and is located in penn quarter which has a lot of good eateries. The vibe is arcade-like in the basement. When I showed up here, trivia was happening and there was a decent crowd for the night. I will note that this place has a $10 card limit if you're paying for food, so either carry cash or prepare to buy extra things to meet that card limit. I ended up getting their chips and guacamole. The guacamole is very fresh. The chips were a little stale, but it did the job. They have a huge beer selection too. Check this place out for a fun game night and happy hour with friends read more

This is the PERFECT place for a Game Night with a fun-loving group of grown-ups who remember what it's like to be a kid. Board games range from chess, checkers, Jenga, Sorry and pinball. The game play is endless. I would recommend eating before entering, as the food isn't all that great. The spinach dip was pretty blah and the BBQ wings might be the worst I've ever had in my entire life. On the bright side, the hot dogs weren't too bad and everyone else seemed to go for pretzels and con queso dip, so I'll definitely follow suit during my next visit. read more

This place is alright. Been here a couple of times, and I enjoyed myself each time! There is a large space upstairs with board games and a bar and tables to sit and eat food, and then an even larger space downstairs with skeeball, cornhole, giant connect four, strength test, shuffleboard, arcade games and TWO bars! They have a gianttt beer selection, and good happy hour drink specials, and love the "play" and eat/drink atmosphere. Tons of events on weekdays and weekends. The food is alright--your typical bar food, I'd say. I'm on the healthy side, so the only thing I could really do was the hummus and veggies. Pretty legit, although no food specials for happy hour :-( booo. Their service is pretty good, though--I had ordered the hummus thinking there'd be naan because it was on their website and on the menu. it came with chips instead and I asked for veggies to sub and they were fine with it. Anyway pretty cool place to hang out after work or later into the night, huge space and pretty good service. read more

*Happy Hour Review* I came here on Monday for a painting event but was able to check out their happy hour before. It wasn't crowded at all on a Monday night. There was plenty of open seating and it was easy to get to the bar. The bartender was super friendly and let me take my time when choosing. $5 well drinks, $2 off draft, and $6 wines. I got a mixed drink and was very happy with it. On top of that, their happy hour food menu is great. A few of the options I remember were 6 dollars and under. I highly recommend their pretzels with queso. It comes with a 2 soft pretzels that are salty, chewy and delicious. They pour a side of hot cheese for dipping and its the perfect compliment. I wish they posted their happy hour menu online because the rest of the options escape me. Either way, I'll still be back for happy hour for sure! read more

Great happy hour food and drink options. Lots of seating including some games upstairs as well as downstairs with a dance floor and more even more seating and gaming options. This is great for larger groups, a date night or lunch/night cap on your own. read more

This is a cool place to hang out, unwind, have fun with your friends and grab a drink. You can have drinks and play games upstairs and downstairs. There's a shelf of board games. Therw are plenty of big screen televisions to watch sports. There's skeet ball, giant Jenga, giant connect four and basketball just to name a few. You can spread out because there are plenty of tables and seating. read more

Penn Social - Giant Jenga - Sports Bars Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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Seems like a fun place to go with large groups. They play live music which is nice, but its nothing you can dance to. People end up crowding the "dance floor" but just to stand around. Best bet is to find a table, enjoy the music, and sip on your drink... which may take you a while to get. read more

Ok the thing about Penn Social is that you have to accept it for what it is. It's a bar. The food here is something you eat to soak up the alcohol in your stomach, not to have any sort of culinary experience. The drinks are cheap and heavy on the alcohol. Whenever there's a DJ, the music is loud and bumpin' and the dance floor is packed. The games are on point and the happy hour deal on drinks is pretty killer. Come for a good time, not a perfect experience. read more

Stopped in here on a Saturday afternoon to this two level bar. The top level wasn't hopping so much so we headed downstairs. The downstairs was packed as people were watching the game, playing skeeball, table tennis, and having all around good time. I love dc when they have happy hour on Saturday. $4 draft beers had me sold. They had ahuge section from each bar to chose from. Each bar had different drafts but really shouldn't make a difference in selection. I looked at the food menu but didn't order. I did see that the menu was on the pricer side for pub food. I have to remind myself that I am in dc and not in fairfax. Maybe if I click my heels (wizard of OZ reference). Anyway, I would come here again and recommend anyone else to come here to check it out. It is a great bar to relax and socialize with others read more

Penn Social - Ps club - Sports Bars Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

