Service Bar

Got a strong recommendation from a fellow Yelper at a DC Yelp event last week. My girlfriend & I were in DC last night for an event on U St, and we wanted to go with his recommendation.This is a very short walk from U St Metro station on the Vermont Ave side exit; literally just across on east side of Vermont on U St. We walked in, and not surprisingly this was a small place, but that didn't bother me. It was cutely decorated with a bar area & seating for full service. We got here in time for happy hour, which runs 5-7 PM. The happy hour is only drinks; so don't expect a food deal, but I knew that as I briefly checked website. I wanted to get an alcoholic beverage (on the happy hour price of course) to get the full experience besides only drinking water.I liked that the server mentioned the happy hour and said what the HH cocktail of the day was, as I was going to ask him. I also liked that he poured water in their cold metal cups right away before we settled on drink. He let us look, decide, and came back in reasonable time. I knew I didn't want the cocktail of the day. I was between 2 choices. I asked the server about Pisco Punch, which he explained as a type of Brandy from Peru (& also Chile...gotta give credit where credit is due, but server mentioned Peru). I said that sounded good over Old Fashioned and went with trying that for $9 (happy hour price...normally $11).Server brought me the Pisco Punch. Wow, it was excellent; they really know what they're doing on mixed drinks (at least this one). My only compliment was too much Ice; I don't like when the ice sticks up from the glass. The alcohol was fairly strong but covered with some sweetness. I shared some with my g/f, and we both agreed that it was excellent. She even jokingly commented we never both like the drink. I politely said well maybe something more generic like beer or some white wines.Per Yelper's recommendation, we decided to split the fried chicken. We got 4 breast pieces for $36, which came with broccoli & mac n' cheese. I was pretty hungry (just shy of hangry). We were both VERY impressed with the broccoli. It was the best broccoli, I've had in a long time, well seasoned.The mac n' cheese was good, but nothing to write home about either. The fried chicken was great, but it wasn't exactly what I thought. It had a nice honey or maple type of glaze, which added a nice sweet flavor. But I guess I had kind of hoped for something a bit more traditional. Having said that, I still thought the chicken was very good.The bill came, and of course not surprisingly it already included 20% gratuity. That is more of a common practice in DC with that Initiative 82 where it essentially raises the wage for tipped workers. Some restaurants I guess pass on to the customer with an automatic tip included. It's pretty rare for me or my girlfriend to be in DC, and when we have we didn't have tons of time to go to a full service restaurant as we were down there for another reason like Capitals hockey, Nats baseball, or other event. I've mentioned this in a few Yelp reviews of restaurants in DMV that do this for even medium sized parties of like 6. The problem with this is that the server could be terrible, slow, surly, etc. and still get that guaranteed 20%. In this case, our server had a good job with time efficiency, water refills, & answering questions. However, he wasn't friendly; he was cordial enough, but not at all friendly either.Additionally, restroom was clean but very small. Toilet was right by the sink, little room in there. Not much to be done there with the space constraints of the restaurant.Overall, food was very good, drink excellent, service was efficient but not friendly, and overall mostly a positive, but I wouldn't necessarily rush back here either.

I can totally understand why this bar has been rated #22 best bars in North America ! The food, the specialty drinks, the service. Total neighborhood bar with great vibes. You're sure to make a new friend and have a great bite - highly recommend the buffalo dip and anything chicken Special shoutout to our server and bartender Luke. His mixology skills are some of the best I've seen and tasted !

Wanted a little Sunday chill day so I headed over to Service bar. The Bombay government punch has the perfect amount of booze and flavor. The hot dusted chicken sandwich was AMAZING!!! I literally finished the entire sandwich in about 7 minutes.

Well this was an interesting night lol. Think this was the third place I ended up. Got some drinks here. They were pretty good. Ended up in some secret room that was almost like a closet lol. There were about six of us in there. Good times. Got to crack jokes and be away from the crowd. I'd check it out again. The space is small but it's good to meet there with friends and catch up. Good ambiance. I'd check it out again.

