georgetown bars 1970s georgetown bars 1970s

By 1980, WaPo was offering a laundry list of the clientele to expect there: Mt. The loss of a significant number of Georgetown's bars and late-night options has run contrary to the neighborhood's population growth. It was the spot to be on Sunday nights. All Rights Reserved. Then Hugh tossed the meat back onto the plates and said it was probably plenty tender now. Mike once banned a waitress from his kitchen after he heard her tell a customer that his stuffed calamari was made from testicles, instead of tentacles. Its still just a drink, Mike says. One of the premier music spots in Washington, D.C., the small club served as the genesis for entertainers and as a tryout venue for larger markets. We talked for a bit and then I went on my way. Marines, who invade Georgetown on Saturday nights, also frequent Annie Oakley's, with its mirrored dance floor and patrons in cowboy hats. The steakhouse was called Dinos Paramount steakhouse and served the best sizzling steaks in the city. ", Not everyone in Mr. Henry's was as happy as the wide-eyed North Carolina visitor, though. Just ten years ago, such an outcome would seem impossible, but after a few years of relentless closures, the inevitable has come about. I used to bartend at Winstons in 1990/1991. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on. No one was coming to his restaurant any way, so Chin figured he had nothing to lose. Born in Washington, John started at The Post in 1989 as deputy editor in the Weekend section. There are many ways to recount Georgetowns history. "It's okay for young people in their twenties. But Mike always had a soft spot for the bar both sides of it. Georgetown Today, July 1970 The overwhelming majority of the faculty believed that we, right on the doorstep of the national government, just could not conduct business as usual. I went to all of those a lot when I was at GW from 98-02. View the menu, check prices, find on the map, see photos and ratings. There were family restaurants, jazz clubs, punk bars and average joe-type dives, many frequented by Marines from the nearby barracks. Mr. Henrys Georgetown catered to a gay crowd but never declared itself as such because of its dependence on the tourist crowd in Georgetown. Garretts: GM spent many hours at this bar in his early 20s. It offered an onyx bar top, hexagonal white tiles on the floor, checkered tablecloths, draught beer and burgers. The interior, meanwhile, was more inspired by another preppy haven popular with college kids, an underground spot called The Tombs. "We wear our boxer shorts and some say 'Oh, my God, who are these guys?' The Washington, DC of the 1980s and '90s was a dramatically different place than the Washington, DC of 2017. And yes, it was Dinos Paramount Steak House and yes it was very straight, not gay. It was buy 2 cocktails and the 3rd was free (so we just had to) and we would order onion rings,salads,burgers,and mainly light meals,then catch a cab for nights out dancing at The Pier 9. We always sat in the front room and played Barry White,(and Pier songs,) on the jukebox which was located up front at the north window. While Im sad to see eras end, Georgetown is due for another chapter, said Georgetown restaurant broker Bill Miller at the time. Also, Nathan's an elegant Georgetown bar is real big now." But Tramps was more than a disco. Back on Wisconsin Avenue, Mr. Henry's of Georgetown bar and restaurant, where gays and straights mingle freely, is so demure ("We're not a cruise bar, hon," said waiter Mark Redell) that families and heterosexual couples sometimes wander in, only to look around and walk right back out. Thursdays was E.J. Likewise, if in the 1970s, Georgetown was mostly known for its thrift stores (such as Commander Salamander), record shops and even a disco bar called Tramps, that too was in flux. Here is another article discussing Garrets closing. card. She was discovered there by Henry Yaffe, who brought her to his trendy new Georgetown club Mr. Henrys. That same year, WaPo was already pointing toward Georgetowns end days, and they werent even aware of the looming crack epidemic which would cripple the city and turn it into the nations murder capital. Tomorrow evening, April 17, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the Georgetown Public Library at 3260 R St. NW, one of Georgetowns coolest times will be recalled with Last Call; The Bayou, Cellar Door and Georgetown Nightlife., The D.C. Public Librarys Special Collections Archivist Ray Barker will lead a panel discussion of thehistories, stories and insights around Georgetownsgreat venue spaces of the 1960s and 1970s. 10. Tales might involve bar hopping, disco dancing, lining up at music clubs, concert crowds or stylish restaurants. In 2014 it was forced to move from its M Street location to K Street, where it replaced longstanding bar Chadwicks due to rising rents. Kentucky Explorer. There were also the more restrained, upscale clubs like Pisces Club, Charlies Georgetown and F. Scotts for the preppies who had aged out of their old college favorites. An American Bar, according to its marquees subtitle, it opened in 1963 in a former motorcycle hangout as the first full-sized bar in the District since Prohibition. If I could turn back time! It was a dubbed the original sports bar and was a favorite with the Georgetown student body, visiting college students, tourists and residents of the DMV area. Tuesdays was Pendletons or Chadwicks, a K Street joint located under Whitehurst Freeway known for its hamburgers, cheap beers and late-night hours. [8], In the late 1990s, The Bayou was owned by Dave Williams (Cellar Door Productions), who was also responsible for putting on the concerts at DAR Constitution Hall and the Capital Centre. In 1970, All Souls was the site of the Black Panthers' Peoples Revolutionary Constitutional Convention, an event staged with the strong support of DC's Gay Liberation Front. . Closed down long ago. Peak hours are 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., during which period the D.C. Department of Transportation estimates about 10,000 cars and 6,000 pedestrians travel through the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street. Honestly, I thought it was going to be very preppy [before I moved there] and I had my Lily Pulitzer skirts ready, but no one was really preppy any more, says McGovern, who started at the university in 2013. 