We never would have known about Carpool if there hadn't been an after work get together. They have a good variety of beers on tap and their staff is pretty helpful. We've not eaten here yet, so we can't attest to the food, but while we were playing 'jumbo' jenga, a nearby table ordered some wings and they smelled really good. The crowd here is definitely not pretentious and everyone seems to be laid back. There's an internet jukebox, skee ball, jenga, a giant connect four, several pool tables, darts, shuffleboard and a couple of golf video games. There's also a good amount of places to just kick back and hang with your friends. It was raining a little bit, so we didn't sit outside - their outdoor patio is decent in size. Carpool has a few tvs situated here and there, but the satellite wasn't working so well while we were there. Although there wasn't a 'good' game on, I'm kind of skeptical about their reception for when it really counts. Another reviewer mentioned that Carpool is dirty and smells. I'm not necessarily sure what that person was looking for. If I want to go to a classier joint, I'll find one and skip Carpool. I didn't think it smelled during my visits. I agree that the couches are likely grimy, but I've come to think that many bars don't really clean their seating. Don't they just wait until their old furniture 'dies' and go out to buy some new stuff? I've seen worse in NOVA and many other states. This place is a decent bar. read more

Such a cute place. Had a work happy hour here and will be going back! They have out door seating as well and can't wait to get back this summer. read more

Came here for happy hour on a Wed night. Overall, nothing special. Located in a random location that I never would have went to if my buddies haven't invited me. The best part of this venue were the games. Atmosphere was average yet fun since I came with my group. Taste: 3/5 -Average bar food Service: 3/5 -Took a few tries to get the bar tender. Though they were very prompt once I have their attention. $ Worth: 2.5/5 -Reason why only I'm only giving 2.5 stars is that I can think of many other places I would rather go than here for the same price. read more

Carpool is back in Arlington! Awesome place. Great beers on tap. And the food is better than I remember from when it was on Fairfax in the old days. Super local hangout. read more

The place itself is in an office park-looking spot, but there's a larger parking area and patio out back. The beer list is pretty expansive for a pool hall as is the food menu. We had the chicken nachos and jalapeno poppers- the poppers are topped with tater tots! They were so good we had a second round. I loved all the local beers on tap as well. I had a delicious stout called Caramel Machiato. The service was decent. The crowd is random but fun. If you're in Herndon and looking for a place to grab a beer, highly recommend! read more

If you can ignore the sticky floors, this place isn't bad at all. I loved playing (and beating the boys) in basketball and most of the bartenders were attentive and nice. Giant jenga and darts are always fun while drinking. The only reason why I'm giving this a 3 and not 4 stars is due to its cleanliness. Carpool could definitely benefit from a thorough cleaning and more consistent upkeep of maintenance. But I'd still go back (just with constant washing of hands and not wearing my nice shoes there). read more

The fun part about this bar is all the games they have to play. They have a life size beer pong. The drinks are average. The atmosphere isn't amazing. They have an outdoor patio and with people coming in and out of the bar inside and outside all the smoke from outside filled inside. There were so many people smoking cigs felt like a biker type bar. Not really my scene... read more

We went here for dinner and drinks for the first time last night and it was unexpectedly great! It's very unassuming from the outside but has a great vibe inside. They have a HUGE selection of craft beer and a good amount of unique liquors. The bartenders were super friendly and nice and helped my very indecisive spouse pick a beer, even gave him a few tastings. We got to chatting with them and they gave us some tastings of their unique liquors and gave us a few ideas for our home bar. They have darts and pool, but also other fun games like giant jenga, giant connect four, skee ball, and more! This might become a regular spot for us! read more

