The Burrowing Owl, Colorado Springs

According to Wikipedia, the burrowing owl is a small, long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. It is one of only two owls that are social, hence the name of this cute, new, vegan bar in Colorado Springs called The Burrowing Owl! With such a cute name, how could anyone pass up the chance to eat and have drinks at the Burrowing Owl?!

The inside of this place had so much character. The tables were shellacked slabs of wood with big wood benches and there was a hodgepodge of differently colored barstools at the bar. The drink menu is extensive with everything from cocktails in jars, shots, shots, wine, and beer. Me and my friends tried a couple of cocktails. I went for an odd one -- Squash Yo Beef! It was made with Benchmark Bourbon, Squash, Cayenne, and Agave Nectar. The squash made it interesting. The best drink we had was The Mother made with Benchmark Whiskey, Apple Cider Vinegar, and Agave Syrup; oh, and a cute big ice cube. Delish!

The menu is simple bar food with many items being a variation on others. Everything is vegan so no worries here. One of my friends is allergic to soy, gluten, and many other things. I was so impressed with how nice one of the owners was in trying to identify what she could eat. We started with the Dips with Seasonal Vegetables. This came with watermelon radishes, purple beans, pears, and carrots with kale walnut dip, spicy peanut dip, and white bean rosemary dip. I loved the kale and white bean dips the best. There was also a lovely jalapeno jam!

After that, I orders The Slopper. This was an open-faced sloppy joe made with beans, chili, relish, queso, mayo and red onions. It was bar food and I enjoyed it.

My friend got The Messy Sloppy - yet another sloppy joe with Worcestershire mayo, pickles, queso, and slaw on a gluten-free bun.

My friend with the allergies had a wonderful Potato Soup.

More than anything though, it was the fun atmosphere and being in a vegan bar with friends that made the night. Other options include nachos, salad, tacos, and burritos. When I asked why the menu wasn't posted, they said they were still trying to figure out what to keep as they were still new. Everything is around $5-$8, even the drinks, so you really can't go wrong.

The Burrowing Owl
1791 S. 8th Street
Colorado Springs, CO 80905
(719) 434-3864

The Gibson, DC #3

By this point, I assume everyone in DC knows about The Gibson and that it needs no introduction. It's one of DC's best cocktail lounges -- it was when it first opened years ago and still is now. But, for those who don't know -- it is a speakeasy-style lounge hidden away on 14th Street with no sign. You just have to be in-the-know.

We had a 7:30 p.m. reservation on a Friday night and the downstairs lounge area was only about 50% full. The drink menu was extensive. I don't think I remember there being this many choices across several pages. The drinks at The Gibson are special -- unlike typical drinks at any bar. High quality liquors are mixed with syrups, bitters, and even champagne. It's usually a case of you love it or you hate it.

I started with the Diablo's Pissed, a cocktail made with Don Julio Tequila, Kummel, Lime, Cilantro Raspberry Syrup, Champagne, and Hellfire Bitters. This one was my favorite. Exquisitely mixed, sour, sweet, and spicy. This drink was all that and then some, short, dark, and handsome.

And we had some olives just for fun. They have a few light bites and I think the olives are the only bite that is vegan.

Next, I tried the Deserves Got Nothin' to Do With It. I'd really like to be there when they come up with these names -- there must be alcohol involved. This drink was more of a classic feel with George Dickel whiskey, Zucca Amaro, Crown Royal Maple Whiskey, and Bitter Truth Aromatic Bitters. And with all of those ingredients, it still tasted like a simple whiskey drink.

After two hours, we got booted out of our table in the downstairs area, but, luckily, a table on the outside patio was open and it was a gorgeous night! Inside, it is dark and sexy, but outside, it is playful and bright. The only things I didn't like about the outside patio was that the drink menu is very limited and that people smoke.

But, I found a great drink outside as well. The Jake Brakes Promises is made with Aquavit, Kummel, lime, ginger beer and hellfire bitters. It had an amazing flavor with an interesting aftertaste. Highly recommended.

We ended up leaving after like four hours. Time flies by when you are drinking great cocktails with good friends. The prices of my cocktails ranged from $12 to $16 each and were well worth it. The service was pretty good too. This cocktail lounge is one of my favorite places in the city. It never disappoints.

