As much as I love my neighborhood during the day, I stay as far away as I possibly can when the frat boys come out to drink on Saturday nights. Pharmacy Bar is less maddening, and almost peaceful, compared to its neighbors which makes it a great place for pre or post dinner/other plans. The drinks aren't anything fancy or exciting, but they work just fine, and the low key vibe makes it easy to catch up and have a conversation with people.
I gravitate towards places with a good jukebox selection, and this one does! The owner is clearly sending out a message with the music options which cover The Beatles, Bowie, Stones and Elvis; which keep folks who love Pitbull far away. If the jukebox isn't your thing, go check out their old school video games. They have Pacman, which is surprisingly still fun.
And finally, if none of these options keep you entertained - grab a seat by the bay windows. I can almost guarantee that watching drunk kids hobble down 18th street will keep you amused for a long time.
Had fun here on Friday night with friends after a short stint at Dan's Cafe. Loved the bar tender, and that they had cans of Strongbow. As the daughter of a pharmacist, I was also pretty entertained by the concept of the bar and its vintage pharmaceutical decor. My father would have loved this place for the ambiance alone.
Review Source:I just don't get the appeal of Pharmacy Bar, I only went to this place because a friend of mine was dying to go for some reason but we both were underwhelmed and less than inspired following our visit.
I can't really put my finger on what I don't like it, the place is just rather blah, I understand it's a dive bar and low on frills, I love dive bars because even though there is nothing flashy about any dive, there is usually still some character or sense of just something right in the air. Pharmacy Bar does not have that kind of energy.
The bartender was just kind of there, no energy no real feeling, not overly concerned with anything that was going on. I don't want my bartender doing magic tricks or anything but if you're going be there and do nothing at least have some charm about you in the process, this dude was just as blah as the bar.
Drinks were a bit on the pricey side to be a dive bar, if you're going play the part of a dive, then go all out and be a dive, don't be dirty and dusty but then charge a premium for your beers and cocktails.
I just never got into the vibe of this place and while I'm sure it could be fun with the right crowd I didn't get fun during my visit. Will I ever return? Probably not but who knows what the future may hold.
This is my kind of bar. Great beer offerings, casual and intimate atmosphere, Â charmingly geeky...Seems to attract a less rowdy crowd than other Adams Morgan establishments. (I think I saw an assortment of board games near the bathroom.) Definitely not a place for obnoxious frat boys or girls or guys who are on the prowl. If I had a friend from out of town who wanted to catch up, I'd take him or her here. It's also a great place for a casual date. I've come to realize that I don't really like swanky or flashy, so this understated and chill watering hole hits the spot.
Review Source:I'm not sure I get the appeal of Pharmacy Bar. Â Dive bars can be great because of the cheap beer and, well mostly the cheap beer. Â But the beer here isn't that cheap ($20 for 3 drinks?). Â And if it is not a weekend, no one is there. Â Not regulars, not small crowds of people, just empty bar stools and a bar tender texting in the corner. Â We were there on a Thursday night and we were the only ones in the bar for a good half hour until a guy and his dog came in (the dog also sat on a bar stool). Â The dog was probably the most sanitary thing in the bar though -- beer glasses were dusty and the bathroom (singular, just one for everyone, although of course no people means no lines) was a level below gas station quality.
So it is quiet but more in an unsettling way (ghost towns aren't my thing), without the charm of a neighborhood dive bar. Â Cool artwork on the walls though...
Great beers (like Prohibition Ale, a personal fave, and something long and German and hefeweizen-y that was delightful and came in a silly glass). Awkwardly tiny bar area. I'm pretty sure the bartender judged me the entire time.
Granted, I was also judging me the entire time, because I was making poor life decisions.
I'd had some margaritas elsewhere and I was hankering for a beer and some Buck Hunter... I yelped and this was the closest bar with a machine. THANK GOODNESS. This bar is totally great. It's an awesome little hole in the wall in a neighborhood where you can feel awkward and unwelcome in a lot of bars. The bartender was super nice and friendly, just like they should be at dive bars. The jukebox selection is awesome as well. Funky drug themed decor. ("Pharmacy" Bar, what would you expect?) An older review said the Buck Hunter machine was broken, but there's a new one where I spent a lot of dollars... And DC Brau on tap!
