Food

The Admiral Opens in Dupont Circle With Daily Oyster Happy Hour and a Massive Patio

Lobster rolls and 75 types of bourbon are on the menu at the Mission Group restaurant.

The Admiral opens today in Dupont Circle with 18 flat screen TVs and daily happy hour. Photo by Evy Mages

If you’ve been to Mexican spot Mission or Hawthorne on U Street, you’re familiar with the Mission Group mentality: lively bars with frequent food-and-drink happy hours and tons of no-fee event spaces. Co-founders Fritz Brogan and Reed Landry are sticking to the same formula for the newest addition to their restaurant family, the Admiral, a seafood spot opening today in Dupont Circle.

The bar is named in tribute to Admiral Samuel Francis Du Pont. Photo by Evy Mages.
The bar is named in tribute to Admiral Samuel Francis Du Pont. Photo by Evy Mages

While Mission is all about tequila, the Admiral’s drink of choice is bourbon. Specifically, 75 different types of American whiskey. If you prefer brews over booze, a dozen draft lines are pouring classics like Pacifico, Stella Artois, and Sam Adams as well as two draft cocktails. Still riding the hard seltzer train? The bar serves both Truly and White Claw.

Keeping in step with the Admiral’s sister spots, happy hour is daily with both food and drink specials. The first session from 4 PM to 7 PM features half-price oyster platters, $7 draft cocktails, and select beers for $5 or $8. On Thursday through Saturday starting at 11 PM there are more half-price bivalves in addition to shot specials—liquid courage to dance to the DJ.

The restaurant’s name is in homage to Admiral Samuel Francis Du Pont (you may be familiar with a certain circle also named in tribute). For chef Roberto Hernandez, the moniker beget the menu. “It was like: Admiral. Navy. Seafood. Ocean. That’s the road we’ve got to take,” says Hernandez.

A private event space has its own bar and outdoor area. Photo by Evy Mages.
A private event space has its own bar and outdoor area. Photo by Evy Mages

The nautical menu is the marriage of seafood plates and global pub favorites. Hernandez looked to New England for a buttery lobster roll on a potato bun. Dishes like jambalaya and hushpuppies are pulled from the south. Jumbo lump crab dip gratin is a tribute to the Mid-Atlantic, and oysters at the raw bar are sourced from Virginia.

There’s also plenty of land-loving bar snacks like brisket sliders, bourbon BBQ chicken wings, and french fries made in-house. The restaurant is opening with a preview menu until December 24 and will unveil the full offerings on December 26.

The restaurant’s pièce de résistance is a massive 200-seat outdoor patio with it’s own bar, lounge area, and event space. While the patio is currently winterized the team is exploring adding heaters for cold weather.

In the meantime, you can pull up a chair indoors. Like the menu, the decor plays on the seafaring theme with navy banquettes and light-washed wood. Eighteen flat screen TVs are scattered across the space, which means the bar can play both the big game and the big political showdown (it is Washington, after all).

Another neon sign pays homage to the nautical theme. Photo by Evy Mages.
Another neon sign pays homage to the nautical theme. Photo by Evy Mages

Bottomless brunch will be available on weekends in January 2020.

The Admiral. 1 Dupont Circle., NW.

Daniella Byck
Lifestyle Editor

Daniella Byck joined Washingtonian in 2022. She was previously with Outside Magazine and lives in Northeast DC.