9:30

smakawhat

Maryland

4/5  rDev +16.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3 | $$$

Dear 9:30 club... oh how you and I have had so many joys through the lives. This is a music venue, and probably one of the best venues I have ever been in for shows. That being said I wont focus on that.

The atmosphere though is fantastic. Three bars line the venue two downstairs (one of them cash only) The other upstairs from the second level overlooks the stage. If you are lucky and early in line, get up here and grab a stool and you'll have a great view and be close to the bar for the entire show.

Service in general for this place is a little bit above average. It's a music venue. You're not going to get educated here on the selections, and that's probably why I rate it very high for a MUSIC bar. There are easily throughout the bar at least 10 on tap craft brews with some of them in multiple locations, but you wont find something extreme or obscure. It is though far better than any other typical bar BMC concert joint by FAR. I can't think of a single concert venue I've been to that has this much selection period!

There is the possibility of a bad tap line, or a foul keg. I've had bad Dogfish Raison D'etre here that made my toe curl backwards it was so bad. But hey I returned the beer and got something else free of charge.

Food is simple and nothing to write about. Chances are you wont even get it, often the kitchen is making something for the band and can't keep up with people coming to the show. Long story short, eat somewhere else in the neighborhood before the show there's plenty of good options.

I'll be back often for a fav show and a good beer in hand YOU KNOW IT!

08-16-2011 15:08:08 | More by smakawhat

WoodenNickelPub

North Carolina

4.13/5  rDev +20.1%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $$$

First things first...it's a music venue, find me a music venue that doesn't overcharge for drinks and we might as well plan for the end of the world. Beer selection is quality considering. A few craft beers is more than I would have expected and I got to try a few that I can't get ahold of were i'm from. Love this place, wish I had it in NC.

Service...well...try to deal with 50 ppl hitting you up for a drink all at once....refer to the first seven words in the first paragraph.

I love the 9:30 and can't wait to return....awesome Place!!!

11-06-2010 20:33:34 | More by WoodenNickelPub

akorsak

Pennsylvania

3.35/5  rDev -2.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | $$$

A great place to see a show; a good place to grab a pint.

Atmosphere: Located beyond the hem and holler of D.C., the 9:30 Club is a diamond in the rough. It consists of two bars, one downstairs (no tickets needed) and one upstairs (with the main stage). Downstairs has more of a neighborhood bar feel, with actual pint glasses being served. Upstairs is the concert atmosphere. When the band is on a roll, the joint kicks ass.

Quality: Having drank at both bars, I have few issues with the quality. If you're upstairs, a healthy dose of patience never hurts.

Service: Generally prompt with no complaints.

Selection: The selection varies, generally with a decent BMC selection. Craft is modestly-represented by a few taps, an occasionaly gem in the rough. Prices get a little high but this is a big city.

Food: N/A.

09-19-2010 01:58:53 | More by akorsak

mdfb79

New York

3.41/5  rDev -0.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 2 | $$$$

The 9:30 Club is a great place to see a show, one of my favorite venues in the country. It only holds between 900-1000 people so it is relatively small, but it's a famous enough venue to still get big acts.

Because of the acoustics and the standing room only, the atmosphere is great. Usually the crowd is a bunch of big fans so it's a good time.

In terms of the bar, the service is actually pretty good. I usually get to the bar and tip early, and I've always gotten good service throughout the night, not having to wait too long for beers. Their selection isn't that great but they usually do have 2-4 craft beers which is good enough though. Unfortunately the prices are very expensive. It is usually $6 for a bud light/miller light, and the craft beers run up to $12 for 10 oz. cups.

Overall I would highly recommend the 9:30 Club if a band you want to see is playing, but it isn't the best beer bar in terms of selection or prices. I've seen some of the greatest shows of my life there (Foo Fighters, Ben Folds, The Hold Steady), but I've also spent $60+ just to have a few beers.

