Trust Us, We're Experts

We're back suckas! We know you missed our shining faces and our adorable snark so here it goes again...We promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  As future members of the DC Lawyers Assistance Program, we are proud to present a bi-weekly run-down of DC hotspots. After a 3-month summer hiatus, we are excited to be back to our usual bar hopping shenanigans. For the first Nota Bene of the year, we are doing a review of the most recent addition to the Dupont Circle bar scene, Public Bar.

Before getting into this review, we'd like to introduce ourselves to the new batch of 1Ls at GW Law (everyone else, you, unfortunately, know us by now). Set is a recent graduate of GW undergrad (no she did not wear tights, an oversized white t-shirt, big black sunglasses, or carry a $5K bag...) and DC's very own former bar wench.  You will likely meet her soon as she will probably harass you at Bar Review, which she is now partially in charge of organizing (suggestions welcome!).  Lisa, a Chicago/Philadelphia-import, is thrilled to be able to use her newest batch of loan money to buy drinks, not books.

Public Bar

Case: Summer review of Public Bar, the new bar now replacing the formerly glorious Club Five in Dupont.  Our first experience at Public was for Set's birthday in June. Needless to say, we returned many more times throughout the rest of summer.

Facts: We'd been hearing about the opening of Public for a couple of months and Set's birthday presented the perfect opportunity to check this place out. The outside is like every other row bar in Dupont, but upon entering, you know Public is going to be something different. The first "upscale sports bar" to hit DC, Public has everything anyone (and we mean anyone) could want from a bar. Part sports bar, part upscale lounge, part neighborhood watering hole, Public is the perfect mix of class, crass, and sweet pieces of a$$ (...yes, we'll be here all year, be sure to tip your waitress). Upon entrance, we could tell we were in for a good night. The interior has a very nicely done sports theme and three floors of bar space make it easy to find a nook for your group. We got there around 10:30 and set up shop on the fabulous rooftop. Seriously, this is one of the best rooftop bars in DC! But be warned, it gets SUPER crowded! By 11:00, the roof is usually packed and the line to get in is around the block. Lucky for us, we had taken over the entire front bar, but still, it was crowded and hot up there.

Issue: Why the 3 flights of steep stairs to get to the roof bar? Just because it's a sports bar does not make us athletes! And why the $9 drinks served in small plastic cups? If we're spending 1/4 of our loan checks in a night here, we should be getting our money's worth! And why are there bathrooms only on the 3rd floor?  At one point during the night, we headed for the bathrooms to wipe the sweat from our brows after busting a move on the dance floor, only to be told that (1) the bathrooms were downstairs and (2) we had to wait in line to get back on the roof.

Holding: Nice bar that's usually filled with attractive people. Expensive drinks though and super crowded on the weekends. Be wary of the cast of the Real World showing up here since their house is a few blocks away (remember kids, always read the fine print on that release form before you make a fool of yourself on TV).

Rule: Public is definitely up there on our list of fave DC bars.  The roof is great, but we just wish they'd let a few less people up at a time.  We're interested to see how the scene changes when the warm weather disappears, but we'll surely be hitting up this bar during the early fall.