293 views, 6 likes, 4 loves, 2 comments, 1 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Preserving LGBT Sites in Metro DC: The Georgetown Grill, from 1948 to 1977, became a popular gay male hangout, especially. In the early fall of 1983, J. Pauls opened to much fanfare, a two-level bar uniquely built for preppies. Channeling the immense popularity of Chidi, a so-called circuit of preppy bars soon dotted the neighborhood, giving the pastel-clad a place to party virtually every single night of the week. Mike, 63, is semi-retired now. It wasnt all preppies, of course. He's the author of a new memoir, "Meet Me at the Bar, I'm Hungry." Modeled after turn-of-the-century Chicago taverns, it offered a 50-foot-long bar, gold-painted ceiling, solid oak floor and elevator doors repurposed from Manhattans Waldorf-Astoria. Admittedly, the quiet Wendy Beamish (Mare Winningham) is the only real preppy in St. Elmos Fire (described as a sweet-faced, insecure preppy in the script) as Alec Newbury (Judd Nelson) has advanced into more of a mid-1980s yuppie with his slick hair and Gordon Gekko-esque contrast-collar dress shirts. Champions closed their doors in 2002. In 1985, The Third Edition exterior acted as the stand-in for the titular St. Elmos Fire bar in the Joel Schumacher film about recent Georgetown graduates. Those were the days.Let me tell you. The chain went bankrupt in 2002. A one-square-mile neighborhood of cobble-stone streets and stately, federal-style homes centered around the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street, Georgetown nonetheless boasted more than 115 liquor licenses in an approximately 10-block area. Mr. Henrys was absolutely 1225 Wisc. Meanwhile, the bars upstairs, outdoor patio was a tiki bar complete with kitschy totems. Photograph by Ehpien/FLICKR . The customer wasnt charged, but he wasnt able to finish his meal, either. This establishment was a left over remanent of the 1970s disco scene. At others, I shock people. American Cafe was great, a landmark endeavor for Georgetown and the food industry. Best chocolate chip cookies. We started DCs Fastest Bartender, and Monday night Mike Nardello spinning tunes during No Skin No Win naked dance contest Buddy Jenkins was Mgr. The customer had dared to adulterate Mikes creation with ketchup. In the Washington Post, January 7, 1982, there is an account of the unfathomably named Richard Hamilton Herrud Houghton III. According to Salon, the American diplomat now sported short trousers, a large tattoo and spoke Arabic he was anything but a preppy. "My dog's better'n that," replied Costner. I remember waking by the side steps of The Cellar Door and John Denver was just sitting there, strumming his guitar, enjoying some sun. In the late 1960s and early 1970s there were so many Georgetown undergrads streaming down the hill to work at the neighborhood's bars, nightclubs and eateries that Mike and his friends had. Been to them all, Lets not forget The Cellar Door, The Bayou, The M club, oh my I know theres a few I left out. One of the more lively approaches is to gather some persons of a certain age, whether those of the baby boom generation or not, and swap stories about the late night scenes along Wisconsin Avenue and M Street. Unfortunately, in 1982 it stopped Staying Alive and closed its doors. | The Georgetown Metropolitan, ICYMI: When Wootten Met Thompson at Jelleff. Yes, definitely Mr. Henrys (Georgetown) was just above M street on Wisconsin Avenue, I think it was #1225. Free Cancellation. Best jazz clubs in DC. The food was very good (my wife had a Shrimp Basket, I had a chicken+cheese sandwich basket; the shrimp was very good. It's what they call a "listening room," with little signs on the tables firmly requesting that customers not chitchat during performances. 3135 K Street, Georgetown, Washington DC. Revisiting the 1980s Heyday of Georgteown's Fabled Preppy Bars In the Washington Post, January 7, 1982, there is an account of the unfathomably named Richard Hamilton Herrud Houghton III.. Go back further and you add a string of legendary bars from Georgetowns 80s heyday, like Charring Cross, Pall Mall, the Bayou, etc. Had no regard for my coworkers. The 9:30 club . They say customers park illegally, drink beer, urinate on sidewalks and gardens, and vandalize property before driving away intoxicated. That building is supposedly haunted. He looks back on his career in a new self-published memoir: Meet Me at the Bar, Im Hungry (Dog Ear Publishing; $16.95 paperback, $26.95 hardcover). I personally took comedians Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor to Brits. The Boy-Whore World. It is currently a Zara clothing store. GM was a big fan of Britches back in the day when a Britches Great Outdoors was at his local Connecticut mall. He got a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service