If I still lived in the DC area, I'd plant my ass here all the time.
The first time I went to this bar, I walked 2 blocks past it. Talk about hole in the wall. The person checking IDs at the door was reading a french philosopher (in french), so if you think that is at all weird, then you should probably check out Asylum instead.
This bar has a local vibe, and I instantly felt welcome and at home. The bartenders always pour with a heavy hand and are friendly, which is pretty much opposite of every other bar in the area. Every time I go, it's pretty empty (even on a Friday). I enjoy not getting a drink spilled on me or getting pushed into a frat boy that smells like he bathed in vomit and axe deodorant. I guess it's a hipster bar, but it's a low PBR to hipster ratio bar. I even saw someone drinking a martini on my last visit. Long story short, go here if you want to enjoy a drink in a semi-quiet, non-pretentious atmosphere. Skinny jeans optional.
I never thought that I could claim to be an Austin girl (Texas that is...) because I didn't feel I had been there long enough to claim the title. Â However, Â despite my teasing of all things hipster, I truly miss the place. Â Coming to Pharmacy Bar was like going back if only for a moment. Â
I loved the vibe-nice and lowkey-just like I prefer (I have this weird thing about NOT having to yell at my friends when I want to talk to them). Â Our server was friendly and recommended a tasty brew. Â
I loved the theme. Â It was nice to see a place stray so far from the usual array of knick knacks and wall crap. Â I got some great photos of my friend "passed out" on the pill decorated table and that may have made our trip here all the more worth it.
"Neighborhood" ultra-dive with lowkey vibe; if your current neighborhood is a Thai sewer.
Expect the usual mix of OG punks, what's left on the non straight edge hardcore scene, flannel shirts, and excessive facial hair.
This is a  run down down crap hole that has everything the doctor didn't order.  Might want to let the locals have this wave.
Rad:
Your jukebox is for die hard music fans only. Â Just call me John Mclane, as I force you to listen to all of Isac Hayses' Â Black Moses.
Giant street-facing windows afford excellent view of hot young girls walking towards district.
Bad:
Giant windows afford excellent view of hot young girls walking towards district instead of inside
Drinks not really that cheap for a place that has limited operating costs other than rent and a very BROKEN buck hunter machine.
This is definitely my favorite bar in Adams Morgan! The music is loud enough to be heard, but not so loud that you have to yell to have a conversation with your friends. Their bar has a lot of interesting liquors, but more importantly, the bartenders know what they are and are willing to take the time to find one you really want. I tried probably four different whiskeys one night and the dude only charged me for one. And that bay window is  the best people-watching vantage point on 18th.
Yes, it's a hipster bar. But here's the thing about hipsters: they're only pretentious douche bags when you're being an obnoxious douche bag. Of course you're going to get an attitude if you stumble in expecting the place to look like Grand Central or Reef. If you stumbled into Tom Tom and complained about how it's not like the Pharm, you'd get the same attitude. It's not like the other bars, and they like it that way, as do I.
Seriously, try this: go in maybe a little tipsy but not slurring-your-words drunk. Before ordering your drink, ask someone what his/her favorite is there. They'd love to tell you all about it and the fact that you didn't automatically assume they're a pompous ass because they have a bike helmet strapped to their messenger bag will cause them to drop the snobbiness like a hot potato anchor.
I'm sorry I must not have gotten the memo.
This bar stinks. Its so existential and overdone that it makes it suck. Lets all show up in a flannel shirt and snootily smirk when the next sorry sam walks in and tries to order a bud light.
"we don't have that here"-nudges, smiles, as they guzzle their $9 imported turkish beers.
Worst bar on the street. Would only come here if all the other bars were closed and those painted pills all over the walls and tables were real.
