Clarendon Grill

Clarendon grill is the best place in Clarendon for a live cover band BUT beware of their bartenders. They water down their shots and have even admitted to it if you confront them. I would advise to only order beer or ask for another shot if you notice yours doesn’t taste right.

If I could post this with zero stars, I would.
Last night, on 16 January 2016, I went to celebrate a friends younger sisters 21^st birthday. After waiting in an obnoxiously long line the bouncer (s) proceed to «grill» my drivers license since I’m from North Carolina. I offer to show them multiple forms of identification but the original bouncer ignores my attempts. My friends and I then get shuffled to stand out of the line while they «investigate» if my id is fake or not. Apparently, the machine that made my ID did not shine a flashlight’s light through it like my friends ID which was also from North Carolina. Yes, a flashlight. I’m sorry, 1. If you are so hardcore with your ID checking why are you using a flashlight and not an actual ID machine and 2. If you are unsure of a states drivers license why do you not have a book with different states IDs to reference?
As I’m asking the 2^nd bouncer, John, if he would like to see another form he repeatedly tells me to «calm down» and «stop talking.» Then he asks me for a second form of ID…. Needless to say, they approve my entrance into this shit bar and now want me to pay a 5 dollar cover. I ask to speak with the manager, whose name is Victor. Victor arrives and I explain to him that my friends and I are displeased with the way his bouncers treated us. So victor leaves to go speak with John about it. When victor comes back he explains the situation… «See the situation is that North Carolina has been selling fake ids made in China, did you not know?»…Oh I’m sorry victor I didn’t catch that memo about China selling fake identifications, specifically from North Carolina.
Regardless, I listen to this nonsense and then explain calmly that I attempted to show multiple forms of ID and his bouncer told me to «stop talking» on three different occasions. Victor then goes to speak to John about this and when victor returns he tells me that John said that never happened. No shit Sherlock your bouncer is going to deny any wrong doings since this is his livelihood.
My friends and I end up leaving bc Victor then starts raising his voice at me and telling me to calm down. Again, I haven’t raised my voice once. I just called them out on the truth of the situation. Grant you, during this time, the bouncers let an intoxicated person into the bar who quite literally runs into their fancy tarp door before making it through the entry way. So thank you again Clarendon grill for being the number one piece of shit location and for wasting my time with this bullshit. I’m glad I didn’t spend my well earned money investing in your AMAZING staffs livelihoods. Oh by the way, I’m 27 years old.

Unilocal sucks. This bar doesn’t.

Excellent live music venue.
Came here recently and saw The Rockets perform. Excellent time! There was also an opening singer, played acoustic guitar. Depending on the musical performer, its usually free before 9:00 pm. Then after that there is a $ 5 cover.
Huge outdoor patio in the back that get’s really crowded.
The bartenders were friendly and attentive. Food is yummy.
Here is my drawback, they need to expand the restrooms. Once the place fills up, 5 bathroom stalls in the women’s restroom is not enough. There was a line spilling out into the hallway with at least 15 people outside waiting and another 6 inside waiting. Just the thought of waiting for all of those people is stressful! That is not a good look. Then they run out of paper towels and bathroom tissue. Again, not a good look.
Other than the overcrowding in the women’s room, the place is a lot of fun.

I’m not picky, especially when it comes to breakfast because it’s so hard to mess up. Brunch was awful. My girlfriend got a mimosa, it came in a pint glass with ice… not a good start, but hey we’re in a sports bar and I wouldn’t expect mimosas to be the norm. For food, I got the crab meat and shrimp hash with poached eggs. The eggs were done fine to my surprise, but why on Earth would you sautée cucumbers and put them in a hash?! The shrimp were rubbery and also don’t belong in a hash. My girlfriend got the chorizo and egg open faced sandwich. Chorizo?!? It was no kidding hot dog with a little bit of kick. The «gravy» tasted like heavy cream with salt, pepper and a hint of thyme. Whoever is creating this menu and sourcing ingredients needs to go back to the drawing board. Do something right or don’t do it at all, and stick to wings and beer.

I really like this place. Everytime I passed by clarendon grill, I thought it was just a regular bar which plays some dance music and EDM. The interior and exterior doesn’t look that trendy either. But don’t let this fool you. Once you go inside, it totally wins you over by its great ambiance and live music. It is not common in clarendon area to charge cover. However, 5 bucks for clarendon grill is totally worth it.
They have live music on saturday, the band usually plays 80 hits and people seem to enjoy it a lot, me included. You will have a great time to dance to the music and enjoy yourself.
Just a heads up, after staying there for a few hours, my ears were ringing.
It was fun and come to check it out!