***3.5*** A good friend/colleague of mine accepted a new opportunity and decided that "Carpool" would be the place to hold his celebration. The time finally came to attend the event so off I went. Upon arriving there were two things that I noticed immediately, 1.) The outside look of Carpool looks to be old and outdated 2.) The parking here is a little funky so be sure to park in the appropriate spots (probably best to park in the back) In spite of number one, I still proceeded to enter the establishment. Once I entered, I see that this place is actually bigger than it looks, but has very limited seating. So if this place is ever packed be prepared to stand (which I assume is idea for social establishments, however not for women coming from work in heels). There HH (Happy Hour) prices are pretty reasonable and have a reasonably vast selection of beers. There were only three types of food items purchased for this gathering, and they are as follows: Chicken fingers, Chicken Quesadillas, and Nachos. Now I didn't get a chance to try the Nachos but the Chicken fingers and the Quesadillas were pretty darn good. I think I may have eaten all of the Chicken fingers because I just couldn't stop going back to grab one.....lol. Overall I think Carpool is a cool HH hangout spot. With a little sprucing up this place could possibly be the talk of Herndon in regards to HH joints. Oh and the half star increase was because the Chicken fingers hooked me, I just couldn't get enough. read more

This is one of my favorite places in Reston/Herndon to hang out. It's situated near Elden Street, Herndon. Its tucked away in the corner and not at all on show. I've always found the staff at this place very friendly and they have a really good selection of drinks. They also serve food, not that I tried but it from what I saw it did look good. They have at least 5 pool tables which are of good standard. They also have dart boards and nice back garden to have a drink (something I'm use to coming from London, UK). It may be a bit of a dive bar but if you are young and like to socialize (and of course like to play pool) then this is the place for you! Highly recommended! Oh and they have a really cool jukebox! read more

Carpool is a decent bar and pool hall that's held back by a few nagging issues. I've been coming here for around two years now, and every time I do, nothing seems to jump out and change my opinion. Alas, my friends like this place a ton, so I'm forced to make a visit far more often than I would given my druthers. What are the problems, you ask? Three, really. First, the atmosphere is very rarely what I'd like it to be. The place fills up decently, but for whatever reason it just never rises to match the heights that all the bars at nearby Reston town center do. Second, the place is dirty- and I don't say that lightly. You know that feeling you get sometimes when you're in a bar and you just KNOW that it's dirty? You'll get that in spades at Carpool. The couches all feel like they've never been washed since they were originally bought. And to exasperate things, 50% of the time much of the place smells terrible. The bathrooms emit a god awful stench that makes me queasy every time. Last, Carpool is only about half a mile away from town center, which, as I mentioned earlier, beats this place in every way possible. Why come here when there's an infinitely better option so close by? Carpool is the kind of place that I'd visit twice, maybe three times a year at most. I've never understood the draw this place has. Alright, there are pool tables, but if you're that psyched for pool, just go to Breakers in Herndon, about 3 miles away. Maybe I'm just the odd man out on this one, but nevertheless: Carpool just doesn't do it for me. read more

