Crimson Whiskey Bar — Restaurant in Washington

Amazing vibe…looks very cool in the bottom floor, it definitely feels very intimate and how bohemian tavern felt back in the day and the whiskey themes and amazing decor are pleasant warm experience.

It has a surprising amount of space downstairs like a basement apartment on a huge house, there were so many nooks and crannies where one can get your drink or groove on.

The sole place of needed improvement was in the area of service. Though I am not sure it was really their fault, there were a lot of people rushing in after the Wizards game ended. Consequently, it was “early 2000’s club” type hard to get a drink. There appeared to be only one “official” bartender because it took much too long for the drink to be made…but everyone seemed to be dressed like bar assistants(bussers) though I could be wrong…they seemed to be using regular wait staff to tend bar which can lead to some bad drinks and or slow service. The skill level just wasn’t there..there was no table service (servers) so it consequently forced everyone to come to the bar for all their needs…food, drinks etc.

In the future maybe pull some of those already reluctant and under experienced bartenders off that station and make them servers or just spread them out to the other sections of the restaurant style seating areas at mini bars…etc. You know it’s a night when they were short staffed because there wasn’t even a host at the front available to seat people…maybe she was upstairs the whole time but the basement was where all the traffic was so I’m not sure why she never made her way down.

Also last thing I promise …the drinks were too expensive and they were running out of certain types of liquor ( i.e. they ran out of whiskey 😳) and the bartender then proceeded to add my friend to the tab like it was a table with gratuity and after two people the machine does AUTOGRAT!!! Booooo! This little trick was not necessary and was a clear money grab. He did not communicate this (of course it was too loud and crowded at the bar) and it would have benefited him and the restaurant if he had just charged me for the two drinks he would gotten a better tip and I would have been inspired to spend more money🤷🏾‍♂️. This left a sour taste with such a great atmosphere, but I know that can be a deal breaker for some more petty individuals, so please work on that one.

The live music gets a 5 star rating. The night I was there “The Experience” a go-go band was playing and they were SO good…provided just the right mix of sounds to create a great atmosphere that is quiet when it needs to be and loud when it counts.

Cannot wait to go back! Next time I’m at the Wizards game with friends. I will recommend we come...

I went here with some friends because we heard their old fashioned is one of the best in DC. Apparently the old fashioned is good (I didn't order one), but their service is so reprehensible that I likely won't come back.

We decided to get seated at a booth. They brought us water shortly after being seated, and menus. We then waited approximately 20 mins., with no one coming back to take our orders. We finally saw someone walking nearby and flagged them down, and he told us we arrived too late for table service so we had to go order at the bar. He then explained the booth next to us (why he was there) got there before us so they were "grandfathered in" and were recieving table service. The odd thing is they arrived 5-10 mins. after us. We decide not to argue and just order at the bar.

I ordered my burger first, ordering the Crimson burger without cheese and onions, and my friends (all three) each ordered cheeseburgers and old fashioneds. We all had separate tabs and I closed out at the bar because I didn't anticipate drinking. The bartender made the drinks right there and gave us a number for our table. About 15 mins. later a server walks over with three cheeseburgers but only gives us two of them. Someone had to chase him down for him to tell us it wasn't ours, only for him to come back 5 mins. later with it saying it was actually for our table. Another 15-20 mins. pass, all my friends are done with their burgers, and the same waiter finally walks up and hastily hands me my burger. I look and notice it has both cheese and onions on it, but he is no where to be found. I had to ask the hostess who I could talk to about it, for her to tell me that she would take care of it for me. About 10-15 mins. later I got a corrected order handed to me. It didn't taste very great. Edible, but not worth the $15 I spent on it.

The bartender and hostess seemed like they knew what they were doing. I don't know quite what went wrong with their service (it could have been the kitchen and/or the servers), but a $15 burger that I already paid an 18% tip on (because I'm a nice person) is not worth waiting over 30 mins. for it to be made incorrectly. And without so much as an apology. I guess if all you want is a drink and to sit at the bar, this place is fine; but I would never get food of any kind here and likely won't come back at all. There are other decent whiskey...

My coworkers and I came to this location for drinks and trivia night. We had been here before and knew to go downstairs to set up for the occasion. As we went downstairs there was no one preventing us from entering the lower level so we assumed we could walk down and sit at a table. About 30 minutes into our visit we received a text that the rest of our party (~10 people) were told they couldn’t enter the lower level bar to join us. After hearing this I went up the stairs to ask why they could not join I was approached by a very hostile and aggressive man explaining why my colleagues could not follow me downstairs. I later found out this man, James, was one of the managers. My question was “Sir, is it okay if my friends join the rest of our group downstairs?”. His response was roughly a 2 minute rant about how people have been sneaking past security and not listening to directions when it comes to entering the downstairs bar when it isnt set up. He accused me of sneaking past security, almost dropped the f-bomb twice, and had enough aggression in his tone to make me want to leave the bar and never enter again. He also would not let me speak or respond at all to what he was saying. After hearing what he had to say, I simply said “thank you for the info” and went back to the bar downstairs to wait for the rest of my party to join. It was rude, aggressive, and hostile. I have never been approached with so much anger and frustration over a misunderstanding situation. Later this evening I approached the general manager, Will, about James’s behavior and he explained the situation to me. While James’s behavior was inexcusable, Will handles the situation in a way I wish it had been handled in the first place. With a calm understanding and listening to the guest/customer before giving an answer. Will then offered me a free drink for my troubles (which is why this gets 2 stars instead of 1). Overall I am not happy with my experience at this location and I will be considering other places before I bring my coworkers to...