Alcohol: Top 5 Bars

There have been two posts about alcohol on here that been by the other contributors and now I would like to voice a minority opinion. I will say alcohol is not cheap, but neither is gambling, prostitution or blow (and no not dollar tables, hand jobs, or crack). We work hard during the week, and the weekend if you are in retail like myself. I think if you have the money to spend, you might as well spend it on something you enjoy. Alcohol is ok on its own, people are cool, but when you mix the two you get a magical outcome. There are so many possibilities... I am referring more to bars now as some horrible segue into my top 5 favorite bars in the area. l

1) Wonderland Ballroom - I have only been here once, so it might be a bit early to declare it as the favorite, but the one time I was there(sober, nonetheless) I had a great time. Everything about it was great; the people, the atmosphere, the music. There are two distinct floors, the first being what I will label the independent floor and the second will be labeled the dance floor. Not very creative, but they really convey what each floor is about. The first floor is a more of a traditional bar with an interesting crowd. It is fairly laid back, with not too many places to sit away from the bar. That kind of creates a little more openness and makes for easier socializing with unknown individuals.
On the second floor, there was dancing. The crowd was the most diverse of any bar I have been to in my entire life and the music was almost as equally diverse. It was one of those rare moments when I felt at home in a bar. Actually it might have been the only moment that I felt at home in a bar. I am hoping to get back there soon, but it is tough to find the right people who would have a good time there.

2) Eighteenth Street Lounge - Here is the review from the post"

This ultra-hip club has no sign and a strict door policy. If you get in to ESL -- voted "Best Lounge" in washingtonpost.com's Best Bets 2006 Readers' Choice contest -- you'll find beautiful people, couches and some of the city's best DJs

I have only been here once as well and it just happened to be a couple days after I moved to the area. I just hopped in a car and followed people around until we ended up here. The atmosphere was amazing, the music was amazing (Dust Galaxy downstairs and DJ upstairs), and the drinks were amazingly expensive. I had my your not in Harrisonburg moment when I heard the bartender say $7 for an amstel light.
I also would like to head back to this place, but I always have a fear that I will not get in this time around.

3) Ultrabar - I ended up here randomly one night and only intended to stay for a short time. That never works out, and I stayed there all night and had a great time in the second half of the night. This is now bar number 3 in the list that had two floors. The first floor which I spend very little time on played more popular music and at one point when I was up there they played Daft Punk(always a plus). Downstairs had more of an electronic theme and really didnt fit in with the vibe upstairs, but I could see myself having a good time on either level. I think the reason this bar made it so high up on the list is because it reminded me the most of my weekend in NYC.

4) The Gaurds - I protest this fucking place whenever it is mentioned that a group I am with should go there, but every time I end up having a great time. I hate everything about this place, absolutely everything, but I have to add it to this list because I never have a bad night when I end up here. I would like to mention this is the first place on my list that I have actually been heavily intoixcated at.

5) Dr. Dremos (R.I.P.) - Interestingly enough, this was the first stop on my first night out in the area. So that makes two of my favorite bars that were part of my first Thursday out, and that means I had a damn good time that night. This bar oozes the 80s, but not in the way that The Gaurds survives off of the same 80s playlist every night. You get the feeling that this place hadnt had any modifications to it since it was built in the 80s. I never had an amazing time there, but thats not the type of place it is. Its a great spot get ready for the rest of the night or if you want a laid back night. Unfortunately the place is being torn down to build more condos..but there is the possibility that it could be relocated.

I would like to add that I have not been to any bars in the U st area, but will be there one day soon.