Bar Charley

Went here for brunch on a Sunday with a large group. Ended up waiting forever for a table but was updated constantly by the hostess. A group ahead of us was seated and started pitching a fit and ended up storming out, bad mouthing the servers and hostess on their way out. The staff handled it well, moving on with the rest of the tables and seating us immediately. We jokingly told our waiter we promised we wouldn’t yell at him — I can’t remember his name. He gave us a lot of attention during our meal, thanked us for our patience, and made sure we got our money’s worth for bottomless. He saved our dining experience.

Beautiful covered back patio, friendly service, good happy hour choices, catalan fries were a strong option for sharing.

This is my favorite bar in DC. The drink menu is a mix of creative and classic. On Mondays they do happy hour prices until closing. The food menu is not large but everything is well made and delicious. It’s a unique blend of classic American fair and fusion recipes.

Oh man! Quite a bottomless brunch spot. The price is right (roughly 25 bones pending any entrée upgrades) and the food is BOMB. Joe, our randy waiter, was super nice and accommodating. He and I share the same bday so he’s clearly the coolest!

Went for bottomless brunch.
Food/​Drink 3.5÷5: Got Fries and Duck Confit Omlete special was good and flavorfull but quite small portions. Friend got like a spoon full of eggs for her side. Mimosas were good
Ambience ⁴⁄₅ — Love the quant atmostphere almost slightly regal. The seats are a little close to each other
Service 3.5÷5: Servers were good and very helpful to my friend who was sick. She was pretty slow at 1^st though.
Value: $ 23 for meal and bottomless is definitely a good deal.

Well dip me in chocolate and call me Anna Mae, this is the best brunch spot I’ve been to in my life. The bottomless brunch option is stellar because they are committed to refilling your empty glass. The food was incredible. The belly and eggs was succulent, the french toast had a medley of flavors, the biscuits and gravy were buttery and even the darn side of eggs is amazing. The décor is cute and inviting. I don’t know if I was drunk off the unlimited mimosas, but I came here 3 days in row, which is first for any restaurant I have been to. I don’t know what else to say aside from highly recommending this place.

I don’t know why this place did not get such great reviews. I went with a group of 5 people (including myself) for Saturday brunch recently. The waiter was very accommodating and was really good about refilling our unlimited mimosas. He came by every 5 minutes to refill our drinks including water and I was very impressed. All the food that we ordered were delicious and satisfying — particularly the eggs which were cooked perfectly overeasy. We will definitely come by again because of such a great first experience!

I came here on a Thursday night to celebrate a law school graduation. As I was the first to arrive of our five-​person group, I approached the hostess and explained that we had a reservation for 8pm. She bluntly said «no» and went on to state that this was impossible since Bar Charley didn’t take reservations, using a tone that implied that I was a misguided moron. Shortly after, my friend who had made the reservation arrived and explained that when she had called, the bar said they would make an exception for her and thus make our reservation. Another employee quickly came over and told the hostess that Bar Charley was now starting a new policy of sometimes taking reservations. Anyway, everything was resolved, and we were seated. However, her attitude left a bad taste in my mouth, which was worsened by the fact that she did not apologize or express any sort of remorse. It would’ve been okay if she just thought I was mistaken (which I wasn’t), but then used a friendly tone to correct me.
My main interest in coming here was to try the tiki drinks on tap, as I am a passionate tiki drink aficionada, but the waiter told us that they were out, unfortunately. I went with a pineapple-​turmeric cocktail, which was great and fruity. Also their happy hour prices look like a great deal ($ 5 tiki taps /​$ 6 classic drinks).
Given that Bar Charley is, well, a bar and not a restaurant, I didn’t have the highest expectations for the food, which proved correct. We split two flatbreads — one lamb, the other wild mushroom — which seemed small for the $ 15 price tag and moreover, the bread was unpleasantly chewy and thick. The definite highlight was the Catalan Fries, which come with chimichurri, cheese, and a fried egg on top, though it proved challenging to split a fried egg among five people.
With the always fun Lauriol Plaza next door, it’s hard for me to envision coming back to Bar Charley again, particularly in light of my experience with the hostess.

This is a low key, intimate place to have a fancy drink and some small plates. Nothing to make a filling meal. I’ve come here on a few occasions and notice the bar side is always packed like sardines, but there are usually seats available in the dining area. It’s overall a small space so not the best for groups.

The food here was unreal. I got a flatbread with lamb, feta and some arugula. Totally delicious, light flatbread. I also had some of the Brussel sprouts which tasted so good they were probably bad for me. The fries were nice and crispy, reminded me of Five Guys fries.
Our drinks were high quality. I got two different gin drinks and would repeat either of them.
Side note — definitely don’t sit outside. The tent vibe is not as cute as the inside.

This place is great for a bottomless brunch at a crazy low price. The food was good, mimosas were OK, not very strong, but they are bottomless and the waitress comes around and refills as they see fit, so you don’t have to re-​order (which is awesome!). They don’t take reservations, and the gentleman at front was a little rude/didn’t really know what was going on. We showed up, he told us there was a 10 – 15 minute wait, 30 minutes later we said there was a 20 – 25 minute wait. It was extremely frustrating and we almost walked out but luckily a table got up so we could sit.
It was $ 23 for bottomless, which you can’t beat. Cute place but small. Overall a good experience, but don’t rely on their information too much and have a plan B!