Previous reviews
August 28, 2012
March 24, 2014

The Gibson
2009 14th Street NW
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 232-2156

Bar Charley, DC

Based upon a simple review that my friend found on Urbanspoon, we headed out to check out Bar Charley after a night on the town. Located in the loud, bustling neighborhood of Adams Morgan, Bar Charley is trying to attract the young folks who want good drinks, but don't want to pay the high prices.

We arrived around 9 p.m. on a Saturday night. Inside, the atmosphere was one of mystery with the dark lighting and exposed brick walls. However, dark, though, you didn't get an intimate feel -- instead it felt quite cold. And I don't mean temperature cold, I mean just out in the open cold. We were seated at a long, picnic-style table, which is not exactly how we wanted to sit and enjoy our drinks. I mean, I know the communal seating thing is in, but not at a loungy-style bar.

I ordered the Chancellor Cocktail for $10 and my friend ordered the Dad's Hat for $9.  I don't have much to say about this other than the drinks were so bad that we couldn't finish them. They were not balanced the way they should have been and were completely undrinkable.

So between the cold, communal table and poorly crafted drinks, we left this place vowing never to return. They've only been open since September 2013 so maybe they'll improve with time.

Bar Charley
1825 18th Street
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 627-2183

All Souls Bar, DC

In the quiet up-and-coming area of Shaw, there sits an unassuming painted brick building with wavy red shingles. Inside this small 33-seat bar, All Souls offers a simple drink menu consisting of a few wines, a few beers, and a few signature cocktails. The name is a an ode to storefront churches, specifically the All Souls Church off of 16th Street NW, where the owner used to see shows.

All Souls was opened in December 2013 by David Batista, formerly of the Think Food Group where he worked as a bartender and bar manager at Jaleo, then a bar manager at Zaytinya. When Jaleo was remodeled, Batista kept the old bar and that is what you see at All Souls -- so the old Jaleo bar lives on.

On this Sunday night, the bar was a-bustlin', but that may have mostly been because I was there to meet a bunch of people for a get-together. With only three cocktails on the menu, I went for the one that sounded the most unusual -- the No. 4. This drink was pretty incredible. Called the Juan's Chilean Afro, it consisted of Kappa Pisco, Aperol, and Dolin Sweet Vermouth. It was sweet and strong.

Next up, I tried the No. 3 Negroni and with just Tanqueray, Cynar, and Carpano, it was the perfect negroni.

Four of the cocktails including the Perfect Manhattan are $9. The other one that is quite unusual is "The All Souls" made with a sparkling rose and a shot of Maker's Mark for $11. Other offerings include a Ferrari Carano Fume Blanc, Sapporo, and DC Brau. The wines range from $8 to $12 per glass and beers from $4 to $8 per bottle.

The space is fairly small and dark with seating for some and standing room for others. There are tables separate from the bar and seating along the window too. I see this as a low-key spot that I can escape to when I want to escape the hustle and bustle of 14th Street. The staff were very friendly and service was quick despite how busy they were. Next up, I'm looking forward to seeing what kinds of small bites they'll be offering. This place is definitely on the bars to watch list.

All Souls
725 T Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 733-5929

2 Birds, 1 Stone, DC

Below the new DoiMoi is a new cocktail bar called 2 Birds, 1 Stone. You will find it just by heading down the staircase on the north side of S Street, close to 14th Street. With a menu that is constantly changing, Adam Bernbach who hails from Proof and Estadio, enjoys experimenting with his drinks. After enjoying a nice meal at Ghibellina, we headed over for some post-dinner drinks on a Saturday night.

The dimly lit bar was fairly crowded and there was a wait to get in. After about 15 minutes, we were released from the holding area and we made our way through the packed bar to a booth in the back.  A simple design with several different areas including booths, open seats, and a bar area, you definitely had your pick of the type of area you could sit in. It was very loud and very crowded, which took away from the experience a bit.

The service was fairly slow. I took a look at the hand-drawn menu and chose the Bobby Burns made with scotch whiskey, vermouth, and benedictine. It just tasted like a strong scotch drink with very little oomph. My friend wasn't impressed with his either.

We also ordered the spicy fried cashews made with dried chilies, garlic, and kaffir lime leaves. They had a ton of flavor so we scarfed them up in minutes.