No lies told: I came to this place bc it was #33 on the World's Best Bars North America List.Loves:+ Big selection of cocktails+ Casual and laid-back atmosphere+ I had dinner already but their bar food looked pretty good. If I had more drinks I would have ordered nachos.The one thing I noticed was how they had several cocktails that were "sold out" on their menu. Not a big deal given their broad selection but worth noting if you had your heart set on something... it happens!Overall cool spot and loved how neighborhoody it felt here.

One of the top rated bars on the 50 Best Bars in North America, so I knew I had to come try it. I made a reservation in advance, but it seems like you can also just walk in. We were sat outside which was fine since by night time, DC cooled down a bit. Cocktails were affordable, at least more so than NYC. They have seasonal cocktails that were available as well. I ended up trying the Costa Del Sol Gin and Tonic. It was a light and refreshing drink. The citrus in it was great, and it was perfect for a warm night. The other drinks like the Pisco Punch and Rose All Day were great as well. There were items on the menu that were sold out which was surprising since we got there around 8pm. However, we ended up liking our drinks regardless.

I was gonna begin this with something like service bar has got to be one of the best bars in DC, as if it literally isn't ranked the 22nd best bar in the country- this cocktail menu is gorgeous. there are so many options that even the pickiest of drinkers could find some thing they like. such a big fan of the drawn images and the style of the menu too- they have a lot of funny decoration and garbanzo throughout the bar and menu, lots of attention to detail. outdoor seating was very cute and comfortable, much less loud than the dark neon inside bar- nice waiter, his moral seemed low....but who's isn't after explaining that the carrot margarita does indeed taste like carrot .... he let us sit for awhile even though we ordered one drink each only. no rush feeling- my friend got the classic chicken sandwich and said they're still thinking about it the next day. they had such a fun food menu centered around fried chicken.- I was sad that the espresso martini did not have the classic three beans on top and you could not taste the coconut or chocolate. it was a good espresso martini, but nothing special compared to all the other special items on this menu

I was happy to find this bar open at midday on Saturday. Between the two of us we had 2 orders of eggplant, one order of carrots and two drinks. I got the Green Machine and the other member of my party got the Libra. My drink was very light, not strongly alcoholic and mostly tasted like the mixers (citrus juice, green tea). The Libra which I had a sip of was a nice balanced fruity drink. I probably would have ultimately preferred that drink. The honey eggplant was very good hence us ordering two. We also really enjoyed the carrots. I wish there were more non-chicken options, especially larger options. I saw that there used to be an eggplant parm sandwich and was disappointed to not find it on the menu when I went. Overall the food quality was very good, especially for a bar.

Looking for private area with private service and great drinks.I completely recommend this area if you are looking for a place that has amazing food,drinks, and service. The server (Rio) made sure I was comfortable and well taken care of. The atmosphere is loud but creates an intimate experience. The fried chicken was top notch crispy and with amazing side dishes such as creamy Mac and cheese. I definitely recommend coming to enjoy the great ambiance and terrific drinks. I will definitely 10/10 bring my friends to check it out ! Picture worthy drinks !!! Thank you Team for creating such an experience! I'm also so thankful for the hooks under the table!

I love this place!! It's conveniently located off the U Street Metro and has both outdoor and indoor seating. I will note that outdoor seating only takes up to 4 people for seating as I went with a group of 5 and we couldn't sit outside even though I had made an outdoor reservation for 5. However, the staff was very accommodating for our party since I had made a reservation and we were eventually seated in a little closed off room which turned out to be so fun! The staff served us when we turned a light switch on which was so cool! The drinks were great and their happy hour menu is such a deal! If you can't make it to happy hour the prices are standard DC prices around $15-$25 per drink. I got the pisco punch and mango sticky rice drink which was such a unique take on a classic dessert. Overall, a great time and would go again!Pictured: shishito peppers, fries, mozzarella balls