I've only been to Carpool once and I have to say that I LOVE this place. And seriously, what's not to love? They have arguably the best on-tap selection in NoVa, great casual bar food, strong Happy Hour specials, a casual and welcoming environment, and great prices. I came by here on a whim a couple of weeks ago. My wife had dropped me at work on the way up to visit friends in Pasadena, and was going to pick me up after a work dinner event on the way back. The dinner event was cancelled, so I needed to find a spot to bide my time until the wife came back through the area. Someplace, preferably, that had a few nice beers on tap and a TV to watch the UVa hoops game. I was familiar with Carpool and had been meaning to stop in ... luckily the thought popped in my head and I caught a ride over there to watch the game and have some brews and dinner before the wife picked me up. Carpool reminds me of Iron Horse near the Verizon Center, but bigger, with more taps, and food service. The decor is similar - it has the vibe of your neighbor's basement gameroom, packed with all kinds of bar games. Pool, shuffleboard, foosball, darts, video games, you name it. The racing theme is even more pronounced here, and they have large casual spaces for business/party events. And they have tons of TVs to watch the sporting event of your choice. The beer selection here is impressive. It's roughly 50 rotating taps of excellent craft brews. And everything here is "Go Big or Go Home" - the standard craft drafts are served in 22 oz. glasses (although "smalls" are available), and the goblets for the specialty brews are equally massive - definitely bigger than your standard 12 oz. goblet. And they flights of the standard drafts and growler fills. Their beer list is mostly up to date, and they'll mark the ones that are kicked and let you know what's new that might not be listed. A few highlights from my visit there included Ommegang's 3 Philosophers, the wonderful Founders Breakfast Stout, and the malty treat known as Lagunitas Hairy Eyeball Ale. Happy Hour Specials is $5 for a 22 oz. Goose Island Honkers Ale - a damn fine English Bitter. They have the wife's favorite cider - Crispin - on tap. They rotate brews from many of the well-known craft breweries and represent many of the locals as well. As for the food, it is a solid selection of pub/bar food. There isn't really any traditional restaurant seating here, but the bar is huge and there's several tables just behind that give great views of the TVs. I was feeling rather hungry, and saw that they offered sliders at a reasonable price. I can totally eat 10 sliders when I'm hungry. And I did. Many places will charge you ridiculous prices for sliders, but at Carpool I got 10 sliders with bacon and a side of tots for $19. They were BIG sliders and they were YUMMY. I do have a few gripes about Carpool - none of which are directly related to my visit. I loved going here so much that the wife and I planned to come back here Saturday to watch her Towson Tigers play for the FCS championship. I had plans to meet an old HS friend I hadn't seen in ages as well. Good thing I checked the website ... they don't open until 6PM on Saturday. I find that VERY odd for a place that has a sports bar type of atmosphere. Their website has no information about their menu, a tap listed that's about a month old, and they don't use social media to announce specials or new beer arrivals. Places like Carpool usually thrive on this type of marketing, but it is noticeably absent in their brand and strategy. However, you can take my word for it. This place has an AWESOME beer selection, great sliders, and lots of TVs. What more do you need for game day? (That is, so long as your game isn't on Saturday afternoon) read more

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It's aight. Limited food. A lot of space. I'm not mad at em. I just wish that that they had more food options.

I love carpool - relaxed atmosphere, outdoor seating, and a fantastic beer selection. The food is surprisingly good, too - especially the classic sliders (with jalapenos on the side).The staff aren't all that well versed in beer - that's the one spot they could work on to really promote the selection they've put together. (This location is a different world altogether compared to the one in Arlington - this one isn't a meat market, and the crowd is more 30+ than 20-27.) read more

Great Sports Bar, plenty of room. Great beer selection and the food is pretty damn good for pub food. I have been coming here for at least 10 years now, this is not a yuppy reston town center bar, its a real sports bar. They have something for everyone too: Cornhole, Pool, Giant jinga, skee ball, table bowling, golden tee, basketball, private group party room, etc, etc, etc If you can't find a beer you like then you must have a taste problem, They have like 30 beers on tap. It can get loud, it can get rowdy, it can get packed but that is what a sports bar is!! One last thing, it has a huge patio with giant TV's, nothing can touch this place in Herndon / Reston during the summer. Enjoy, I know I have. read more

Love me some carpool. I've been here socially & for work events. I've also organized a work event here. 100% success rate as far as I'm concerned. Outstanding staff regardless of the situation, but especially when you're paying the bill for a large party. Attentive and flexible on what's should and should not go on the tab, food timing and assortment, and they even walked around and informed the folks in our party that the tab was going to be shut down to give everyone a heads up. First class service. I've made use of the pool table, foosball, skee ball, dartboards, and shuffleboard. So yeah. Everything but the jenga blocks. While most of the equipment is generally in good repair, the foosball table could use some TLC: on the plus side it's a Tornado. The only kind of valid foosball table, in my opinion. It's missing the white guards on the perimeter of the field and the rods are a bit stiff. Overall just a great place to hang out for any occasion. read more

