Most Overhyped Club

The aviation-themed nightclub Fly Lounge (1802 Jefferson Pl., NW; 202-828-4433; flyloungedc.com)—which landed near Dupont Circle last spring—has been touted as DC’s trendiest new club. Female bartenders wear skimpy flight-attendant uniforms with knee-high boots; TV screens play video footage of a sunset sky to represent the view through a cabin’s windows; bags of Fly Lounge peanuts sit on the bar; and a roped-off area with tables is the club’s equivalent of first class.

But the theme wears thin fast. The club is small. Even at 11 pm on a Thursday, the 30 people there seemed crammed in. And forget about sitting—unless you pay the $600 drink minimum for a table, there’s nowhere to do that. The drinks are fine but high-priced—from $10 gin-and-tonics to $14-and-up martinis. And the unoriginal house music didn’t fit the lounge’s cheeky vibe; DJs seemed more interested in hitting on the bartenders than in playing something memorable.