Chupacabra Latin Kitchen & Taqueria

My smash (Basic Becky) burger was absolutely beautiful! The meat was packed with flavor and I enjoyed every bite. I thoroughly enjoyed my Black Ops as well, it was malty yet sweet. They have a really cool set up, with tons of kegs around and the space is very clean, which is appealing. Service was a little on the slow side, and the kitchen isn't very good at communicating when items are no longer available to order. They have daily specials, and are conveniently located near the Barracks, so if you're looking for decent burgers and a selection of local beers, stop by!

I visit this place often cause I enjoy the atmosphere, the beer, and the food. The only dark spot on my experience is Griffin (who lied to me and told me his name was Tyler) - he repeatedly treats me poorly. He doesn't seem to like serving me for some reason. He is rude, dismissive, and not very kind. He provides exceptionally poor service to me - even when the bar is empty. Walked in today and sat at the bar hoping for a beer (really love their beer), but Griffin (or lying ass Tyler) never acknowledged my presence, which is par for the course with him. He served the guy who came in behind me and then walked away. I was sitting at the bar watching him play on his phone. Never once said hello or asked if I wanted a beer. I asked if I could get a beer and he ignored me. Cool, I'll take my money elsewhere; asked his name before I left and he asked me why I wanted his name (guess we now that he lied) . This is the 3rd such encounter I've had with him. Recently, I tried to ask him about Valor's dining rewards program and he was less than forthcoming. I still do t know how the program works. Apparently this black girl's money isn't good enough for Griffin/lying ass Tyler. I'd just like to be treated with common courtesy and respect, but Tyler (Griffin) believes otherwise. F*ck you Griffin and Tyler, I'm taking my hard earned coins elsewhere. Bet they will treat me great at Lola's.

I like the craft beer here. The Hazy and the West Coast IPA were both refreshing. The beer is made well and tastes good. The inside of the brewpub is ice cold, which was a great one a cold day. The beertender was helpful, but a little hard to flag down.I ordered a smashburger, it was more like a regular burger than a smashburger. The patties were normal. It was still good though and I really liked the fries, especially with my beer. So no complaint there.Overall, a good place if you need a beer and somewhere to cool off on a hot day and maybe some basic American food.

We love this place for happy hour, dining in and takeout. The bartenders are top notch, as are the stuffed pretzels. My boyfriend loves the beer selection while I gravitate towards the house made specialty cocktails. We love supporting local, veteran owned businesses.

Really good food, really yummy bears, took a while to come out but when it did it was really yummy. Also asked the person went in food was going to come out and they respond probablyValor Brewpub is a solid bar/restaurant along 8th Street. I'm really glad that it's on this street, because there aren't really many options to get good craft beers and food at a decent price! The really cool thing about Valor is that they strive to hire as many veterans as possible while working there. This is fantastic as it not only adds to the vibes with the military barracks and Navy Yard being close by, it also provides support to members of our community that deserve it. When I visited, my partner and I were super hungry. We arrived with our dog and were seated quickly, and ordered right away using the QR code at the table (so convenient!). Our beers came out super fast, and they were so refreshing! There's definitely a spectrum to choose from: pilsner, IPA, amber, etc. They've got something for you here. The food, unfortunately, took a bit of time to come out. We ordered the chicken tenders w/ mumbo sauce, pretzels, and fries. I went inside to ask the bartender (after 45 minutes) where the food was, and he assured me that it would be out soon. Apparently, everyone had ordered at the same time and caused a backup in their kitchen - totally understandable! 5 minutes later, our food arrived. It was so yummy!! The chicken was super flavorful after being drenched in the sauce, and the pretzels were to die for. They were more like mini stuffed crust pizza crusts. So good and unique! Overall, this place is super solid for 8th Street. You get to support veterans, eat great food, and drink tasty beers. What's not to like?