Take notes, Carpool in Ballston... THIS Carpool was a very pleasant surprise! I had to drive out here for a meeting--yes, yes, I attend meetings that take place in bars =) and during happy hours of course. No, but it really was a meeting. haha I was pretty hesitant about ordering food, since the food at the Carpool in Ballston has not impressed me. But it was half off appetizers, and I was pretty hungry, so I played it safe and ordered cheese fries with bacon. First off... the cheese fries are like 100X better than the other location's and there were 4 or 5 strips of bacon just chilling on top of the ooey gooey cheesey fries. yum! My friends ordered some wings, some chicken sandwich and some other appetizer. All quite good. So a big thumbs up for the food here! And next, the draft selection! There were so many to choose from, including Delirium Tremens, Bell's 2 hearted and brown ale, anchor steam, dogfish head, pyramid... oh just so many to choose from. The bartender girl was really nice and friendly and seems to know all the regulars at the bar. As well as how to describe beers to people. This would definitely be a place I'd hang out at on a regular basis, if it wasn't located out in Herndon. Maybe Ballston's Carpool will shape up and follow their lead and have better food and more beers on tap eventually. Guess I can only day dream till then. read more

My new favorite happy hour place!!!!!!!!! I have been going to this place for about a year now. I love the staff and their happy hour specials are great. Every monday they have wing specials for $0.49 per wing and $2-3 dollar domestic beers. I would say my favorite food here is spicy teriyaki wings, chicken tenders and bruschetta. I have tried almost all of their appetizers and a lot of the times, came out better than I expected from a happy hour special menu. It is very laid back and cozy, one of the best parts is that you see the same staff every time you visit and always greet with a genuine smile. I love their interaction with customers and bartenders are awesome. read more

I was at this Carpool location for the first time on Saturday afternoon for one of the football playoff games. I am familiar with the Arlington Carpool which I have always found "happening" with a decent crowd and often a line. This location, when I was there, had a max of 10 people the whole time. I left at 8:30pm Saturday PM. I know that is before most people head out for the evening but with the game on, I thought that would draw more of a crowd. Due to this, we had our own "living room" with couches to sit on and a projected screen to watch the game. This location is in an odd location - with a Dunkin' Donuts & a doctor's office. The size is great - not too big, not too small....Lots of pool tables & dart boards. The house darts are virtually new - a rarity at a bar. The staff was pleasant. Beer was cold. Wings were very good. Crab & artichoke I would recommend passing on in the future. Ladies room was freezing. Not smoky (since it was so empty) but no left after smoke odors from previous nights. I would go here again but would definitely would want a group with me to liven the scene up a bit.... read more

Really fun space with games, skeeball, billiards, etc. However, it's missing one important thing - ping pong. Oh, and there really isn't that much seating. For ladies with heels, it might get a little uncomfortable. They also have a minimum credit card charge, so if you don't intend to drink alcohol, you will probably have to pay cash. read more

Love it! 4 stars is prob a bit high for this little dive bar, but that's really how much fun it is. It's dark, the music is random (Gin n Juice followed by Shakira), there is an entire wall of taps (yay!) and the people that go there are chill. I will definitely be headed back when in town! read more

We enjoy Carpool every time we go. I have been with groups of friends, just my husband and for work happy-hours. The beer selection is fantastic, but a bit pricey if you are looking for an inexpensive happy hour. I haven't had too much from the kitchen yet but they manage fried bar food just fine. My only real complaint is the parking situation. It can be difficult to park when busy and the lot next door is strict on towing, making it less ideal to host a meetup there. read more

Manager is rude, does not care about customers, the service is terrible, and they are not dog friendly even though they have an outdoor patio. According to the VA Health Code there is not anything saying you cannot have a dog on an outside patio. If you want to go somewhere that cares about their customers I recommend any of the other fine establishments in Herndon or Reston do not waste your money here on overpriced food & beer. Also they pack the bar with too many people on most nights and are over their occupancy levels. You'll probably get towed so if you want to pay $200 go try carpool out. read more

This is a great bar. The beer selection can't be beat, especially if it is craft brews you're after. There is an outdoor patio with TVs, and inside are pool tables, giant Jenga, Foosball, shuffle board and many places to chill. Carpool is a jeans and t-shirt bar, after work happy hour bar, post kickball bar, etc. It is not the Reston town center, and to me, that's the best part about it. Yes, parking can suck, but I've never had a problem leaving my car there overnight (to cab home after drinking). Try the wings. They're tasty. read more

