This place is dope! Good people, fun games, great beer! Right next to the Verizon center. I love coming to this place.. just make sure you got a DD or you'll end up having to sober up for a while But way I mean that's all I got I'm just typing away trying to hit the recommended yelp target..... so yeah pay this place a visit read more

I had just finished eating an entire Chinatown Chicken when I walked down the stairs to the basement known as "Rocket Bar." I stumbled from corner to corner looking for an answer to my problems. A Whiskey ginger or two and I'm on the right track to drowning the waves of sadness that are crashing into the levee's of my body. It isn't enough. I walk over to the pool tables and asked a man who looked like the love child of MC Hammer and Connie Chung to place a pool ball in my mouth. It helped, but still I need more. Then like the right of Amber Heard, it hit me. Jello Shots. How many Jello-Shots do I need? The bartender empties the fridge and I fill my pockets. I squat in a dark corner of the furthest reaches of the bar and stock my index finger into the sweet red goo. I suck it down like a Dyson vacuum performing cunnilingus on a well worn hind-quarters. Overall, I enjoyed Rocket Bar. Definitely go if you're into people leaning over tables and gelatinized vodka. read more

Great place to go to pool tables three bars and great music read more

Rocket Bar - Great respectable bartenders pool tables shuffle board pinball skeeball and great music. - Pool Halls Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

This place is EXPENSIVE. I got two beers and I paid $20 with tip. They also do not serve food, but do let you bring your own food in. Good dive bar atmosphere, which is the only reason I like it. Bar tenders are kinda slow, but it is always busy...so- it is what it is. There are also only a minimum number of seats...so be prepared to stand up and serve yourself. A good spot before a caps game since it is close... read more

Rocket Bar - Pool Halls Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

Drinks were a bit overpriced but it was overall a cute place. Don't expect to play any of the games for free, it's not that kind of bar

This is always the go to spot after a long day of work. We control the music and the drinks are delicious!! read more

Rocket Bar - Crown and cranberry on point!! - Pool Halls Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

I had no idea this was hiding across from the Verizon Center. Yes, this is a dive bar. It's dark, the drinks are cheap, and the crowd loves their rail liquor. That being said, when you're down there you don't feel like you're in DC. It's nice to be able to withdraw from that atmosphere sometimes. The happy hour includes weekends. 4-8 I think. I had two tap beers (Rocket Fuel) at $4 a pop and a $4 glass of champagne because why not. I would come here for cheap pre-gaming, and maybe a couple rounds of pool. This is not a cocktail bar. read more

I've been to Rocket Bar a number of times since I've lived in the area. The drink prices are reasonable, and the environment is full of activities (billiards, darts, arcade games). I highly recommend going here for a few drinks with your friends! read more

The Diddy Bop is absolutely HORRIBLE, which is interesting because the house margarita is actually pretty good. The environment is pretty chill and laid back. There's also a 20% check-in offer, but it only on the regular priced drinks that may not be so good. read more

Rocket Bar - Diddy Bop was not good. - Pool Halls Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

This bar is funky and unexpected - you'd probably miss it unless you caught sight of the sign outside and made the journey downstairs. It's a lot bigger than you'd expect it to be - pool tables, a few arcade games, and a decent tap list. I'd recommend coming with a group of people to hang out before hitting the town. read more

my friends and i tried to go to rocket bar and all of us were admitted except for my one friend who is 23 years old. she has 6 other forms of ids and a picture of her passport. not only would they not even scan her id they were so mean about it to her face when she is well over 21. the bouncer was very mean and unwelcoming making all of our friends leave as he would not even scan our friends id because it was vertical. if you have a vertical id i would not recommend standing in line for this bar. it was upsetting and disappointing. no one even helped us after the fact or tried to mitigate the situation. very upsetting and terrible costumer service. read more

Sort of hidden bar downtown that is great for an after work drink or before/after a game at the Verizon Center. Once you go downstairs you'll find two large bars but every time I've gone only one has been running. I wish they served food but it's strictly drinks. read more

I would avoid this place, some of the staff have serious attitude problems. Also it smells in there, and not like roses.

