I need to get back to The Passenger. As soon as possible.
I’ve heard so much about the place and finally made it in right after opening on a Sunday afternoon. I know, not prime cocktail time, but I was desperate! The Passenger is supposed to be one of the new best places in DC to get a drink, and I just can’t let that go untested.
The bartenders welcomed us as their first customers, but the front room filled right up within twenty minutes, some sampling the lunch menu and some drinking to the departing weekend. This is a loved local bar in north Chinatown. Or is it Shaw? Is it Mount Vernon? It probably depends who you ask, but they can all agree that The Passenger is where they want to be.
The drinks are what The Passenger is about. My Ramos Gin Fizz was foamy, sweet and delicious, perfect for an afternoon. The rest of the drinks will surely prove to be just as surprising and then perfect. You know, that Why didn’t we always do things this way? sensation of revelation? That’s what the mixologists behind the bar can give you. If you tell them what you like to drink, they can give you the perfect cocktail for you.
The beer on tap is top notch, as are the small plates of nibbles while you bar sit and enjoy the surroundings. You may see the signature of our beloved Eleanor Holmes Norton on a pillar at the bar. She was here for a drinking contest with Stephen Colbert on the day of the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. But (and I hate to say this), Stephen did not show. Shocking!
The Passenger also shows free films in their theater. Oh, right, the building was the Warehouse Theater once upon a time. The front bar is the concessions area, the Columbia Room (which will have to be the subject of a later post) is the hallway, and the theater is still the theater. The Psychotronic Film Society shows the films every Tuesday at 8:00. I can’t think of a much better way to spend a night early in the week than trying a new cocktail and enjoying some silly movies.
After only one visit, I can’t wait to go back.
DC Style Is Real 
I know you already know this, but I love this bar and I suggest all high-tail it there at once. It may not have the (admittedly kinda hot) gimmicks of Church & State, but it’s got an absolutely solid and ever-rotating menu of mixed drinks. If you don’t mind the din, or the wait, at night, it makes a fantastic second stop to a date.
And I shall not cede my neighborhood to our more famous neighbors north or south: it’s solidly, unequivocally, unapologetically in Mount Vernon Square.