I hosted a group event at Carpool on a Monday evening. They set aside a nice seating area in front of a huge screen with the Nats game on, and we had two pool tables and two dartboards going with a bunch of appetizers set out on a table in our little seating area. There are about five or so pool tables, and they're all very nice, good quality and good condition. At the end of the night, we were wishing we had started a game of shuffleboard, too. They have a very large selection of beers on tap. The food was very good - much better than I expected for "bar food." I ordered the jalapeno poppers expecting standard frozen, battered, deep fried variety. Much to my surprise, they were no kidding real fresh jalapeno peppers sliced in half and loaded with cheese, tater tots, and bacon. They were VERY good. We also enjoyed the wings, the hummus, and some burgers. All good stuff. The service we received was very friendly, easy-going and accommodating of our group's requests. I thought the place was very clean and pretty upscale as a billiards place. The places I used to shoot pool in San Diego were all dives, so this was a big change for me. Heck, they even have granite counter tops and fancy water fixtures in the men's room. The prices were a little steep, but I do think we go what we paid for in quality of food, quality of service, and quality of the pool tables. Overall, very pleased with our experience here, and I look forward to hosting another group event here in the future. read more

Welcome to Siberia! Ok, so Herndon isn't really the equivalent of a barren wasteland, but it's still a bit far out into suburbia for my taste. :) If you have to pay tolls to get out there, it's an automatic deduction of a star! :P That said, carpool isn't all that bad. A decent selection of tap beers. Speedy service. Roomy and spacious. An adequate supply of pool tables. A vibrant youthful clientele. Plenty of TV's. Music! an ATM... Oh, and dividers between the bathroom urinals. It has everything you need in a bar. (Well, everything you care about having in a bar anyway) Worth a shot if you live out in the area. read more

I love Carpool! It's the kind of bar that everyone hopes they find in their twenties...the bartenders get to know familiar faces on Thursday nights because of the kickball/dodgeball tournaments, the people there are always super friendly, the food is actually SPOT-ON, which doesn't always happen at a bar (but you're normally drunk anyway, so hey...) and the prices don't ever break the bank. NEVER have I had two or three beers and an appetizer on a Thursday night and paid more than $15. The bartenders are really great and they're part of the reason I keep coming back. Plus, what other bars have drunken jenga, pool, arcade style basketball, and skee-ball?! Exactly. Best bar ever. If you're in the Herndon/Reston area and want to just have a good time instead of putting on pretenses, this is the bar for you. One caution, though -- DO NOT JUST PARK YOUR CAR ANYWHERE if the lot is full!!! You can definitely get towed -- I have, and at least the wrecking service crew were nice. Ask one of the staff where a safe place to park is. read more

Carpool has its charms! It's that out-of-the way place in Reston if you want to avoid the RTC crowd (and sometimes you do). It's more of a neighborhood type place. It's never too crowded and there's plenty of room to just spread out. They have a great outdoor patio with two levels and plenty of tables and chairs. Only reviewing the bar services...I have never eaten here. Not sure if I would even look at a menu but some people say the food is decent. The bartenders are good but I wouldn't say overly friendly but they do make sure you have a drink in hand. Prices are also great especially for happy hour. Yes, the parking lot is a pain because there aren't any spots in the front for Carpool parking. read more

Much slower than the one in Arlington, but great deals on happy hour and plenty of games to play with friends/co-workers. 1/2 price appetizers and I think $2 miller lite bottles thursday nights. The food is normal bar food. Don't go with high expectations, though our waitress was really on top of our service. They charged us less than $1 for darts, but made up for it on shuffleboard. PARKING is weird, you have to park in the back of the building because the parking in the front is all assigned. And then instead of entering the bar from the back, you must use the front entrance. Annoying in the winter time. read more

Really like this place for happy hour. Bartenders are really nice. Happy hour runs until 8 with really good specials on beer, rails, and apps. Also, the place is fairly big. And it usually has a decent amount of people. Not too crowded where you're struggling to place an order and not too empty to make it awkward. Shuffleboard, darts, pool if you're bored. read more