The bartender wouldn't let us in and we were stone cold sober. She assumed we came from the capital's game. We just wanted a drink. I do not recommend this bar read more

Sticky floors, decent on tap selection (don't go looking for any artisan craft brews here), and loud music and lots and lots of people playing pool. It's a good and necessary vibe as one of the few local business spots in the heart of the neat and tidy, chain-prolific Gallery Place. read more

Visiting from Indiana and this was the first bar we came across that felt laid back and fun! I love that the place is under ground and that there's three different rooms. Plenty of pool tables and arcade games. If I'm ever in the area again I will definitely stop back. read more

Every city needs a joint like Rocket Bar! A cozy basement to have a few beers, shoot some pool, darts, skee-ball or shuffleboard, and unwind! We were lucky to pop in before a hockey game, as they had happy hour specials aplenty. Solid beer selection on tap and full bar available. I particularly liked the fact that they have a Yelp Check-In Offer, as the drink prices here are a bit steep, but this is Downtown DC, where high prices are nothing new. I'll be back to drink here again on my next DC trip. read more

I will definitely not return to this bar, ever. There are so many things wrong with Rocket Bar I'm amazed it has managed to stay in business this long in an area where shitty bars and restaurants close left and right. The drinks are completely overpriced here, especially considering it's a sports/billiards bar. Their "regular" drinks specials include $3 Pabst Blue Ribbon...what the hell? Isn't that crap like 50 cents? The last thing I want to do after working all day is pay 600% mark-up for atrocious beer. Getting a Sapphire & Tonic here was close to $10 each, which I gladly paid to avoid the deluge of junk of tap. I know prices are generally higher in DC, but 10 bucks for a watered down gin drink in a sports bar is beyond reproach. Also, there's no kitchen here. You can order California Tortilla and I guess have it delivered, but who the hell wants to bother with that? How can you even say you have a Happy Hour when you don't even serve food? There is certainly nothing happy about Rocket Bar. As for the place itself, it's kind of disgusting. The floors are so covered in non-mopped-up spilled drinks that every walking surface, even the carpets, is completely sticky. This was one of the few places I've been where I took no pictures, which is very rare for me, because there was just nothing worth taking a picture of in this bar. The service was passable, at best, and quite a few of the games were broken. I would avoid this place if you have a choice, and find one of the dozen other bars near Verizon to get your drink and/or game on. read more

In some countries, having a bar that doesn't serve food is illegal. Apparently not in DC. I still think it's a bit dangerous though. Rocket Bar is a basement bar. It's dark, loud and full of drunk people. Of course it is, these people have been drinking the incredibly strong drinks that they serve and haven't been eating any food! The night I was there, there was actually a girl that was selling hot dogs. Apparently it was a new thing they were trying out - see if people will buy food with their drinks. Sadly, the hot dogs looked so unappetizing that I wouldn't have bought one if my liver depended on it. Like I said, the drinks are strong. Good, but strong. I had a pineapple martini which was really great but basically knocked me off my feet. The games are fun though. There are pool tables, free juke box, arcade games and a game that I can only describe as curling on sand. Shuffleboard? Is that what it's called? I'm sure that that game has a name and I'm totally butchering the description, but it basically consists of you sliding a puck-like object over a surface with sand on it, and trying to get it onto a certain area of the board. Needless to say that it was fabulous drunken fun. Bottom line: Fun with strong drinks but would be afraid to see this place in the day time. read more

I was thoroughly impressed by this bar. Look, the beer selection is "decent" but that's really not what you're here for anyway. You're here for the games that are all over the place and having good times with your friends. The place is HUGE too, which I loved. You absolutely don't have to fight to get to the bar to order a drink. But here's what really pushed it up to "5-stars" for me: I was walking into the bathroom and it appeared another patron had too much fun and had puked on his way in just before me. I saw the puke at the same time a staffer did. As I enter the bathroom, the puke-ee was leaned over in the sink, washing out his mouth/face. The staffer (in a very sympathetic tone) goes "Hey man, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave" Mr. Pukester groans in acknowledgement, still with his face in the sink. The staffer continues "Do you have a tab at the bar, man? I'm going to go close that out for you." The guy groans that he does have a tab at the bar, then gives his name. Before the staffer finally leaves to go get the tab, he even asks "Hey man, do you need some water or something? are you going to be okay?". MOST POLITE BAR-EXTRICATION I'VE EVER SEEN! The staff was SO damn nice and polite to this guy even though he was some random drunk dude who puked all over the bathroom. I'm sure the mess was quickly cleaned up (it's not like I went back to check). Anyway, if management happens to read this, I didn't ask the staffers name but he was a black guy with his arms tattooed and he had either very thin dreads or braids in his hair (it was dark and I couldn't really tell). Loved this bar and I have every intention of going back regularly. read more

