5 O'Clock Meeting: Recessions Lounge
The author of this post is Rawn James, Jr. It was posted earlier, but inadvertently removed from the site. Our apologies to the commenters who had already chimed in!
The first line of The Godfather is spoken by the broken undertaker whose daughter's attackers have escaped justice. "I believe in America," Buonasera tells the camera and the Godfather. In one of the most well-acted single takes in American cinema, the proud middle-aged immigrant sobs impotent fury that such crime and injustice can exist in the only nation on Earth ever founded on an ideal.
In the wake of our nation's 231st birthday, perhaps we all could use a bit of Buonasera's undaunted idealism. When he asks Vito Corleone for justice, he implicitly is asking the don to validate his faith in America. When we step into a bar after a day's work, we're looking for a drink, good company and a good deal. Sometimes we can find more. On lucky evenings, we can find ourselves seated at one of those bars that manages to remind us that we live in a great city. On rare occasions, and usually after the barkeep has placed that second draft on our napkins, the scenes and sounds of the bar remind us that, for all its flaws, we're living in the capital of the greatest country in the world. If this feeling ever does strike you, there's a good chance that you're sitting one story beneath the sidewalk, in the underground glory that is Recessions Lounge.
Photo of Recessions from Catherine A, used with permission.
Located at 1823 L Street, near the Farragut North metro stop, Recessions is one of the last bars in Washington at which you will find, at any time of any day of the week, folks from all walks of working life. Hourly wage earners still wearing their name-sewn uniforms shoot pool next to six-figure earning law firm associates; secretaries nurse sidecars alongside interns ordering as many beers as they can carry back to their tables. The jukebox spins Mobb Deep two songs after the Rolling Stones. An office gathering shoved into two booths gets rambunctious and the Latinos two tables away nudge each other in amusement. For many years now the bar has been owned and staffed by members of the Mohammed family, who remember the regulars' favorite drinks.
As they say on NPR's Marketplace, "Let's do the numbers." King Kong Beers, 28 ounce domestic drafts satisfyingly served in heavy glass mugs, sell for $2.75. Rail drinks cost $2.50 and are poured as heavily as at a house party. Appetizers are also $2.50 and the menu runs the gamut of filling bar fare: onion rings, French fries, potato skins, chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks, buffalo wings, and a nacho platter.
One of my stalwart happy hour companions reminded me that one cannot render a complete assessment of Recessions without mentioning the bar's décor. The underground bar's interior decoration is indeed something just shy of a shagadelic nightmare. Fake stones line the walls; the lighting is flat and poor; when the air-conditioning is working overtime, it delivers a sympathetic vibration that shakes the brass rail and businessmen sometimes hang their satchels over the post to dim the irritating hum. Like Stoney's at its original L Street location, Recessions is an unapologetic dive. Unlike Stoney's, the food at Recessions can favorably be described as filling. Plus, there is no cell phone reception; you sit and drink until your friends arrive, just like in the old days.
In such a pleasantly managed establishment, however, these drawbacks soon become quirks, mere freckles on the face of a comfortable crush. A visit to Recessions may not make you, as Buonasera said, "believe in America," but it can restore your faith in the city you call home. You’ll fit in at Recessions, because everyone does.
Recessions Lounge
1823 L Street NW
202.296.6686
Metro: Farragut North