Garden District’s winter wonderland. (Photo by Carmen Drahl)
By DCist contributor Carmen Drahl
Last winter’s “Miracle on Seventh Street” brought boozy revelry and long lines to Shaw (they’re back this year, and just as long). So will a Christmas bar on 14th Street prove to be twice as miraculous?
Tad Curtz and his team at Garden District (1801 14th St. NW) are betting on it. Now through December 18th, the outdoor bar and barbecue joint is re-imagined as a Christmas beer garden. Think Bavaria, the southern German region that does Christmas like no other, but add propane heaters, piped-in American holiday tunes, and an impossible-to-miss assortment of cheery decor. We’re talking 10,000 twinkling lights, over a quarter mile of tinsel, and a light-up plastic nativity scene. Alas, for fans of “The Twelve Days of Christmas”, there are currently only nine drummers drumming atop the second floor overhang.
The main draw is the expanded beverage menu. Garden District is known for its German beers and bar bites, and those are still very much available. But the Christmas bar also offers five specialty cocktails, three of them hot, priced at $10.
Santa’s Little Helper is hot cocoa with zing, thanks to peppermint schnapps. Be sure to soak the toasted marshmallow garnish in the booze for extra enjoyment. The Office Party Punch is a chilled pomegranate and vodka concoction sweetened with sugar cane syrup. That one’s like a spiked Shirley Temple, in a good way. Blitzen’s Blitzed Local Hot Cider and Miracle on 14th Street Mulled Wine are also part of the holiday selection.
According to Curtz, though, “The people who seem to be having the best time are the ones ordering rounds of eggnog shots.” (Those are $7 a shot and come topped with fresh-ground nutmeg.)
One recent evening, laid-back happy hour goers braved thunderstorms to enjoy a drink and Instagram the lights display. They missed out on the bar’s giant flat screen TV tuned to a Yule Log video—Curtz’s team kept it inside on account of the rain.
On Friday nights, Saturdays, and Sundays, a German-style Christmas market tent adds to the experience. A rotating roster of local vendors is selling gifts. Expect blown glass by Pierre Bowring, terrariums from Holley Simmons of Sill Life, and drawings and comics by Lenora Yerkes, among other items. Also for sale are Christmas trees— small trees have already sold out, but 7- to 8-foot-tall Fraser and Douglas firs are available at $65 each.
So whose idea was all this?
“It was a collaborative effort,” says longtime employee James Waterhouse.
A former employee who now lives in Ireland brought up the idea of staying open in December with a holiday theme. The team kicked the concept around for a few years, but it just didn’t seem like the right time until now.
“2016 being what it was,” Waterhouse says, “we figured we should probably stay open and give everyone some holiday cheer.”
Garden District will close for the season on December 18th, reopening in March.