This bar is perfect for a smug know-it-all who enjoys drinking only the finest beer, while simultaneously playing a game of parcheesi and discussing 1920's russia and giving dirty looks to anyone that looks like they want to let loose and have fun once in a while.
This is a narrow dive with limited space and the theme is that this is where you go to cure  your ills- tonic bottles  and alka seltzer tablets painted on the walls, and my favorite part is the inlaid pills and capsules in the table tops. I'm a liiiiittle confused about how buck hunter fits in with this theme, but maybe it's just an easy money maker for the bar, and a way to appeal to a bigger crowd, like, uhhh, those who scour the city for buck hunter??
The drinks here, as many other Yelpers have noted, are cheap- rum and cokes and cape cods for $5 (how do they do it??)- and they're great, and by great I mean strong. The bartender (owner, too?) was chill and laid back and so was the crowd.
Liked the laid back atmosphere, cheap drinks, but not such a fan of the unisex bathroom. Yikes. Stay away from THAT one, ladies.
Also really like the juke box. I love places that put the power of that piece of the atmosphere in our hands. I'll go back to this place to either start of end my night.
I felt right at home at this little dive.
The recipe for awesome was simple and can easily be repeated in your hometown:
One cup of grunge mixed with two cups of hipster, blended gently
One cup of entertainment - highlighted by a jukebox and video games
A crap ton of beer and liquor
One saucy bartender
One or two loud regulars
These guys get bonus points too because they refused to sign the release form for The Real World DC to film inside ;)
I wanted to hate this place, I really did.
With its crummy location in the heart of Adams Morgan, its annoying pretentious hipster vibe, and gaudy buck hunter game EVERY hipster bar seems to have; Pharmacy had all the inner workings and fix'ins to make a pretty pompous overrated hipster dive bar.
Pharmacy, you let me down, you bastard. Â You don't suck. Â
Yes, the bar was a dive, but it worked the grunge theme well and with taste. Â The drinks were relatively inexpensive and made strong. Â What the hell, Pharmacy! Â This was suppose to be a 1 star review!
What I really wanted was tackier décor, slow service, an overpriced menu, awful drinks and a douchey bartender who would judge on me because I've never heard of his friend's band.  Instead, all I got was stylish ambiance, attentive service, intelligent conversation with my boys Brian and Sean, and a couple of ice cold brewskis to wash down the overall positive experience.
All this, just to deny me what is rightfully mine - a righteous yelp review filled with witty one-liners, outrageous satire, and impudent, profanity-laced mockery.
Thanks a lot, assholes!
This isn't a dive bar, it's a pretend dive bar that hipsters go to in order to feel cool...it was pretentious, but uninteresting.
mediocre beer selection...if you're going to be pretentious get me some damn microbrews.
my friends and i had 3 different people come up to us and make weird, random comments to us...i think they were giving us shit because we weren't hipster enough. i dunno. if you're pretentious and boring i guess you need to say weird shit to people to give yourself some worth? i tend to opt for the warm and welcoming comments, but hey that's just me.
So after speaking with the bartender over the phone, I am going to add one more star. He was apologetic about the situation but did not really have a reason as to why it had occured to begin with.
I got my $13 back but it doesn't change the fact that the place isn't that special to begin with.
