Rocket Bar Bar / Pool Hall

Chinatown, Washington, DC –

A tiny red neon sign and the occasional hardened face of a kid who took his Skeeball match too seriously are the only hints of what lies behind the door to Rocket Bar, a subterranean adult fun-land that might be mistaken for a child’s bedroom were it not for the unmistakable smell of beer.

Lime green stairs lead groups of college students past the watchful gaze of a giant silver robot and down into a flurry of TVs, pool tables, shuffleboard matches, dart boards, Skeeball tournaments, and crowds of giddy young professionals shaking off the day with a few intense rounds of UNO.

Metal rocket ships and multicolored lights hang above the three full bars, while mini-spaceships dangling from the black ceiling vibrate to the beats from the Top 40 jukebox. Sports fans vie for high-backed bar stools from which to catch the game on more than a dozen flat-screens, while eagle-eyed fraternity brothers swig PBRs and sling darts.

Those who prefer pool will have to show up early before the seven tables are taken over by the after-work crowd or the fans who stop in before and after games at nearby Verizon Center, though their concentration might be challenged by the rickety clacks from the shuffleboard tables, the thunks of Skeeballs landing in the center pocket, and the boisterous victory calls erupting randomly from different corners.

Complete with lava lamps, retro toys, and a vast array of board games, Rocket Bar transports adults back to their childhood…except this time there’s alcohol in the juice box.