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It would be difficult to come here and not have somewhat of a good time. There is such a variety of things to do that it practically suits everyone's tastes. First of all, this place is enormous. I'm pretty sure it used to be an old comedy club. It's two floors - the upper floor has a bar, several tables, a small lounge area, tons of tvs, and a shuffleboard. The shuffleboard is a lot of fun, but unfortunately it's right next to the door and costs a fee to play. The bottom floor is much bigger and has cornhole sets, ping pong tables, pool tables, skee ball, foosball, arcade basketball, and two other large bars. All the games take change (there's a change machine) and all cost at least $1 in quarters. The beer selection here is solid and they offer pitchers of everything on draft which is awesome. I can't speak to the quality of the food or any of their other drinks because I usually just come here to play a few rounds of shuffleboard/skeeball and to grab a pitcher or two. Considering the space, it's an excellent place to go out with a big group. However, keep in mind that the crowd of this place skews young, which makes it a little crazy on the weekends. If you're into the college/post-college party crowd, then you'll love it here. If not, come here on a weeknight or weekend evening before the crowds swarm the place. read more

I feel pretty biased in writing this review, but I must give Penn Social 5 stars. This Sunday I had the best night of my life!!! When we entered to celebrate a friend's birthday the bouncers said downstairs was closed and the ground level was the only open area with board games. I was a bit bothered by that and was ready to leave. A party of about 10 sat down and we started playing a board games, ordered drinks from the bartender and ordered food which came out fast! It was a really great vibe and will for sure be back! read more

Just three blocks from Verizon Center, Penn Social features three bars, patio seating and more than 30 beers on tap. They have the perfect set-up for a sports bar meaning that their screens are crazy big -- no chance of missing any action here. This place is huge and they in addition to normal bar stuff, they also have games, tons of 'em, corn hole, arcade games, darts, skeeball ping pong, etc. etc. Lots of fun to pre- or post-game or as an away game hang out. Penn Social's happy hour is pretty lucrative too and easy on the pocket. Happy Hour is every afternoon, Monday through Sunday, 4pm-7pm. All draft beers are $2 of the regular price, rail drinks are $5 and wine is $6 -- great deal. The food? Ahem... Well, I've never actually eaten here but their menu does feature standard pub fair meaning burgers, dogs, nachos, quesadillas, wings and the like, how can it go wrong? read more

Liked the food (quesadillas and honey flavored wings) but was told I never had a tab open even after I gave them my card to swipe and that it was combined with my party and thus was given no receipt. A few days later, I come to find that they actually did charge my card for the meal and drinks. The bar staff is friendly, but the card situation was pretty off-putting. I reached out to them via e-mail but never got back a response. read more

Cool place to get drinks and play board and arcade games. The bar is huge with a dance floor in the middle. With games and a dance floor, it offers a little bit of everything. The few times I been there, the bartenders over poured when it came to drinks. I guess that can be a good or bad thing depending how you look at it. Overall not a bad place to hang out. read more

Penn Social - Bar - Sports Bars Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Came here for happy hour. Man, they have some sweet deals. I think it was $2 off any draft beer. And boy, do they have a large selection of good beer. Also the happy hour food was pretty good. I had two plates of the wings and they weren't expensive. The place is huge! There's enough space to bring large groups. Some awesome arcade games around. And you can bet they will be playing every major game on every wall of the building. read more

Adulting can be "blah" at times. Thank goodness for places like Penn Social. It's like a mini Dave&Buster's without the "little adults" running around just "big kids." I've been here before but it was not nearly as packed as my last visit. Nice space upstairs to watch games and just relax. Downstairs is where the fun is at. They have all the essential gaming options, a dance floor to show off your moves (we all have em), and a DJ that plays music from a wide variety of genres. I had a great time. I can't speak on the food or drinks but they do have beer pitchers. Who doesn't like beer pitchers? If you engage in drinking of course. You can use your Debit or Credit Card to play games if you're not trying to walk around like a leprechaun (all those coins but no gold?). Great experience for a Saturday night. Good blend of the bar and arcade atmosphere. I'll definitely be back. read more

The pros: The atmosphere​ was great. Loud music, board games, ping pong, etc. The happy hour was okay. Not fantastic, but $5.00 rail drinks is pretty good. The cons: The food. Do not order the chips and queso. I repeat do not order. The chips were the circle corn tortilla chips that I used to get at high school​ football games. And the queso? Literally cold, chunky, processed cheese bi-product. If it cost $1.50? Yea, okay that makes sense. But $6.00 for cold, fake cheese? No thank you. If you want to get wasted and watch sports games- this is the place for you. If you want semi-quality bar food, try somewhere else. read more

Great spot to watch a game or to for a night out on the town. Penn Social is great for watching football or other sports. They have plenty of tvs and lots of beer on tap. The downstairs area has a few huge screens and they have lots of different games you can play as well - table tennis, corn hole, etc. If you end up staying past 10pm on a weekend, the downstairs becomes a huge dance party. Lots of younger folks having loads of fun. The only downside is the food. It is not bad, just not a good selection of bar food and nothing memorable. I would recommend eating before or after since there are plenty of options nearby. All in all, PS is a great spot! read more