I went to Car Pool for the first time this past weekend because I had a living social/groupon coupon. ATMOSPHERE - 5.0 The place itself was clean and the decor was pretty cool. The TVs at the bar are very nice. There are at least 5 fairly large flat screens so we were able to catch all of the sports events on at the time. SERVICE - 1.0 The bar tender, a young female, greeted us promptly, however, she forgot a drink order, couldn't answer any questions about the beer menu, and ignored numerous obvious attempts to make eye contact when I needed something eventhough the bar wasn't busy at all. She also took almost 10 minutes to cash out our check because she couldn't figure out how to credit the coupon. To make things more frustrating she also erroneously charged my credit card twice which I now have to sort out after the fact. BEER - 4.5 There is a pretty good beer selection on tap, which was great, however, the prices are not listed on the menu for some reason. This is frustrating for someone like me who is on a budget. FOOD - 2.0 We ordered a crab & artichoke dip appetizer, wings, a turkey reuben and a buffalo chicken sandwich. The dip was pretty good as were the french fries that came with the sandwiches. The other people in my party said the wings were just okay. The sandwiches were not good at all, which was disappointing because they are pretty simple items you'd think would be hard to mess up. None of us finished them. I would have given this a 2 star rating if it weren't for the good beer and the atmosphere. I might go back, but not to eat and not in that girl's section. read more

Carpool is a waste of your time and money. The food is overpriced, and the last thing you'll ever want to do is hold a special event here. We had a huge group there on the Saturday before Halloween. They held a costume contest that night, so we had a ton of people dressed extremely well. In the end, the bartenders gave the prize to a "regular" at the bar who dressed up in a Carpool t-shirt and hat, who said he was dressed as the owner. A lot of people were upset that night. read more

I was tasked with organizing a project outing at Carpool Herndon, and was pleasantly surprised! The happy hour specials are fantastic! Drinks (beer, rail, and house wine) averaged about $4 a piece, and all appetizers were 1/2 off. The beers were also bigger than your normal ones. The manager, Rama, provided excellent service and was super attentive to our group even when things started to get a bit busier towards the later part of the night. My one complaint is around the parking. Most of the spots at the strip mall were reserved..and NOT for Carpool! Honestly, it's Herndon...is there really not enough room to create enough parking for everyone? read more

I've been here a bunch of times, mostly with co-workers on biz trips from out of town. The crowd here is much laid back, although you can tell that some of them work in the belt and are all dressed up after. Lots of games and entertainment to keep you busy, lots of different options for group food and drinks. Check out the wings, tenders and mini-sliders or the bison burger. Groups can spend several hours here and the outside is perfect for work or non-work catching up! They have a pretty descent Belgian beer collection, the friends enjoy stiff drinks. read more

Okay place to hangout with friends, but feel the inside it's smells different Starters are good read more

Went here today looking for a new Sunday brunch spot with some friends and wasn't impressed. The bar tender/waiter was wonderful, found us a spot and made sure the game we wanted to watch was playing. The food was very small portions and we left without feeling full. I will return though because they have my favorite jack-o-traveler on the draft! read more

They have an impressive list of beer options to choose from. The service is a bit slow, but who cares when the food and drinks are good. As for happy hour food, they are about average... or a little above average. read more

I've been here a few times with friends and always have a good time. They have half price appetizers at happy hour. Their sliders, cheese fries and jalepeno poppers are amazing! They have Delirium and Hoegarden on tap - AWESOME! Skeeball, shuffleboard, pool, darts and great music/dj's/bands on occasion. This place definately has personality and is a fun place to hang out :) read more

Large selection of beer, good bar food, get the chicken sammich. Tuesday game nights with USS is fun and well organized, unless skip is out for half the games :p Pool, cornhole, shuffleboard and of course, skee ball are great to play on a Friday or Saturday night in town. Can get a little busy. read more

Awesome place. Very friendly staffs. Love Stu and the Long Island drink he makes will make you go there again and again. read more

Carpool - Pool Halls Near Me - Herndon, Virginia