1. Aslin Filling Station
14th Street corridor
Virginia brewery Aslin plans to bring a family-friendly beer garden to DC’s 14th Street this fall. The auto-themed venue will feature 24 taps, Adirondack chairs, and picnic tables.
2. Pen Druid
Sperryville, Va.
Beer snobs go out of their way to sip the wild-fermented beers and ciders from this destination brewery. Its new location near Shenandoah National Park is worth a drive for the stunning views of the Blue Ridge Mountains alone.
3. City-State Brewing Co.
Edgewood
One of DC’s newest breweries, in a former freight-rail depot, boasts an arts venue for live music and events, arcade games, and beers such as the Equal Marriage dark wheat and the 8 Wards pale ale.
4. Solace Brewing Outpost
Navy Yard
Northern Virginia-based Solace Brewing expanded its popular brand to DC for the first time with a huge, hops-chic bar near Nationals Park with a roomy patio overlooking the Anacostia River. Drinkers can sip Italian pilsners or sours—all produced at the breweries in Sterling and Falls Church—while digging into pub fare and dressed-up sausages from Georgetown butcher Stachowski’s.
5. DC Brau
Fort Lincoln
The District’s first modern-day brewery is celebrating its tenth anniversary. One new addition: an outdoor beer garden with picnic tables and, on weekends, food-truck fare.
6. Shelter
Capitol Hill
The Neighborhood Restaurant Group’s new beer hall/garden at the Roost food hall highlights low-alcohol brews across 50 frequently rotating taps. Pair them with food ranging from sushi to pizza to tacos.
7. Mattie & Eddie’s
Pentagon City
Chef Cathal Armstrong—formerly of Restaurant Eve and Eamonn’s—delivers an upgraded Irish pub where bartenders are trained to pour the perfect Guinness with creamy consistency and foamy head: “106 seconds if you’re doing it properly.” To go alongside: snack-size sausages wrapped in puff pastry.
8. Nighthawk Brewery & Pizza
Pentagon City
Chef Johnny Spero (Reverie, Bar Spero) teamed up with barman Scott Parker (Don Tito, Barley Mac) and the hops obsessives at Aslin Beer Company for a massive beer-and-pizza hall at Westpost. Go for a ’90s design that channels Saved by the Bell; a roster of low-ABV beers; and a menu of easy eats such as wings, burgers, and thin tavern-style pizzas.
9. Other Half Brewing
Ivy City
This Brooklyn-based transplant, co-owned by Washington natives, made its DC debut last fall. The brewery is famous for its IPAs, which you can sip from a 5,000-square-foot taproom or covered roof deck.
10. Zinnia
Silver Spring
Takoma Beverage Co. owner Chris Brown transformed the historic Mrs. K’s Toll House restaurant into a drink garden serving beers and wines on tap, alongside a gastropub menu with eats like fish n’ chips and family-style roast chicken dinners.
A version of this article appears in the August 2021 issue of Washingtonian.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