I like the fact that this place covers so many different interests: It's got food obviously, regular sized board games of all kinds, giant board games (Jenga, Connect 4, apples to apples, etc.), bar games such as Shuffle boards, basketball, and skeeball, and a giant dance floor and DJ. It's a place where you can just go and hangout and do any one of those activities. It's a huge place. Upstairs is quieter where you can actually eat and play some board games and chill or you can go downstairs for the loud (a bit more crowded) and hoppin place to hangout. They host Beer Pong competitions on Saturdays if you're on a team with them and it's really a lot of fun. Their prices are reasonable and I love how there's just so many different activities you can do. You won't be bored here! read more

If I could leave 0 stars, I would. The bouncer (60+ year old man) was extremely rude from the beginning. My group of 6 brushed off his degrading behavior (tossed our IDs to us and one fell on the ground) and continued to the bar. We then ordered a bottle of champagne and sat at our table. After 1 hour of sitting at our table, the same rude bouncer came over and TRIED TO TAKE OUR BOTTLE (I believe his name was Sheldon but the manager would not provide names of employees). Apparently the bartender was not permitted to sell bottles of champagne and management literally tried kicking out our entire party. This was the most appalling situation I have ever experienced. Never come here. They are not trustworthy and I will do everything I can to spread the news of this poor establishment. read more

THE WORST. I came here to watch one of the Stanley Cup Final games & it was a chaotic mess. I waited in line for two hours & the line pretty much shoved itself together by the time I got to the front because people were cutting from all directions. The security staff are incompetent, they stood inside with the doors closed & letting people in one-by-one, when they also should has been trying to control the crowd waiting to get into the establishment. To add another inconvenience to their incompetency, one of the security guards let a girl behind me that cut the line in before me. There should have been more protocol for an establishment for such a major sporting event especially because this is a bar that sports fan frequent. The upstairs area looked a bit more organized & tame, but downstairs was chaotic. There are a bunch of games all around & tables for sitting. Most of the bartenders were rude, I wanted to order food & one of them told me they were serving food anymore while another bartender was taking food orders. There is no table service, only bar service & you are given a buzzer to go pick up your food at another window. I ordered the Pretzels & Queso and Sliders. The Pretzels & Queso were pretty much pre-made frozen pretzels with watered-down cheese sauce. The Sliders were decent, the buns were good but meat was dry. It's a bar, so I wasn't expecting much & it was just as disappointing as expected. The only good thing about the downstairs was that they had large projection screens pretty much on every wall space to watch the game. It seems like from previous reviews, they charge cover & I would NEVER pay cover to come to this place. I also will probably never come back to this establishment after my first experience here. read more

I hate dive bars and sports bars normally, but I really liked Penn Social. Mostly deserted on a Saturday night at 7:00 due to limited sporting events, the bar was very quiet. This was the perfect way to come in with a group of friends because we enjoyed many rounds of corn hole and giant Connect Four. We saw one group playing cards against humanity, and there seemed to be board games around too. The downstairs level is just cool. I'm not a big beer drinker, but they did have a cider on tap, which always makes me happy. Happy hour specials looked good, but I don't think I would want to come here when it was crowded, as I enjoyed the game element a lot. read more

Penn Social is the place to go when you're ready for a low maintence but extremely fun happy hour with a large group. The space is huge with multiple games set up. There's indoor cornhole, giant connect four and jenga, arcade games, a ping pong table and more. I had my birthday happy hour here and it was one to remember. Highly recommend! read more

Penn Social - Good beers. Good games. Good times. || @PENN SOCIAL - Sports Bars Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

This is my go-to place for game watching. A great bar with a lot of seating. They have 2 floors, the first floor has a small bar and they usually host trivia games on Tuesdays. During game days, they will have the game projected onto the large wall across from the bar. There are quite a lot of TVs in this bar so you don't need to worry about not being able to see the screen. This bar is also a great hangout place after work with decently priced draft and snacks from 4 to 7pm. They have variety of arcade games, ping pong table, and a giant connect four game. The only downside about this bar is it can get chaotic at times, especially during game nights. Some time it would be nearly impossible to order a drink, so might as well go for a pitcher while you are at it!! They also have cool events from time to time, so be sure to check on their website or their facebook page. Last year, they had a Gaming Tournament (forgot which online game) and a vinyl record festival. I had a great time at both events. I highly recommend this location to anyone who works or live around the area. This location has a very young vibe and you will see a lot of young professionals hanging out in this bar after 4pm. read more