Decent bar, for what it is. It’s divey and very bro-​ey, but if you visit early enough (we visited around 8pm on a Friday), it’s not unbearably crowded (as I hear it becomes later in the night) and the service is friendly and efficient. I ordered a generic house wine (a reisling, I believe) and it was tasty enough. It’s by no means a classy bar, but it does the job if you want a drink while watching a sports game. Oh, and as the name would suggest, it’s located conveniently in Clarendon (just a couple blocks from the metro station and tons of other bars and restaurants) and might inevitably end up on your Clarendon bar crawl.

Happy hour is okay. The prices could be better but not bad. The food on happy hour is cheaper but you don’t get much. This would not be the best place for a group looking for killer deals. Overall the food is fine but nothing bring me back in this area. Also the entire place is pretty dark, so not great for daytime unless your trying to hide something. Now what does bring me back is the trivia. Honestly if never go back here without the trivia. They have great prizes and are very entertaining. This place is worth a try but only on trivia nights.

I’ve only been here for the bands that play at night. They bring in a wide range of musicians, and advertise them on their calendar far in advance. So if you end up going and not liking the genre that night, that’s on you. It gets fairly crowded and they start a $ 5 cover fairly early in the night. Other than that it’s a typical Clarendon establishment. They do have a smoking area/​patio w/​bar that’s covered.

Professional, friendly, no attitude bartenders. The Best place to go for happy hour. Excellent service.

Great spot to meet up with friends. Sometimes really crowded but that’s because they bring bands. Good beer selection and friendly staff.

Okay I’m not a fan of the night life.
However I am a fan of the food. Really I come here place a to go order. The bartender usually looks at me like I’m crazy because I don’t want a drink. However the bartender is usually nice enough to give me a glass of water and ask if I want anything while I’m waiting for my food.
My food comes I pay and I’m quickly out the door.
Note: Just because I am not a fan of the nightlife here does not mean you should not be. On the weekends the patrons all seem friendly and seemed to be having fun. If you are happy go lucky person and don’t want to spend a bunch of money going to DC give this place a shot one night.

I came here on a date & we tried the salsa dancing on Monday nights. It was really fun! They have a beginner and an advanced class. The instructor was very engaging and there was a large group of people in attendance.
We sat at the bar, ordered drinks & food. I had the Cobb salad and he had the salmon burger. We liked our food. My takeaway from this place was the staff. Our bartender was very friendly and attentive. I really appreciated the great customer service.
We’ll be back!

I did away with childish things and ordered the spinach and artichoke dip at Clarendon Grill.

*Food Review*
The only time I have ever stopped by prior to this visit was a couple of years ago when I wanted to see live music one late night. I didn’t even stay very long when I did go because it was wall-​to-​wall crowded and I wasn’t in the mood to hang for that.
Since I was in the area again, I decided to try something different than my typical Clarendon spots I enjoy visiting. Clarendon Grill was on my far list of things to choose from, but I figured since I was going to Trader Joe’s anyway so why not.
They’re typically open for brunch only on Sundays. During the football season, the remain open until the afternoon game concludes… usually around 8pm. I rolled in around 6:15pm solo and sat myself at the bar. I didn’t drink, but I was on the market for some food.
They had game season specials lie $ 6 fried cheese sticks, $ 5 sliders, and other classic bar fare reasonably priced. I was in the mood for something a little bit more substantial. The menu break down is pretty basic — appetizers, sandwiches, and then main entrees with pricing as low as $ 6 up to $ 15.
For my order I got their crab cake sandwich and a side of mac and cheese for $ 13. I had attempted this order exact the night before at Hank’s Oyster Bar which was a crash and burn experience. Not to mention Hank’s was going to charge me $ 31 for the meal.
Not only did I LOVE my crab cake sandwich at Clarendon Grill, but the mac and cheese was wonderful as well. Their take on it was exceptional. Hard to believe when this place is primarily known for late night bands and crazy early 20 something preppies wandering through here as their main clientele. I was shocked and very pleasantly surprised. If I might be so daring — I think this is one of the better crab cake sandwiches I have had in the DC area. I have tried several places, and this place has to be in the top 5. The crab cake was fresh and with NO FILLERS. NONE. Even specifies on the menu that there aren’t. I was very grateful for that. Considering Hank’s version was loaded with fillers.
I couldn’t kill the whole meal since the proportion was huge. I finished my leftovers today for lunch, and they were still just as good as when it was first brought out to me. If a bar can serve great flavorful seafood; I have no doubt that they can deliver on their other basic items they have on their menu.
Lisa, the bartender that was taking care of me, is a complete doll. She was super nice and offered a very pleasant demeanour to her customers.
I’d definitely come back to dine in. I might also be willing to give their Monday nights a go too since they have salsa dancing that starts at 7:15. Completely thrilled with my experience and I look forward to returning.