On the wall in the booth area, there was a visual representation of birds being hit and killed with a stone, which was somewhat bothersome. I mean it's a cute name, but the artistic painting isn't necessary.

All in all, we left very underwhelmed. The atmosphere was somewhat lonely in the booth areas with separate booths and mingling areas. The drinks were so-so and the service wasn't great. This isn't going to be my first choice for drinks in the future.

2 Birds, 1 Stone
1800 14th Street NW
Washington, DC 20009

Rogue 24 SpiritsBar, DC

As a big fan of Rogue 24, I realized that I never tried their SpiritsBar. This four-seat bar is located at the far end of the dining room with a full view of the open kitchen. Reservations can be made for 6 or 7:30 p.m. seatings. So we made a reservation for a Saturday night.

When we arrived, we were immediately seated at the bar. Luckily, no one else had a reservation at that time so we had the bar to ourselves. Chef RJ Cooper is more than willing to accommodate his vegan diners and, as always, we were really impressed with this spread. You typically get four drinks and four small plates for $44 so it's a similar concept to that of the Columbia Room in the Passenger, but much more gourmet.

My night started with a Pickle Back -- a rye whiskey shot followed by pickle juice. That was a strong start to the night.

The first plate of items was amazing -- an assortment of vegan delights! There was cucumber in sake served with sea salt, celery root ravioli, tapioca puffs, stuffed red peppers with chorizo, and vegan mozzarella balls tossed in basil powder with tomato powder, breaded and fried. Very creative. The cucumber with sea salt and celery root ravioli were my favorites by far.

The next drink was really good. It had blood orange tincture, cognac, and simple sugar and on the glass was a carrot sugar ash that you could lick before you drank the cocktail.

Next up was this funky looking vegan egg made of potatoes! A potato spherification over potato puree with blossoms. Not too shabby!

Then we got a tempeh "taco" wrapped with collard greens and served over black bean puree. It was topped with sweet pepper relish.

My next drink was as good as the last. Made with Michter's rye whiskey, wine, chartreuse, and celery bitters, it was very nice.

Next up -- a mushroom forest with beech, pini pini mushrooms and other exotic mushrooms with tarragon powder and mushroom soil. Loved this one. And the presentation was exquisite.

My last drink was my favorite. For dessert, it had grilled apples, El Dorado rum, Smith & Cross rum, and St. Elizabeth allspice dram.

For dessert, we had chocolate sorbet with chocolate hazelnut rocks. It was so decadent. I want to come back just for dessert sometime!

Honestly, even though I think the 24-course meals here are exceptional, I wasn't expecting the same level of food for the bar, so I was blown away. And the drinks were amazing. This is an incredible deal at just $44. I can see myself coming back pretty often. I think I'm about to go rogue.

Previous reviews
October 15, 2012
January 27, 2014

Rogue 24
922 N Street NW (rear)
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 408-9724

Nellie's Sports Bar, DC #2

It's Friday night. You are with a bunch of friends. You just ate dinner and had a glass of whiskey and are ready to start the night. Where do you go? Well, I guess it depends on your mood. But, if you are in the mood for a great time with friendly people, you head to Nellie's Sports Bar.

As the neighborhood gay sports bar, Nellie's sure has created a welcoming scene for all. We arrived around 10 p.m. on a Friday and were immediately coaxed over to the bar by the friendly bartender. I had him make me something fruity and in the tradition of Nellie's, it was, of course, a strong drink.

Then we headed upstairs and grabbed a table.  After enough drinks, one must eat something unhealthy. So we ordered the tater tots. Yum.

We hung out for a few hours as the place filled up. Everyone was friendly and outgoing from the employees to the patrons and we had an awesome time. Good drinks, good appetizers, and good times. That's Nellie's. Duh!

Nellie's Sports Bar
900 U Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 332-NELL (6355)

The Gibson, DC #2

Since first writing about The Gibson back in 2012, I have visited this establishment numerous times for drinks, all with pretty good experiences.  The Gibson is a speakeasy-type establishment located in an old garage on 14th Street, identifiable only by its gray facade as no sign is displayed. My favorite area is the first floor, which is mostly reservations only. I had visitors here from Australia who wanted a unique DC experience and The Gibson was one of the first places that came to mind.