This is a popular place on Fridays and Saturdays as the venue is large and spacious. I've been multiple times and usually have fun. The bartenders seem a tad inexperienced. The drinks are over priced for how under poured the alcohol is. $35 for 2 patron margaritas. Seems a little excessive. There are always a bunch of drunk people inside so I suppose the amount of security they have is needed. They have a few arcade games through out downstairs while upstairs is more of a chill, sit down vibe. read more

This place is a joke. We showed up for a 30th birthday party having called ahead and once greeted at the door were not allowed in because one of our Canadian friends had a CANADIAN ID. They also have a no bus policy, if you show up on a bus you're not allowed in . Ridiculous. Well take our money elsewhere. read more

Great place for Sunday Funday!! Go downstairs to watch any game of your liking while throwing back $17 pitchers of blue moon and buffalo wings! Would return! read more

Fun place with arcade games, open space, tables, bar, and a nice crowd. I would come back again.

Would give a 0 if possible. Went there for my 21st birthday, brought all my friends and was ready for a good night. Brought my passport so that there would be no confusion around my age. They let everyone else in (including my friends who are underage), and told me my passport was fake. If youre actually looking to have a good time, go to Rocket Bar around the corner. It's a great spot with good vibes, unlike Penn Social :( read more

For some reason, I always gravitate toward Penn Social after work or offer it up as a place to meet up with coworkers and friends in downtown. It's probably because the beers on happy hour are cheap, and there is so much to do at this one spot! There are a few arcade games downstairs, a life-sized Connect 4, jumbo Jenga, ping pong tables, shuffle board, board games on the first floor, and, my all-time favorite, C O R N H O L E! Sometimes, there is great hip hop music playing (yes, there's a dance floor too), so light dancing is an option. I really enjoy how spacious it is, but it can also get really popular during peak happy-hour hours. But nonetheless, a great place to drink and enjoy a night out with friends! I would definitely recommend if you're bar hopping downtown! read more

Everything was great except the bowling. Had to change lanes twice due to equipment malfunction. Also, there were about 15 bowling lanes and we were the only group bowling when they tried to put a big group on the lane right next to us. When I asked why when there were so many other open lanes, they said several were not working and others were reserved for later. Not a good bowling experience. Food, drink and wait staff were great read more

Always have a ton of fun heading here with a group of friends since it's full of board games, arcade games, SHUFFLEBOARD! and a bunch of other attractions. Also if you go on the weekend in the evenings or after something like an event at Verizon Center they usually have a DJ and a dance party going (plan to see people hit the tootsie roll and percolate). The music is great and everyone seems to be having a blast when they are here. Drink prices aren't too crazy and there is a good variety of beers and cocktails you can try out. I'm a huge retro arcade nerd so having gaming cabinets, skee-ball and other games is what sold me on this place. Definitely also a great place to bring people who are new to DC or Penn Quarter area!! read more

Had a happy hour here and was super hungry. I was excited to see they had one healthier-type option... avocado toast. The tomato and avocado was not ripe and the toast was loaded with butter. Luckily I asked for no cheese otherwise this thing would have just been flooded with fat. I was pretty upset with this seeing that I paid $12 for this thing. I'll be sure to never order food here again. On a brighter note, the beer and staff are great. read more

Penn Social - Sports Bars Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

This is a fun place to hang out and play video games, but not recommended as a sports bar unless you are there for a local game. They advertise on their big blackboard that they were playing the NBA playoff games (any "sports bar" would...). While it was understandable that the Caps playoff game took precedence on most TVs, when that game was over the bar inexplicably raised all of the projector screens up and switched to a dance club. We tried to watch the end of our game through the giraffe mural pictured here, while listening to blaring 90s hip hop. I will go to a real sports bar for the next game. read more

Penn Social - The screens were raised when Caps game ended, even though the NBA Eastern Conference finals game was still on. Spots bar? Don't think so. - Sports Bars Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Went here on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend and was pleasantly surprised by the amount of space and activities! The bar is super unassuming from the entry level (it looked empty). But the real party was downstairs. The downstairs area features 2 bars, a dance floor, and plenty of classic arcade games, and some free bar games (Connect4, shuffleboard, ping pong, etc.). The drinks are adequately priced for DC at $7 for a pint of beer and similar for mixed drinks. We arrived at 11PM, so it wasn't too crowded. We were able to grab a pitcher and table pretty quickly. The crowd is very diverse but mostly younger (think recent college graduates). Around midnight, the crowd started to pile in and the music definitely got more lit. We had to wait a little to play some of the arcade games but the wait wasn't too long. Definitely down to come back with my friends and hopefully catch a game here! read more