Clarendon Grill is my go-​to bar on Thursday nights because they have $ 1.50 beers from 5 – 9. All drafts that are under 5.50 are eligible for the deal.
At 9 a bad cover band shows up, but, to drunk me, this is pretty much the greatest thing ever. Dancing is not uncommon.
Overall, the food isn’t great. But the deal is, and I’ve never not had a blast.

This review is exclusively for salsa Mondays which is $ 5. Places in DC usually start at a $ 10 cover so this was a pleasant surprise. Beginner classes are 7:30pm-8pm and intermediate followed immediately after from 8pm-​9pm. I found the instruction really engaging — the instructor joked around, answered questions, and repeated steps many many times. It was a pretty decent crowd who came out for lesons, about 20 or so. There’s always a few extra females in need of partners however. Both classes are very helpful and I found the intermediate lesson challenging but managemeable. Open dance follows thereafter so you have an opportunity to practice all of your moves.
Unlike other salsa places I’ve been to, I found that most people who came to open dance knew what they were doing. I’m used to a crowd with varied abilities so that was intimidating at first. But everyone I danced with was super friendly — no sketchiness here. Music started off with salsa and rotated between that bachata and merengue. I believe there was a cha cha mixed in there at some point. All in all, I enjoyed the lively crowd and the fact that there was enough room to dance comfortably.
Clarendon Grill is right off the metro making it super convenient. Though it is a restaurant, they require 21+ ID so be mindful. Drink specials end at 8:30 and dancing goes until 1am. If you’re looking for a cute date night or girls night activity, I’d highly recommend this spot.

Friends took me here when I came into town, and I had a blast. It was really crowded, but there was also a live band playing some dope covers. Overall, I had a great time!
Didn’t come for food, just for drinks and the music. I’ll definitely be coming back on my next visit!

I’ve been here on a Thursday for happy hour and late night dancing. It was fairly packed and so-​so into the night. I’ve never had the food, so I can’t say anything about it.
During the mid-​week, it’s a pretty chill spot. Now… come Friday/​Saturday — expect to wait at least 10 – 15 minutes in line (possibly longer). It’s ridiculous. Yes, they have a cover band and depending on your mood it could be worth waiting for. Oh, and there’s a cover too, FYI! (even more insulting to the long wait for such a jam packed bar) It does get pretty crowded, but the music and crowd can be pretty fun and rowdy. The cover band is pretty good and the music is good — no complaints. I guess it all just depends on your mood. If you go with a big group of friends, it can definitely be fun — but if it’s just you and a friend, ehhhhh — there are plenty of other better places to go.

Let me first state that I do not partake in the Clarendon nightlife anymore. It has been a few years since turning 21 and if you’ve ever seen the Arlington rap by Remy, it still holds true.
The grill is one of those places in Clarendon that is hilariously enough charges a cover to watch a crappy cover band play other people’s music. Not to say its always bad, but for the most part it is. However, drinks late at night is relatively cheap compared to DC and the bar itself is large. There is also a patio if you don’t want to listen to the said crappy cover band.
However, lets be serious here. For the few times I’ve been here, its kind of funny how seeing dudes wearing flip flops, blazers, and pocket squares. Like any other Clarendon bar, its easy to stand out from the brown flip flops and Sperry’s. If your here for reasons aside from drinking and listening to a bad cover band, this is your place. Its not that difficult. Its strange to think that even though Clarendon is not far at all in proximity to the district, Clarendon, especially the grill, is its own little world.
If your looking for cheap drinks, the grill is okay. Just come before they start charging a cover. If your looking to meet people, the grill is also very easy depending on who you are. Otherwise, pretty much like any other standard bar in Clarendon. Bros, boat shoes, brown flip flops, northface’s, and cargo shorts packed with sorority girls.