Sorry for the radio silence, been out of town (more on that later) much of the past 3 weeks or so with trips to Charlottesville, Memphis, Savannah & Charleston (Darius Rucker/Hootie sighting at brunch in the latter locale).  Not too busy on the DC bar news front, but there are some interesting bits of news to share:

• Read my preview of the 17th Street spot Duke’s Grocery, a neighborhood guide for U Street & Logan Circle, and my post on where to watch the Top 25 college football teams in DC this season.
• Bar News
  • Openings
    • El Centro D.F. (Georgetown) (Twitter, Facebook, website) (1218 Wisconsin Ave. NW at M St) (Fri. Sept. 7th): newest branch of the successful tacos + tequila spot opening in old Third Edition (WCP)
      
    • Duke’s Grocery (Dupont) (Twitter, Facebook, website) (1513 17th St. NW) (Tues. Sept 10th): new sandwichery/market/pub in old Cafe Green space near 17th and P. Sandwiches get rave reviews from Post. More info in my post earlier this month. (WCP, PoPville)
    • Da Luft (H Street) (Twitter, Facebook, website) (1242 H St. NE) (soft Sat. Sept. 21st): new lounge that soft-opened on H Street Festival (Frozen Tropics)
    • Petworth Citizen (Petworth) (829 Upshur St NW) (Twitter,  (soft Wed. Sept. 25th): 80-seat bar/restaurant/free book library from co-owner of Room 11 and The Passenger. 13 classic cocktails, solid beer list, with some Asian undercurrents to whole menu. The Prince of Petworth is ecstatic. (PoPville, WCP, WBJ)
    • The Gryphon (Dupont) (1337 Connecticut Ave. NW) (first week of October): after 3+ months of being closed after a brief opening, bar will ditch the sports bar concept and focus on being a loungey steakhouse like its sister Lost Society. (WCP)
    • Rialto (Georgetown) (2915 M St. NW) (Thu. Sept. 26th): located in the space originally containing the popular The Guards dive/college bar, this place has been advertised as an Italian restaurant previously (so I didn’t write about it), but some recent details make me think it will be actually more of a bar/lounge (dress code, open till 1:30a on weekdays, 2:30a on weekends) (Washingtonian)
  • Closings
    • TruOrleans: Very unpopular eatery/bar shut down for many financial/liquor license woes, as well detailed in this WCP story.
  • Future Openings
    
    • The Fainting Goat (U Street) (1330 U St. NW) (late Nov./early Dec. 2013): unpretentious 129-seat gastropub with 12 beers on tap + 1 prosecco. PoPville has solid “pre-preview” with construction pics.
    • El Ray (U Street) (919 U St. NW) (Nov. 2013): outdoor taqueria made up of shipping containers from the Hilton Brothers (Marvin, The Brixton, etc.) (PoPville)
    • Parts and Labor (Chinatown/PQ) (709 D St. NW) (Nov. 2013): 100 seat bar + restaurant, part of Neighborhood Restaurant Group (GBD, ChurchKey, etc.) next to new Red Apron sandwich spot. Sounds awesome (Post)
    • Right Proper Brew Pub (Shaw) (624 T St. NW) (mid-November 2013): brewpub set to open in November (Twitter/pete_eats)
    • Sona Creamery and Wine Bar (Eastern Market) (Twitter, Facebook, website) (660 Pennsylvania Ave. SE) (November 2013): onsite creamery and wine bar in 2400 sq foot Sprint/Moto Photo space; Seattle-inspired (PoPville, Capitol Hill Corner, WBJ)
    • Alphonse Italian Market and Osteria (U Street) (1212 U St. NW): Italian eatery/market applies for liquor license, unknown opening. From my former neighbor who operates Biergarten Haus and the Russia House. Could be just restaurant/market, but applied-for-hours (24 hours, and booze till 2a/3a) tells me it may also be nightlife spot (PoPville)
    • Unnamed coffee-and-cocktails bar (Logan) (1333 14th St. NW on Rhode Island Ave. b/t P & N) (early 2014): coffee and cocktails cafe from a couple from the west coast, in space currently occupied by Fathom Creative (WCP)
    • Unnamed restaurant/bar w/ craft beer (Brookland) (8th & Monroe St. NE) (late spring/early summer 2014): 4,200 sq ft restaurant/bar from Meridian Pint/Smoke & Barrel owner in new Brookland Works building, accommodating 120 inside & 48 outside (PoPville, WCP)
  • Tremendous must-bookmark list by DC Beer about DC’s Best Craft Beer Happy Hours. Highlights Iron Horse, GBD, Scion, Pizzeria Paradiso, Smoke and Barrel, and Smith Commons, while listing several others.  A reader posted on Barred in DC’s Facebook wall that Mandu on K Street has a very good $3 draft beer happy hour.
  • Nice piece by Young & Hungry/Sidman about the single-spirit featured bars in DC. Focus on Libertine (absinthe), El Centro D.F. (tequila), Hogo (rum)
  • Solid list of Oktoberfest celebrations by DC bars by the Post/Hahn. Biergarten Haus, Cafe Mozart, The Black Squirrel, Gordon Biersch ($2.50 half-liter Tuesdays through Oct. 15), Dacha Beer Garden, and Doner Bistro mentioned.
  • Thomas Foolery lets charities/non-profits tend bar, serve guests, and keep tips (WCP)
  • Smoke and Barrel celebrates 2nd anniversary on Sat. Sept. 28th. $5 beers all day (Post)
  • BYT’s First Look at 2 Birds 1 Stone on 14th St
  • Terrific Washingtonian/Todd Kliman profile about the owner of Mark Kuller, the owner of Proof, Estadio, Doi Moi, & 2 Birds 1 Stone.
  • Neighbors oppose new The American restaurant/bar in alley near Convention Center (PoPville)
•  Barred in DC activity
  • Duke’s Grocery (Dupont): nice chill spot on my street with promise, good cocktails, solid beers
  • Bar Charley (Dupont): awesome tiki drinks and a tremendous $8 Sazerac. Co-owner Gordon Banks incredibly hospitable (even serving us a sample of one of his specialty cocktails on the house). Went for dinner, will check it out later on the night and/or on a weekend before full review.
  • Memphis
    • Bardog
    • Blind Bear
    • Twilight Sky Terrace at the Madison Hotel
    • Huey’s
    • South of Beale (S.O.B.) (gastropub with best food for any wedding reception I’ve been to)
    • Flying Saucer
    • Raiford’s Disco (awesomest, most hilarious club ever; beers only come in 40 ounces; must be seen to be believed)
  • Savannah
    • The Six Pence Pub
    • McDonough’s
    • 1790
    • Moon River Brewing Co.
    • Jen’s and Friends (someone bring this concept to DC, one room bar w/ 300 martinis & 200 beers)
    • The Warehouse
  • Charleston, SC
    • Bar at Husk (across the alley from one of America’s best restaurants, great space, $9-10 craft cocktails, barrel-aged Manhattans and Martinis)
    • Henry’s House
    • Stars (restaurant with great bar roof top)