Ultimate Guides Washington D.C.
The Resy Guide to Where — and What — to Drink This Fall in Washington, D.C.
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Fall has settled over D.C. and with it comes the pleasure of ordering a drink that pairs perfectly with the weather outside. Bartenders across the city are as devoted to seasonal ingredients as are our local chefs, raiding the same pantry for apples and cider, figs, chestnuts, cranberries, and a cabinet’s worth of warming spices. Innovations range from a hot toddy riff built on pine and rosemary to a bourbon-based beverage blended with red apple syrup and cardamom.
It’s also the time of year when the Old Fashioned often becomes the house standard. Within a few metro stops of one another, you’ll find one smoked with Islay scotch at a piano bar and another spiked with chaat masala and jaggery at a charming Indian restaurant.
Read on for where — and what — to sip between now and the first hard frost. The season for getting cozy with a cocktail has officially arrived.
Must be 21 years of age or older to consume alcoholic beverages. Please drink responsibly.
Providencia H Street Corridor
Curiosity Mato El Gato
Flu season is upon us, and the best defense often requires tea, honey, and lemon. Providencia puts a twist on the classic cure by using a gin infused with Earl Grey tea and serves the beverage in a coupe instead of a teacup. It arrives with a small cat perched on the edge of the glass, a playful nod to the name of the beverage. Pro tip: The tiny toy cat is yours to take home for $3.
Cordelia Fishbar Union Market
Spiced Apple Sangria
Cordelia’s coastal setting is made for a fall sangria, and this one delivers in spades: bourbon, cabernet sauvignon, and apple cider meet orange, cinnamon and cloves for a sweet, boozy, aromatic pour. It’s joined by a line-up of seasonal heavy hitters: There’ s the Grape Expectations with vanilla vodka, Concord grapes, and maple cinnamon; a rum milk punch with a graham cracker rim; and a creation called the Leaf Pepper, where gin is paired with apple cider, maple and nutmeg. Time to put on your favorite fall sweater and toast to the season.
Bernadette’s Georgetown
Smoked Old Fashioned
Feeling chilly? An old-world piano bar with an entire section of the cocktail menu devoted to the Old Fashioned is just what you need to warm up immediately. You can’t go wrong with this one, complete with Angels Envy bourbon, Islay scotch to add some smoke, sweet maple, and complex bitters aged in a whisky barrel.
La Merna Washington
Coffee & Cigarettes
As the name suggests, this is an espresso-forward beverage, but the addition of amaro ups the bitter ante while a pinch of nutmeg brings a hint of warmth. You can also, if you choose, order a side of actual cigarettes with this drink, though you’ll have to smoke them outside. Nevertheless, if you’re feeling contemplative or curious — especially given the moody ambient lighting and dark woods — this is the drink to order.
Tapori H Street Corridor
Lakhan’s Old Fashioned
The Indian twist on Tapori’s Old Fashioned is especially fitting for the season. Whisky and brandy get a kick from chaat masala and date-like sweetness from jaggery; the warmth from the alcohol and the spice from the chaat masala will warm you to your toes and bring a tickle to your palate. Tapori’s lively scene and spicy Nepalese and Indian fare from chef Suresh Sundas are the perfect complement for this bold beverage, and do pair this with the lotus root chaat, no matter what.
Pearl Dive Oyster Palace Logan Circle
Diving for Apples
Pearl Dive Oyster Palace already feels cozy with its exposed brick and dark-wood tables, and this cocktail only adds to the warm welcome. The base is Irish whisky and Montenegro amaro, blended with apple cider and allspice liqueur for a holiday-ready finish. The result is reminiscent of apple pie and gingerbread with a bite — exactly what you want this time of year.
Reynold’s Dupont Circle
Funky Business
Craving some drama this fall? Head here, where the seductive auras will have you channeling your inner Don Draper. Only a martini will fit the bill and, luckily, Reynold’s has several of those. We recommend this particularly bold and briny mix, made with blue-cheese-washed vodka and olive brine, topped with a plump olive stuffed with blue cheese for extra funk.
Agora DC Dupont Circle
Silk and Honey
Agora is all charm and polish: green and gold décor, leafy greenery overhead, and exposed brick that brings that makes you feel right at home. Add in an Eastern Mediterranean menu you can’t say no to and a sublime seasonal cocktail menu, and you have all the elements of a perfect night out. This season, try drink made with pistachio oil-washed brandy, honey, cinnamon, allspice, lemon, and clarified milk. It’s smooth, spiced, and a brings you that snug feeling just when you need it.