I find it amusing that a place called "Pharmacy Bar" would be partly responsible for one of my worst hangovers in history. There are two things I need to learn:
- how to exercise self-restraint
- how to pace myself
I don't like crowds and I don't like loudness -- at least not in a bar. Call me crazy, but I actually like to hear myself think every so often, as well as my friends when they try to speak to me. So when I noticed a few people sittin' and chillin' by the window, I glanced around to see what the name of the establishment was. "Pharmacy Bar" -- I'd heard that name before. Unlike most other places in Adams Morgan, there was no one queuing up to get in. +1
Things were calm inside. People were sitting at tables, drinking, talking (as opposed to shouting); music was playing at a reasonable volume. +1
It's quite a small place. One end of the bar was being vacated as my friends and I walked up, so we took over some stools. The barman was quick to give us his attention and continued being efficient the entire time we were there. +1
A group of loudsters came in. Something about a wedding. The girl ordering drinks for everyone felt the need to shout, for some reason. Or maybe her voice is just that awful. Right next to my ear awful. My roommate asked me, "So, how's your ear?" -1
We got chips. We had the munchies, and the snacks were tasty. I think they were free. +1
The drinks were good. Not watered down; definitely stiffer than most overrated bars. Only two beers on tap (Yuengling and Hoegaarden, I think) but the drinks make up for it. Someone came up and asked for a Smirnoff Ice. Please note that Pharmacy Bar does not carry Smirnoff Ice (thank god). +1
I'm not sure what the prices are, and I'm too lazy to try and figure them out. All I know is this:
- 1 gin and tonic + 1 screwdriver + 1 Hoegaarden = $16
- 1 gin and tonic + 1 whiskey and coke + 3 shots of tequila + 1 Pabst = $31
Five of those drinks were mine. In about an hour. I never learn :(
Here's what's good:
(1) Decent selection of scotch. (Except when they're out of Balvenie, like they were last night. No big, though.)
(2) Not deafening. If you get a table, you can have a legitimate group conversation.
Tip: If you want a table on a Saturday, you're good if you wander in between 9:45 and 10-ish.
My friend recommended this bar for a good neighborhood bar to check out on my recent weekend in DC.
What he forgot to mention was that the drinks are STRONG. Like, you practically get two for the price of one kind of strong. I heartily approve. At least I'm pretty sure I did, as the evening was a bit of a blur.
I do remember the chill, hipsterish vibe, cool but nothing too pretentious. Compared to the other bars in the area, each of which seemed too something or other upon peering in, the lower key feel here hit the right spot. By late Saturday night, the place was packed and loud, but my friend and I could still have a good conversation in the corner. I'm told next time (and I'd happily return if I'm in DC again), I need to check out the juke box.
(For what it's worth, I'm well of age and was carded, so I wouldn't go assuming you can drink here underage, that other Yelper's experience to the contrary.)
I've been here once, and the story goes like this:
I was 19 and fresh back to college with my fake Vermont ID that said "This is not a real id" on the back of it. I went to Tom Toms with a fraternity brother of mine (who was 21) and his father. The bouncer said "you 2 are fine, but this shit's fake" "oh....c'mon man.....just let the kid in" "listen, you can either give me $50 to get it back and go elsewhere, or I can call that cop inside to come out and deal with it"
Pause: Screw that guy. And screw TomToms. Yeah yeah, I was underage but c'mon......
Anyways, after I refused to let my (already drunk) buddy convince me to use my REAL ID to try and get into Roxanne/Brass Monkey, we went to Pharmacy Bar w/o even being id'd. We played pool, had some drinks, and I was happy. I can't even remember what the place was like, but evidently people here love it! Perhaps I'll have to return, now that I'm of age and whatnot.
Highlights:
1. Â There's some sort of video game near the bar with a HUGE gun that you shoot virtual deer with or something. Â It's like Duck Hunt, only the laser gun is as large as a full-sized rain stick (?????)
2. Â Cool, hip ambiance. Â Vast and sparkling array of colored alchemical vials and bottles.
3. Â The bathroom has a concrete floor and cinder block walls, but seemed really clean, as though the minimalist design allows Pharmacy to simply hose it down every night and let the water drain through a grate in the floor, making a drop-drop sound... LIKE A RAIN STICK.
4. Â I went with a big group, ordered like four pints of Guinness and a mixed drink or two for a friend, and when we finally split up the bill my boy was like "dude, you're in for $20, $25 max... tip included" which just doesn't make any sense, period.
In conclusion Pharmacy is super cool, with a more relaxed atmosphere and crowd than most other Adams Morgan bars. Â There is also some sort of hunting-themed arcade game and lots of pretty glassware.
...