So we headed over on a Sunday night with reservations for 8 p.m. We were seated in the larger room towards the back on the first floor. What I enjoy about The Gibson is that there is no standing allowed. All patrons are seated and it is the quiet, dimly lit environment that contributes to the ambiance of a speakeasy-type place. The menu of drinks changes frequently so it always takes me a bit of time to decide what to order.

My favorite drink of the night was the Red Death made with Mezcal, Raspberry, Root Liqueur, Allspice Dram, Hellfire Bitters, Old Fashioned Bitters, and Peychaud's Bitters. You can never have too many bitters! This made for a delightfully spicy cocktail that we all really enjoyed.

My friend enjoyed the Nailed in a Room, which was made with House Infused Oxley Gin (habanero, lemon, sage) with Grapefruit Juice, Benedictine, Aromatic Bitters, and Simple Syrup. Also, quite spicy!

The Dirty French Novel was another one that we tried made with Bison Grass Rye, Cranberry, Root Liqueur, Lemon Juice, and Decanter Bitters. I found this one to be a bit too strong, but with a nice flavor.

We also tried the So There! for $13, which was made with Mezcal Vida, Fernet Branca, Campari, Allspice, Dram, and Green Chartreuse. I found this drink to be bitey, yet sweet. I really liked it.

To munch, we ordered some of the green olives. They were very fresh.

We had a number of other drinks and all of them turned out to be delightful. What makes this place so unique besides the ambiance is the uniqueness of the drinks. They drinks are handcrafted with bitters and liqueurs that you won't find in many places in the city for just $11 to $16 each. Each one is so unique that you often love it or hate it and if you hate it, you can exchange it for another, no questions asked. For a truly unique drink experience, be sure to check out The Gibson when you are in town. It is a must-visit in DC.

Previous review
August 28, 2012

The Gibson
2009 14th Street NW
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 232-2156

The Bye and Bye, Portland

In 2009, I left Portland with fond memories of the vegan bar, The Bye and Bye. Now three years later, I got to return to that bar to see if it was how I remembered it to be.

The bar has a cool setup with a lot of outdoor seating both in the front and back as well as an open air dining room, which I assume has some sort of window that will close it off in bad weather. On this particular day, it was quite chilly, but in Portland, you have to take the sun when you can get it so the dining room was open to the elements.

It was a Monday afternoon and I was meeting four friends at The Bye and Bye. In the bar area where I was seated, there did not appear to be table service so I grabbed a table, then headed to the bar to order a drink. I asked if there was a spicy drink on the menu. They told me that there was just a ginger drink that had a little kick so I went with the North Williams made with Rebel Yell bourbon and Blenheim's spicy ginger beer in a pint. I also ordered pretzel knots with a nutritional yeast-based cheese sauce to start.

By the time I sat down, everyone had arrived and they eagerly awaited my pretzel knots. Yikes - I didn't realize there were only two. The pretzels were good, but the cheese left much to be desired. Regardless, they didn't last long and were a good starter.

The bar has the laid-back Portland feel to it with tattooed bartenders and limited table service. We enjoyed people watching and taking it all in. I wasn't all that excited about the menu. For some reason, I remembered having a great faux chicken sandwich several years ago. This time, I didn't see anything like that on the menu.

I went with the Weeping Tiger Sandwich. I felt like I had taken a step back in time when they brought out nutritional yeast-coated tofu cutlets on white bread with lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado and jalapenos with sriracha and vegan mayo. You don't see nutritional yeast-based sandwiches much anymore, but that kind of made eating here fun like back in the day. I enjoyed the sandwich, but not the bread so much as I'm not a big fan of white bread. I subbed the chips and salsa for a side of smokey collards, which I enjoyed.

My friend ordered the Samarai bowl, which had the same tofu with carrot-cabbage slaw, brown rice, and miso chile sauce. I found myself wishing I had ordered that as I liked it better. Oh well.

Overall, I enjoyed my time there and will be sure to come with different expectations next time. The Bye and Bye is a fun, laid back vegan bar. If you come for the atmosphere, you will love it. The food is so-so and more what I would deem bar food. The drinks are okay too. So, come with your friends, hang out, have a few vegan small plates, and enjoy a mixed drink. And realize that there really aren't that many vegan bars in this country.

The Bye and Bye
1011 NE Alberta St.
Portland, OR 97211
(503) 281-0537