The Dabney Cellar Mount Vernon Square
It’s Gourd Season
Descend the steps into this stellar cellar cocktail bar and you will immediately be embraced by its convivial vibe. It’s a grand setting for both a quick pick-me-up as well as an evening spent with good company over shared small plates and drinks. The seasonal cocktail menu standout is this drink, which blends blanco Tequila, butternut squash, miso, and spices, invoking what you might find in an autumnal garden. Says beverage director Dan Todd, “Winter squash is in abundance, and marigold and chile peppers are persisting through the first frosts in the region. We preserve the flavor of chiles and marigold in oil to finish on top of the cocktail, and add local miso to bring out the savory sweetness of the butternut squash.” It’s a sweater weather cocktail if there ever were one.
The Grill Southwest Waterfront
Cosmo Blanc
If you’re looking to escape the brisk, windy weather that fall brings to the D.C.’s waterfront, take refuge in the sleek but inviting atmosphere of The Grill. The restaurant shines a light on the seasonal cranberry by using white cranberry juice in their Cosmopolitan, and crowning the beverage with a layer of cranberry in a foam. It’s the beverage you need to kick off the holiday party season.
NH 48 Indian Kitchen Washington
Rangoli Spritz
This spritz sparkles as much as the annual fall celebration of Diwali, also known as the festival of lights. The drink features pear vodka, elderflower, cardamom, and citrus shaken together, poured over a single ice cube and topped with a splash of soda. A stenciled rangoli, which is traditional Indian folk art, provides a whimsical decoration for the glass. It’s slightly effervescent, with bright floral notes, and is best enjoyed with an order of palak chaat while you take in the crisp fall weather on this newcomer’s colorful, string-light-adorned patio.
L’Annexe Gerogetown
Cinnabar Shores
L’Annexe is a premier cocktail destination in D.C., known for meticulous technique and a wealth of housemade drink components. This focus on excellence is evident in this particular tipple: rum macerated with berries plus cinnamon, yellow Chartreuse, allspice, lavender, mint, and lemon. Sink into the plush chairs in their book-shelf-lined lounge with this beverage in hand and see where the evening takes you.
Ellizabetta | La Strega West End
The Bell Witch
Owner and sommelier Elli Benchimol calls her grandmother a witch (lovingly, of course), and thus a restaurant bearing her grandmother’s name would have to have the word witch (“la strega” in Italian) in it. That theme extends throughout the restaurant’s dark, mysterious artwork, deep midnight-blue palette, and best of all, its cocktail list that feels like pure sorcery. Case in point: This rye-based drink, which pours the color of fresh-pressed apple cider. It hits you with a bright citrus aroma, and then settles into a woodsy, toasty sip, with hints of pine, chestnuts, raisins, and rosemary — essentially, autumn in a glass.
The Golden Age Dupont Circle
I Can’t Get No Satisfaction
Late 19th century charm and opulence abound at the Golden Age, which celebrates a time of artistic extravagance in the U.S., when cocktails came into fashion and bartenders got wildly creative. The cocktails at the Golden Age fully honor this era of creativity; their menu spans from classic (Sazerac) to decadent (cognac French 75) to seasonal, and it’s here where the I Can’t Get No Satisfaction steals the spotlight. It may sound like a classic espresso martini with vodka, allspice and coffee, but the dollop of caramel-coffee whipped cream truly sets it apart.
Pisco y Nazca – Dupont Downtown
Autumn in Cusco
The name sets the stage for this seasonal sipper. Nothing says fall in the DMV like apples, which grow in abundance across Maryland and Virginia. For an apple-themed cocktail that goes well beyond cider, try this riff on an Old Fashioned which pairs bourbon with red apple syrup and cardamom. Other highlights on the beverage menu include a pisco sour flight and a fruit-forward red sangria.
Kache Mt Vernon Triangle
DC Tap Water
While this drink’s name doesn’t exactly scream fall, it does certainly taste like the season. Fig-infused scotch brings sweetness and unmistakable wood-fire notes, while Aperol and amaro bring balance with a bitter edge. A twist of orange completes the autumn package. Our recipe for success? Settle into one of their cushy booths, order a seasonal drink, and beat those colder weather blues.