RAIN STICK
The first time I came here was with my friend Mike, and we were met by a jarring scene. The bar was completely dark except for one flickering light from the back bar, pale-faced hipsters were draped over chairs looking like they were about to faint, there was no music, and the only sound came from two people playing Big Buck Hunter. We immediately left, vowing never to return.
A few months later, I was invited to go by another friend and it was completely different. The crack-den vibe was replaced by a lively, yet politely restrained atmosphere, and the lights and jukebox seemed to be working. I can only attribute the first visit's frightening appearance to the fact that it was a Tuesday, or that I hadn't gotten accustomed to living in Adams Morgan yet. In any case, this is a fun place, if not slightly pretentious if you don't know who's on the jukebox.
Pharmacy Bar is something of an oddity in the Ad-Mo scene. Â Unlike most other bars in the area, you will not find a huge crowd, a bump-&-grind dance floor or chlamydia. Â
When I visited, I was impressed by the intimacy of the place and the low-key vibe. Â My friends, however, apparently need more awfulness in their lives and headed over to TomTom's. Â Since we usually just chat amongst ourselves, I'm not sure why you'd want to do the same thing in a dirtier, more cramped space, but I think they wanted to show our out of town friends how DC gets down. Â I didn't even have time to try the jukebox. Â Maybe next time.
Why only three stars? Â I don't know... maybe because while I could see it as conducive to "chillaxin," I guess if I'm in Adam's Morgan, a bar should be entertaining/shocking. Â Tom Tom's never disappoints on that front.
I'm somewhat new to the city and Pharmacy Bar is already my favorite bar in the area.  It draws a super eclectic crowd including some people you really won't find at other bars in the area. If you're  someone like me and don't really know anyone in the city it is the perfect place to strike up some conversation, enjoy the best jukebox around, and knock back a few affordable drinks.
I haven't been here many times but it seems to be very asshole and drama free which to me is pretty crucial for a bar. Â I'm the type of person that dislikes the majority of people that clog up 18th Street and it seems like Pharmacy is free of all of them.
Another great perk is that is roughly right across the street from my two favorite record stores, Crooked Beat and Smash, so if you ever feel like doing some late night record shopping this is a location to check out afterwards. It's also the only place in the area where people may actually recognize that obscure early-mid 90's indie pop LP you just purchased.
I've heard the food is tasty but was told they don't have any vegan options so can't vouch for it personally.
Now I know where the attractive people hang out. Here, in this calm, dark little oasis of a bar in the loud, anarchic, vomit-spattered neon nightmare that is my neighbourhood on a Saturday night, there be stools in the bay window for peoplewatching (peoplejudging), places for sitting, tabletops for Pacman and a jukebox for great 'choons: Bowie, MBV and the entire Dischord catalogue.
Drinks aren't particularly cheap but there's table service and you can have a conversation. And of course, slender hipster boys with feline cheekbones and girly jeans, whom I sometimes find particularly compelling.
The Pharmacy Bar can be a welcome respite from the overly-crowded, pretentious businesses during a night of 18th street bar-hopping. Or it can (and probably should) be one of the few bars you head to in the area.
Even on Halloween, with most places packed to the gills with slutty witches and dicks with dick-in-box costumes, this place was still comfortably filled. The fact that nearly every patron enthusiastically recognized my Army of Darkness costume let me know I was in the right place.
I grabbed a turkey reuben and was greeted with an enormous sandwich that held up to my liking. Great food to eat while I watched the droves of costumed DC'ers.
Meghan G. hit the nail on the head in the jukebox's description - a music dork's wet dream. This is the music that indie music calls indie.
I have a dirty little corner in my heart for all dive bars and this is one of the best. I generally hate the people that flock into Adams Morgan, but being that its a short walk from my house, and I have friends that live in the heart of it, I get sucked into that area every so often. This is the bar that the douches haven't taken over yet, so thats a huge bonus.