at Georgetown and a law degree from Catholic University. Modeled after turn-of-the-century Chicago taverns, it offered a 50-foot-long bar, gold-painted ceiling, solid oak floor and elevator doors repurposed from Manhattans Waldorf-Astoria. Nightlife. There were family restaurants, jazz clubs, punk bars and average joe-type dives, many frequented by Marines from the nearby barracks. This brought a huge influx of teenagers from the DC suburbs to Georgetown on Fridays and Saturdays that, when combined with the sizable university population, led to swells of 20,000 to 30,000 patrons, many of whom travelled by car, during the nighttime.. It was closed in 2015 due to high rent and is now Club Monaco, a clothing store. Or purchase a subscription for unlimited access to real news you can count on. Whats a Hoya with a fake ID to do these days? type); blond, dirty blond or light brown hair; a polo shirt with some sort of animal or mammal applique; a pair of madras pants or Bermuda shorts; and your name on the Britches mailing list for its new fall collection.. It was rite of passage. The site you are referring to was The American Cafe in the 80s and may have been an Annies Steakhouse before. Our room was spacious, clean and quiet. I thought Georgetown was a pioneering neighborhood in that regard. But to the chronic dismay of some Georgetown residents, the streets and a circuit of popular nightclubs are a commercial everyman's land. Tastes in mixed drinks have changed. It occupied the location of a former music club called The Shadows. A one-square-mile neighborhood of cobble-stone streets and stately, federal-style homes centered around the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street, Georgetown nonetheless boasted more than 115 liquor licenses in an approximately 10-block area. The actual menu of the Bar Poliesportiu De Monserrat. One amorous pair -- a man and woman -- eating dinner and oblivious to their surroundings, was asked, "Did you know this is considered a gay bar?". The spacious bar offered martinis and Sinatra music, while a preppy look acted as the cover charge. Copyright 2023 InsideHook. Georgetown Billiards: GM loved this place. If by the 1980s New York was going new wave and hip-hop, club kids and cokeheads, in Washington, DC, a melting pot of fledgling lawyers, bankers and politicos still enjoyed dressing up in boat shoes, blue blazers and Brooks Brothers button-downs to hit the town. Drinks were different back then. And hes especially fond of the saloon, a style of establishment for which Georgetown home of the original Clydes became famous. Lets not forget Scandals which was definitely a college bar and the famous Tramps Discotheque both in the same building at corner of Wisconsin and Prospect! Pingback: From the Comments | The Georgetown Metropolitan. We're happy. See more ideas about growing up, silver spring maryland, rockville maryland. lolAnyone remember Cafe de Paris and Sundowner Club? oh, but they were just south on M~ Cheers to those Great Times . Bill Scanlan: MTITV, filmmaker of The Bayou: DCs Killer Joint This is an Appalachian family in Eastern Kentucky, circa 1964. That same year, WaPo was already pointing toward Georgetowns end days, and they werent even aware of the looming crack epidemic which would cripple the city and turn it into the nations murder capital. The D.C. Public Library's Special Collections Archivist Ray Barker will lead a panel discussion of the histories, stories and insights around Georgetown's great venue spaces of the 1960s and 1970s. By 1967 Flack had gained a healthy local following, and was singing five nights a week at a nightclub on K Street in Washington. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. The bar was bought and converted into an upscale Belgium restaurant called The Sovereign. I try to pick obscure ones, then they'll say, 'Really, what does she look like? Honestly, I thought it was going to be very preppy [before I moved there] and I had my Lily Pulitzer skirts ready, but no one was really preppy any more, says McGovern, who started at the university in 2013. Sign up now for more from the Beltway. A rich tan (and were not talking about the Q.T. 1) Washington DC in the 1970s was a riveting time. ", "Actually, Georgetown is my neighborhood," Smith said. She also began taking on voice students of her own. This bar created Georgetowns punk rock scene. self-published memoir: Meet Me at the Bar, Im Hungry. From May 1- May 3, a series of large scale demonstrations were held in DC protesting the war. It was the Duke Zeibert's of Dance, the Sans Souci of Sweat. And, of course, it was partially the model for the St. Elmos bar in St. Elmos Fire. Todays mixological artisans work like alchemists, decanting potions and grinding tree bark. Would eat some nearly every lunch. I remember a Mr. Henrys in Georgetown at the same time as the American Cafe but that Mr. Henrys closed around 1980-81 (it started getting mostly straight customers when they hired a teenaged Tori Amos to play piano)and the American Cafe followed suit a few years later. I worked on M Street and I ate many meals and drank a few too many drinks there. It was kind of like Tuscany in that everyone had to go there at least once.. Which brings GM to: Chadwicks: GM can speak from a brief personal experience that this bar was popular with GU students (at least in the late 90s) and that its entrystandards werelargely to blame. Tuesdays was Pendletons or Chadwicks, a K Street joint located under Whitehurst Freeway known for its hamburgers, cheap beers and late-night hours. Also loved the roof deck and, Avril, who became a fast friend with the .