Good beer, good people! Pretty empty because we stopped by on a rainy afternoon, but on a sunny day the ambiance is probably amazing. Service was 100%

We only had a couple beers from this place which were alright, but the food really shone through!Loaded tot poutine ($10) was a small cast iron of tots smothered in gravy and topped with cheese curds. I will say this was heavy on the salt, but nothing a little beer can't cut. And although the amount seems small, this is a HEAVY APP. They give you that amount for your own good/health.Mushroom kingdom stuffed pretezel ($14) with beer cheese - it came out with marinara, but our waiter realized and brought us the beer cheese. It was a great and all, and he was quick to realize, but the cheese he brought was cold! :( So apart from that, the pretzel itself was pretty good - soft and a touch of sweetness. With a hot beer cheese, would have been the perfect pretz.Pardon My Fresh ($12) mussels were pretty average - lots of cooking liquid after to be stopped up by bread.Valor burger ($14) was amazing. It's a massive burger with hella topping and a flavorful punch. My friend also got this, but with a veggie patty, which he said was really good. Technically, they only serve the veggie patty during lunch, but we called ahead to double check. Very sizable burger, although sides are not included.French drip ($14) was really good as well - bread was crusty and there was a generous amount of beef. We kept the jus to dip other things on the table.Pollo a la Brasa (whole $23) was an impressive dish. One whole chicken is split between two metal trays, with accouterments like slaw, pickles, and chilled caramelized onions. There was a yellow mustard the chicken was laid on, as well as drizzled throughout. It was further topped with microgreens, jalapenos, fresh tomatoes, and dandelion petals. The dark meat was pretty good, being dark meat and all, but the breast texture as a little lacking - kinda of powdery and stringy. Beautiful dish for sure, although the white meat texture was lacking. Overall, great comfort food and very chill vibe. All this food was split between 5 people, and we were more than stuffed (with half a chicken leftover).

I really wanted to like this place. I ordered three items - Caesar salad, brisket nachos and a half smoke - each after the other. The Caesar salad is lettuce with Caesar dressing on it. The nachos came out cold so I sent them back and they microwaved the hell out of them so all of the bottom nachos were inedible mush. Then I ordered the half smoke... it was only very slightly warm - the bun was mush... and there was an entire bay leaf sitting under the sausage (those are not safe to eat). The staff was super nice but someone needs to get that kitchen in order.

Ok the beer, environment and vibes are solid. Great place with a lively and seemingly dedicated following - first time here. Now on to the not so solid. The "BBQ" horrible, sorry. The ribs were unevenly coated in some super thick, sauce. They were crunchy and dry, I.e., over cooked and not stored properly after they were taken off the smoker. But they pulled off the membrane so that's a good thing. Brisket, honestly I can't tell if it is or isn't brisket. The slices are uneven, no smoke ring and covered with some odd sauce. In the picture it looks like it was either pan, griddle or oven reheated. There are these weird crunchy pieces added to the sample. Maybe they were an attempt at burnt ends? ‍ I give them credit for trying, apparently BBQ has only been on the menu since early September so it can only get better. Maybe the pulled pork / chicken is better. But over spend on the ribs and brisket at your own risk. 0/10 would order again. I love the business design, staff, and the decor. I've competed in both the amateur and pro BBQ circuits and amenable to helping you guys produce real and sell out Bbq. I'm not going to put you down and not offer to help. But you're going to operate at a loss with your current model / recipes / techniques.

Valor is a welcome gem to the Barracks Row neighborhood! Stopped in here for a late lunch one Sunday afternoon and was thoroughly impressed. Bartender Jamie was amazingly hospitable and made sure our afternoon was a fun one! We had a blast chatting with him the whole time!Valor has a handful of beers that they brew in house and also a lovely craft cocktail menu! I started with the Plum Basil Gin Fizz which came in a French press! They were actually out of plums that day so we improvised and made a lime version and boy was that delightful! I also had the Valor 75 because I can never deny anything with Elderflower and that was equally as delicious. Jamie even kept adding some more Prosecco to my drink when I was low. My dining partner had a few of the beers and enjoyed them all! Jamie also went an extra mile and gave everyone at the bar a drink on the house which had pineapple and cinnamon in it... sounds like an odd combination but it was SO GOOD!Their food menu isn't huge but the food we had surely packed an amazing punch! We had the DC Half Smoke Fried Rice, The Tropic Thunder chicken, and the Duck Fat Roasted Baby Carrots. OMG it was all SO GOOD!! I actually think my favorite was the fried rice and we commented how it would make the freaking BEST hangover food, especially if you added a fried egg on top. The Tropic Thunder and carrots were delicious as well!I definitely plan on stopping in here again in the future. So glad to have this new addition to the hood! And if you'd like to experience the world's best bartender, Jamie typically works on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Friday evenings!