The pill theme is pretty awesome, as are the weird murals all over the place. The food here is pretty surprising, i recommend their hummus and the cheese plate (yes a cheese plate in a dive bar!). Currently I am still working off a slight hangover from downing plenty of their fine selection of good beers on tap. The mixed drinks here are strong and the bartenders are cute in a dirty sex sort of way, bonus #2. The jukebox is a music dorks wet dream, completely void of craptastic bar music. They also have an old school table video game console, bonus #3. On busy nights they have a server that bustles around and keeps an amazingly accurate handle on drink orders, bonus #4. I probably would have stopped after a few beers if he wasn't there offering me a re-up when I was down to a few sips at every glass....clever sales strategy Pharmacy, very clever indeed.
The only draw back to this place is the single, uni-sex bathroom that can get pretty YUCK by the end of the night, but it is a great place to stand in line and strike up conversation with total strangers.
Ah...yes...Pharmacy Bar. When we were there last time it was very empty except for regulars, and it's nice being able to ask about an old face that you haven't seen in 3+ years and people know who you are talking about. You don't get that in LA where I am now...not at all!
The drinks are strong, the music not too loud, the windows open up to get fresh air inside. It was very different this time without all the smoke!
The bathroom is fun because of the sea life metal sculptures in the flooring, which is appropriate since the floor is usually wet. :D
I miss places like this. Enjoy it.
Hmm...How do I say this clearly..
Let's put it this way:
The Pharmacy Bar is the best bar in the world. Â Reasons include:
1. When you go there you feel SOOO anonymous and the anonymous people who you encounter are soooo sweet
2. Â The Bartender is Sooo amazing and hot and he gives nice prices for the drinks. Â I am talking about the infamous glasses man. Â He rocks. Â He probably has a lot of girls swooning for him. Â I wouldn't be surprised. Â I could be one of them.
3. Â The diseases and pills theme is pretty funny, you gotta admit.
4. Â There's this HILARIOUS hunting game where, with a rifle, you can kill animals (deers, antelopes, you name it;)). Â Animal rights enthusiasts: Â It's just a game! Â You aren't killing real animals when you play;) Â Please dont be mad at me for thinking the game's funny. Â Don't worry--whenever i try to shoot the animals, i miss. Â So the fake computer animals, those funny little bots, outsmart me! IT is a triumph of the animal over man, really.
5. Â The bathroom is funny because there is a design of a jelly fish type thing in it, with tentacles and stuff. Â Is that some disease organism or something? It's funny, hehehe
6. Â Whenever I go to the Pharmacy bar i have a great time. Â THe people there are not full of (you know what, heheheeheheheee), and the place is just unassuming and laid back. Â It's not for people with sticks in their posterior ends, if you know what i mean...
Yours truly,
EG
A laid-back yet trendy pub on 18th street. Â Nice little bay window overlooking 18th street where you can have a decent conversation over a $3 bottle of beer. Â The bartender was a tall, bored looking fellow who had the look of a college drop-out. Â There wasn't a lot of business, just a group of bohemians smoking cigarettes at the bar and an upscale looking young couple at a table by the jukebox. Â My friend tried to program some songs on the jukebox but recognized only one album, and that was the Geto Boyz, a band which I have never even heard of (and am probably spelling wrong). Â
Overall it was pretty dead...we sat at the bar, just to stay alert...but it wasn't worth staying for a second round. Â I guess I'll have to come back on a Saturday.
While Adams Morgan has become unpleasantly overcrowded on the weekends Pharmacy Bar is still a tiny oasis. Excellent tunes, excellent beer selection, and far superior service to other bars in the neighborhood. Where else are you going to get a Hoegaarden on draft in appropriate glassware and in a friendly environment?
Pharmacy will be of particular interest to Latvians living in DC as the owner is of Latvian descent and proudly flies the Latvian flag outside.
Pharmacy Bar. Â Where you wish the drugs lacquered into the tables were dispensible, so you could have a better time. Â There are an insanely small number of tables in this place, and each table seems specifically engineered not to actually fit the number of chairs at it. Â It's always loud, and I've been given the evil eye by the people sitting on the couch on the way to the bathroom too many times to count.
At least the tables are usually sticky.
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