Really disappointed with Bar Charley. Originally, my family was trying to have dinner at Lauriol Plaza on a Saturday night, which was adventurous to say the least. The wait was over an hour and it was raining, so we decided to try Bar Charley.
I had actually never heard of this place before, but we really didn’t have another choice but to find something else in the area. They could accommodate a group of 6 walk-​in.
The dining room is supremely cozy. Cute, but simple décor. They have an extensive cocktail and wine list.
There is definitely an emphasis on the bar. The menu is mostly appetizers with about 5 entrees. Once our server arrived, she informed us that they were no longer serving/​out of 7 things on the menu including one of the entrees. Our choices were severely limited. All but one of us decided we would go for the easiest thing and just get the burger. As we ordered, the served informed us that the burgers were now made with a higher quality beef and cost $ 18 instead of the menu indicated $ 14. Seriously?! Change your menus Bar Charley bc that’s pretty shady. We had already ordered drinks and apps before the server even let us know! Now, the burgers were pretty good, but not $ 18 good! The one in group that did not get the burger ordered the crab dip. Now we all should’ve gotten it. Although it was an app, it was a perfect portion with crab, parm, and artichoke. Yum!
I will say our server did pretty much fail us on drink refills, etc. We aren’t a high maintenance group, but we had to ask multiple times before our water was refilled. It didn’t look like she had much help bc I didn’t see any bussers, managers, or hosts helping with clearing or refills.
I definitely won’t be back to Bar Charley. It wasn’t a very good experience.

I recommend the fries, the pasta, the chicken wings, the beets, the brussels sprouts (so delicious), the mushroom flat bread, the squash and the fish and chips. I enjoyed every single dish we ordered (pretty much everything on the menu except burgers) and as well as the drinks. The prices of cocktails are reasonable compared to lots of other places, the service was amazing and the ambiance was great on a Friday night. I removed one star because of the dirty toilets; they need to clean them asap!!!

They get a one, JUST because of the greedy bartender that said we have to order food to sit at the bar. I’m not sure if it was because I am black or not, but I know that the group of girls that sat down after us, were not given that ultimatum. Do not know the bartender’s name, but he had long dark hair in a ponytail.
And I am not even mad about that, I’m mad at the fact that while we were sitting there trying to make up our mind, he attempted to give our seats away. Thankfully, the CUSTOMER had the decency to say, «Oh, I think they are still deciding».

Sadly, I was neither impressed with the food or the drinks here, which is sad because the location is super convenient, and the seating area is incredibly cozy and perfect for catching up with friends over drinks.
I ordered something from the happy hour menu in a tiki mug that the menu made look like it would be sweet, but my enthusiastic waiter assured me would be citrus-​y and closer to sour than sweet. It tasted like someone had liquefied sour patch kids and made it into a beverage. It wasn’t the craft cocktail I was expecting and made me want to call a dentist for fear of making cavities as I drank. We also ordered the Brussels sprouts, which are my absolute favorite veggie, but this dish just felt like it was trying too hard. The sprouts themselves were delicious but also had capers and olives and and and on them, which mostly made the main flavor pickled. Fewer capers could have served the dish better, as even picking out just the sprouts left a decidedly vinegary taste in the mouth.
I’m sorry, Bar Charley. I wanted to love you.

Awesome New Year’s Day brunch!
Bar Charley is around the corner from my house and I had a last minute guest in town who wanted to go out for brunch on New Year’s Day. I knew that the «popular» spots were booked up months in advance, so I turned to local options. I walk past Bar Charley every day on my way to work and have heard great things about happy hour, so I decided to give brunch a try.
They normally aren’t open for brunch/​lunch during the week, so I gave them a call on New Year’s morning to make sure they were open. They were and don’t take reservations, so I told them I’d see them around noon! When we arrived, it was crowded with a few parties waiting, but not unreasonably busy. For two people there was about a 15 minute wait… no problem at all!
On weekends, they offer a brunch with bottomless coffee and mimosas for $ 24. On New Year’s Day, it was just $ 20 — such a deal! You could pick from mimosas, bloody marys, or Narragansett beers and the drinks kept coming. Five mimosas went down way too easily and were the perfect drink to welcome 2016.
For our meals, I ordered the Hangover Burger and my sister ordered the Nutella French Toast. I was craving lunch food, and this burger did not disappoint! Cooked medium rare and topped with fresh jalapeño, cheddar cheese, and a perfectly over-​easy egg, this burger was everything I wanted and more. It came with a crisp side of french fries and they were the perfect accompaniment.
The Nutella French Toast was out of this world! It was brioche bread stuffed with Nutella and garnished with chopped hazelnuts and whipped cream. I don’t normally go for sweet breakfasts, but my sister is a sugar fiend, so this fit the bill. It was perfectly cooked, full of delicious flavors, and all around delicious. Definitely needed some maple syrup, which just enhanced the hazelnut and chocolate. She also got a side of home fries, which were flavorful and tasty.
Our server was fantastic, attentive, and kept the drinks flowing. Bar Charley offered the perfect brunch for New Year’s Day at an awesome price point.

