I ***=== DC.

I did several ill-advised things yesterday.

1. I went to a museum in DC that charges for admission.
2. I ate at a restaurant on Valentine’s Day.
3. I attempted to meet up with diverse groups of friends who all had other things going on.
4. I went to Rocket Bar.
5. I did all of this when I was low on cash.

Any one item on this list can mean a miserable evening. I could’ve felt ripped off by the Newseum, considering the treasures that are available at all the government-sponsored museums in the area. I might’ve had to wait for a table in a sea of people trying desperately to prove they’re in love. I could’ve gotten in a fight over a shuffleboard table (it’s happened before). I could have missed connections and not seen the folks I intended to. I certainly could’ve overdrafted my bank account.

Somehow, all the following is true. The Newseum is full up of challenging and informative artifacts and exhibits well worth the $20 charge; we got a table at St. Ex as soon as we walked in; we discovered that Bar Pilar has a Saturday happy hour of which we were glad to take advantage; we got the last table at The Saloon; and Rocket Bar’s dbag clientele was so dbaggily smiley and genial (this part’s a little fuzzy, I admit) that I didn’t let the Dave-and-Buster’s-y awfulness of the place get to me. We slipped seamlessly in and out of our friends’ various Valentine’s plans. We even caught the Metro at all the right times. It was the kind of lucky evening that made our out-of-town visitors jealous at DC’s variety of nightlife and safe, clean public transit. This doesn’t happen too often, so I’m going to bask in today’s hangover.

A few recommendations that came out of all this:
-The fried green tomato BLT at St. Ex (BLFGT?)
-Happy hour at Pilar ($3 Tecates and Yuenglings)
-The red velvet cupcake at Pilar (I know, cupcakes are all up in your face these days)
-Rocket Bar’s policy of swiping your card (not taking it) for a tab, and not needing you to close it out (they just charge the card and add 18% gratuity) should be universal. It ensures a reasonable tip and that I won’t lose my card at a bar I dislike.