01-21-2010 04:37:32 | More by mdfb79

blackie

Virginia

2.89/5  rDev -16%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 2.5 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3 | $$$

visited with dirtylou below for camera obscura, it is what it is, a pretty nice place to catch a show and the venue that catches most of the bigger names on the scene, live music and beer just go together

had a small (~8 oz) red dixie cup of nitro Old Rasputin, and a standard issue red dixie cup of DFH Raison D'etre, only a couple other selections of interest, I wanna say that these two beers were $8 apiece

doubt there's any real beer knowledge here, but it isn't that kind of place, bartender pissed me off a bit with his extended conversation with a friend/patron while I was trying to quickly grab a beer between songs, but I quickly moved on

06-29-2009 23:13:11 | More by blackie

dirtylou

Washington

3.16/5  rDev -8.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5 | $$$

the 9:30 club - destination for a camera obscura show

not a beer destination - not sure who would confuse a medium-scale music venue with a beer hall

hard to not give the atmosphere a high score - i mean there are major acts playing in the background.

taps were rather interesting - drinking old rasputin out of a plastic cup is a great way to get hammered. dfh rasion d'etre was also on tap, as well as harpoon ipa and a few other things of interest

pretty strong selection for a music-first venue

06-22-2009 16:28:51 | More by dirtylou

Applesauce1

Virginia

3.35/5  rDev -2.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 2 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $$$

I've visited the 9:30 club twice now. I saw a Nada Surf show and a Calexico show here. The people here are nice. Very good service, especially a concert hall like this. You never have to wait too long for a beer. Selection is pretty good in my opinion for a concert hall. Yuengling, Sierra Nevada, Anchor, North Coast, and a few others along with the typical macros are available here. Prices are a little. A pint of Yuengling for 6 bucks seems a little high for me. The beer here also doesn't seem to be very well carbonated. Not sure if that is more the 9:30 club's issue or just the kegs they're buying. Overall, a good place to see a show. Not really a place to drink though.

11-28-2008 01:52:17 | More by Applesauce1

hmarebel02

Maryland

2.78/5  rDev -19.2%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3 | service: 2 | selection: 2.5 | food: 3 | $$

This place is an exceptional club atmosphere, but this place is not all about the beer. The social atmosphere is pretty good and there are some great bands that roll through here. I make it a habit to go at least once a season, but I go for the club scene and whatever band is playing.

For beers, the best they have is Sierra Nevada. Its probably best that you not go exclusively for the beer, but the club scene and youthful and fun.

One thing of note is that the bar is very strategically located near the stage.

08-09-2008 00:47:17 | More by hmarebel02

ubermick

California

3.4/5  rDev -1.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 2 | $$$

I'm rather confused as to why the 9:30 Club is in here - it's a phenominal place for a show, but it's certainly not a "go-to" spot for a beer. Mind you, compared to most live music venues, it's got a decent selection on tap, including Dogfish Head, Anchor, and a few others. But be prepared to dig deep - at $6 for a 10oz plastic cup, I find it to be a little spendy for my blood.

So, check it out for live music, by all means, but if there isn't a band you like playing, take your hard earned coin elsewhere...

04-08-2008 01:55:26 | More by ubermick

shivtim

Georgia

2.85/5  rDev -17.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 2 | selection: 3 | $$$$

While the 9:30 club is a great concert venue (as far as midsized venues that get big acts), it's not a beer destination. It does have a better variety than most places, and is one of the few venues I've been to where they actually have a selection on tap as opposed to just bottles of Bud Light and such. However, it's $5-$7 for a *very* small plastic cup of beer, which doesn't even get filled to the top. You could spend almost $15 here on less than 20oz of beer. Service is crappy- the bartenders don't say a word to anyone other than the price (even when the bar is not crowded because the concert doesn't start for a while), and they clearly don't care about beer.
They do get some fairly major bands, so make sure to get tickets way ahead of time. While it's not an intimate venue, it does have good sight lines. Gets pretty packed on the floor.

Key idea: good concert venue, not a good beer venue. Go there and have fun, but don't go there just for the beer.

06-02-2007 21:34:40 | More by shivtim