DC bar for group of 30 to 40 people (to rent, house)

[citydweller7913]

Please advise ASAP the place to take a group of people on Saturday or Sunday evening.

Group consists of professional adults. Event is casual, for drinks, networking and conversation, the median age is 30+. So we would prefer to avoid loud places and places where very young, 18+ crowd hangs out.

Please suggest the best places fit for the purpose in the city.


I have done my research and found a few places, but they either don't take reservations (group size is too large, actually larger than I thought it would be. No accommodation for people who don't necessarily want to sit at the table), or they offer reservations for private events and charge fees for closing off the place for the evening. Our event is free of charge (I am not charging my guests to register/sign up), and it's hard to say how many people will up exactly (could be all 40, but could also be less). Therefore, booking a floor/room/reserving X number of tables is not an option.

Preferred area: must be very close (minutes of walking distance) to Dupont Circle, Farragut North, Metro Center or Friendship Heights metro stations.

[citydweller7913]

Anyone?

[halfamazing]

Gazuza- talk to Omar or hector. You can have your private area on the patio for both seating and standing
Kabin- (iffy with the 18+)
Manor DC- talk to Warren

That's all I can think of that meets your age/logistics requirements.

[DCforever]

Tabard Inn has an upstairs room that is nice.

[akorosdc]

It's more casual, but you could see if the Black Squirrel's upstairs room is booked. They don't charge to reserve it.

Saturday is busy, but on Sunday evening I feel like most bars in the Adams Morgan area are going to be empty and might be willing to work with you. Aside from Black Squirrel you could try calling Roofer's Union, Bourbon, or Johnny Pistola's (they have an upstairs bar that they might let you reserve for a group that size). It's not super super close, but 10-15 minute walk from Dupont Circle.

You could also try Mission in Dupont Circle or Darlington House's Cantina Pub (downstairs bar). Both often host networking events, and I always had luck working with Cantina Pub when I organized networking events for my grad school alumni group. Never paid for a reservation, though we didn't ask for a private room just a couple of high-tops (wanted people to move and mingle but some could sit if needed) and then general awareness to their staff that we were bringing 30ish people.

Closer to Metro Center, have you called the Hamilton? They have an upstairs bar that might work (less crowded than downstairs).

[citydweller7913]

Thank you DCForever and juniperbleu.

I have called Darlington House, got call back from lady who runs the events and she said the party size is a bit too large and they would let me know sometime today if it's acceptable to them on the date requested.
I will not call Mission. I tried to reach Manor yesterday, no one answered, may be they were off the site or I called too early, will try again today. Gazuza won't work unfortunately, it's more like a nightclub with hookah bar and none of my guests smoke, besides I am looking for less of a night-cub setting.

Thank you both for your suggestions! If there are any other places anyone can recommend please chime in.
I may have to contact and inquire from more than couple of places due to size of our group and the fact that we are not reserving the entire room/not pre-paying for the tables/bar/room. Even Cantina at Darlington House told me that if our group was under 20 they would give us OK right away, but with up to 40 guests they may have to close/reserve the entire room (which we don't want), and therefore they will get back to me later, to let me know if it works for them.

[citydweller7913]

No luck with Cantina at Darlington House....
Mission DC has everything booked for February 05th....
Hamilton said can't guarantee accommodation, and they are overcrowded on Fridays...

Please if you know of any other places do let me know. I have only 7 days left to the event, and I wouldn't want to cancel it.

Thank you everyone!

[halfamazing]

But just for your consideration, and not trying to sway you in any way, you are pretty limited in your request. Especially if it is on a weekend, must not be a club environment, you don't want to rent out a room, and must be near those specific metro stations, you are running on low cylinders.

You may have to rethink the logistics on this one if you really want to hold out on expenses. 40+ (seems to be a mingling or meet up event) would require for there to be less "wandering around". If you don't secure something with a deposit, it may be difficult to lock down a "free" space unless you can guarantee the venue that you will be spending XYZ on food and drink in order to cover. Real-estate, even carpeting, is expensive these days.

If worse comes to worse, consider capping off at a lower attendance number so then you won't have to cancel it totally. At least you would have: #1 gained experience in the areas you seek. #2 developed trusting relationships with various venues for future reference. Besides, 15-20 can be just as intimate as 40.

Good Luck- and no matter what you do, don't cancel. Always settle for less than a total loss whenever possible- your event planning reputation highly depends on it.

[citydweller7913]

halfamazing, the place I originally planned to hold an event in initially told me that our group (regardless of size!) can simply walk in at 6pm on Friday, that we don't even have to make reservations.

When I contacted them the second time (and this time I emailed them , I wanted to make sure they confirm what they said in writing, they can hold on their end of the promise), their event manager called me and informed me that:

#1. Reservation is a must (or waiting time for a table might be up to 2 hours, and their bar has only few chairs and limited space)
#2. There is a charge for drinks and food (for every person who will attend), and it must be paid in full before reservation can be guaranteed.

I am glad I emailed them and didn't just take their word.

Had I known from the beginning that they can't accommodate us I would change the venue and arrange with some other place.

Now, on a short notice, I can do one of two things: cancel the event or find the place that can accommodate us.
I try to avoid former.

Best!

[akorosdc]

What's the share of RSVPs that actually show up to your events? I'm asking because a lot of times I would get 40 RSVPs but the crowd would really be closer to 20. I understand wanting to be sure there's enough room in case everyone shows, but honestly it's rare for everyone to show (particularly to a free event where there's no real cost to dropping out). I'd drop your request down to 30 (or even say "under 30"). If more show up, you'll figure something out and beg forgiveness later.

Sorry your initial choice gave you bad information, that really sucks.

Not fancy at all and not on the red line, but Satellite Room usually doesn't get busy until later in the evening if you want to try going there (they have a semi-outside bar that I've found to have more room). Smoke & Barrel has a downstairs bar, could see if that's an option. A lot of bars in the Adams Morgan/U Street area, particularly if they're more of a bar than a restaurant, tend to not get busy until after 8-9pm, so I'd think that a 6pm event would be ok as long as they're scheduled to be open. Maybe try a Sunday afternoon?