I came here on a Monday since they have Happy Hour all night! I ordered a tiki drink ($ 5), the Catalan Fries (50% off), and the chicken wings (25% off). Everything was awesome and the fries are soooo addicting!
The ambiance is really nice inside. I would recommend trying to get a table indoors versus the patio outside.
Service was good! Food was good! Prices were good! Can’t argue with that! :)

Just went on Sunday night 11÷15÷15 and I haven’t been there in about 6 months and wow have things changed for the worse. No more poutine and the menu on their website as of today 11÷16÷15 still has not been updated with their current menu. In fact, another couple next to us, just got seated and verbally stated to each other they were leaving due to the lackluster menu choices.
Food is zero stars and service was zero stars and the cocktails were two stars, hence the one star rating.
Appetizers:
Catalan Fries: soggy mess with sauces that carried more color than flavor and the fried egg was completely overcooked, I was expecting a runny egg.
Chicken Wings Korean Style: crispy but the chicken was dry and very bland; the radish, peanuts and cilantro were an afterthought.
Entrees: *Note the burgers are no longer wagyu.
Burgers: got one that had cheddar and bacon on a brioche bun, pretty standard burger. The other was a blue cheese burger with mushrooms, garlic aioli and arugula, the mushrooms were by far the best part of the burger. The menu didn’t mention it came with fries… would’ve been nice if the server mentioned we would have fries on fries on fries. Meh.
Cocktails:
Fuentes Daiquiri: Jalapeño infused tequila cocktail… spicy AF… thought I was gonna die. No wait, I did, this is me writing a review in the afterlife. Definitely asked the server how spicy it is because I can’t handle TOO too spicy, yup that guy lied. Then he recommended the Charley’s Rickey: tasted like cough medicine, think about the flavors: gin and Concord grape, guess it’s like the song Gin and Juice. Thought Snoop Dogg might pop out. Wow this guy sucks.
Service:
Probably the worst service I’ve had in 2015. He put in the appetizers and the entrees to come out all at the same time. WTF? Who wants to rush eating fries and wings while your burgers are getting cold??? His menu recommendations were all terrible on both food and drinks. There wasn’t a single thing that I liked. And I was constantly having to wave him over. Annoying! If you get Philip as your server… run…I mean really RUNNNNNNN!

Bar Charley is a tasteful and chic basement bar in a rowhouse between Dupont Circle and Adam’s Morgan.
Pros
— Decent Happy Hour deals, especially Mondays
** Note: The Happy Hour menu is different than the one online.**
— Cute patio but only for groups of 4 or smaller
— Not too loud (unlike the other bars in Dupont!)
Cons
— Not near a metro, but it’s a 10 – 15 minute walk from Dupont Circle
What I got/​What I thought
A Molokai Mule, one of their Tiki Drinks that are $ 5 during HH. The other Tiki Drink is the Suffering Bastard (bourboun, gin, ginger beer, lime). Both sounded delicious, and I had a hard time choosing, so my server gave me a shot of each cocktail (see picture)! It was very thoughtful. After sipping both, I chose the Molokai Mule. It had a more citrus taste, which was perfect for a summer afternoon.
We also ordered the Catalan Fries, which were delicious. They’re also a Happy Hour deal. The fries tasted fresh, not frozen. AND they put a fried egg on top! We had to get another order because we quickly ate the first.
I like Bar Charley for their quality drinks and quality food and it’s not freakishly expensive during Happy Hour. It’s not too crowded, so I can hear my friends talking, and it feels intimate, but not too quiet. Their dinner menu looks eclectic, and I’d consider coming for dinner when I have money to spend.

Hit this place up for a happy hour on a Monday night, and had a relatively pleasant experience. Arrived at 6:15 or so. We didn’t have a problem finding a seat, and appreciated that you could order from the happy hour menu anywhere in the restaurant. That always makes finding a seat easier. We were seated immediately, and looked over the happy hour menu. Like one reviewer mentioned, it did not reflect what was advertised online. I was actually more excited about the food online than in the restaurant.
That being said, I decided on a whim to try the coconut curry mussels and a dark and stormy drink. I’m currently trying to limit carbs, so none of the French fry dishes were an option for me. The mussels were plentiful, but not necessarily flavorful. The broth in the bottom of the pot was tasty enough, but the flavor didn’t really make it’s way to the mussels. The drink was good but not really strong. But for $ 5, I wasn’t mad. My happy hour buddies ordered a glass of wine and some other drink i can’t remember. Wine specials were not very impressive — $ 2 off a glass. Even though it was storming and raining like crazy this past Monday, the restaurant did start to fill up pretty quickly. Maybe because they have their happy hour specials all night on Monday? I’ll probably come back on a Monday if I’m in the area.