Forgive me Yelp, for I have sinned. I returned to a previously rated "three stars on Yelp" establishment that I was pretty sure I'd never go back to. When I did, I found that returning yielded a 300% decrease in fun-ness. I went with a girlfriend after Zengo abruptly closed down on us at like, 11:00pm on a Saturday night. So I thought - hey, it would be fun to play darts or skee-ball, right? I should have remembered that it would be more like walking into a room of jackasses, wishing I could throw darts at all of them for being complete skeeZE-balls. We sauntered in, way too over dressed in our typical attire. I thought the "bouncer" was going to throw us out for not wearing American Eagle and flip flops, or being WASP or Jewish. We wandered up to the bar, both weary so far but ready to give Rocket Bar a chance. The drinks were CHEAP. I felt like I was possibly given imitation liquor because the places I usually go to cost three-four times more per drink - but then again, I guess they're cheap because the atmosphere is, too. The bartenders weren't into the idea of flirting with us no matter what, so we decided to sit at the bar with drinks in hand and entertain ourselves in gossip and conversation until other more deserving conversationalists wanted to grace us with their presence. And boy, did they. Several of them. People I wouldn't talk to if I was paid. We tried the whole "don't give them the time of day" routine, but their drunken Missouri asses were awfully ambitious, so we engaged in minimal back and forth. There was an annoying group of kids behind us - and I think I accidentally gave one of the girls a bad look. She gave DC night life a bad name. She was that girl that dresses like a Russian prostitute whose clothes come from garage sales, or her 13 year old Lolita closet. I felt bad for getting all righteous, but she is the reason that people look down on DC night life. Rocket bar is like a frat party gone bad - with that dorky frat you never, ever wanted to party with, who got a hold of a ball pit and some high school girls. read more

Always come down here for a drink before going to a concert or hockey game. Keep an eye on the neon sign outside or you'll walk right by. Few bars downstairs & lots of pool tables & video games to keep u busy... read more

Go here with friends after a Warriors game and get your game on with a pint of $3 PBR...not a bad price for deep in the city. What I love about Rocket bar is that there are darts, shuffle puck and pool. I like when there is something to do other than just stand around and stare at each other. What I don't love is that it can feel like a meat market in the later part of the evening and it is deep underground which is kind of a depressing feeling. The women's bathroom has three stalls and there is never a long wait. Best days are Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. read more

There was a DC town called China, Its restaurants all had a line-a. We blamed the Caps, But Rocket had taps, And Chipotle provided the dine-a. read more

It's surprising to me to learn that this place has Skee-ball (which I LOVE!) and other games because when I was there last weekend, I couldn't see through the masses of 'brahs'. I'll be upfront when I say that hang-out places are not my idea of a good Saturday night. You'll typicallyu find me in the middle of the dance floor, not chatting. So take my review with a grain of salt. I got dragged to Rocket Bar as a "wingwoman" for a friend of mine who was out on the prowl for men and wanted me to join her. I grudgingly accepted. The bouncer was rude, the place was CROWDED, and I was one of the most dressed-up people in the place (fitted jeans with a simple lowcut long sleeved shirt and pink heels). Now, I'm not saying that formal going-out clothes are necessary for a night at the bar, but jeans, t-shirt, and sneakers just don't seem right for a Saturday night. I'd go back to Rocket Bar if pressured, or if looking for a quick-fix on Skee-ball, but in general, it just wasn't my cup o' tea. read more

4 stars seemed sufficient until i discovered: skee ball. 5 stars became an understatement once I started playing: pac-man. HUGE fan. This basement game bar (located right across from the Verizon Center) is the ideal place to go after a caps or wizards game, or to play something more tailored to your liking..perhaps pool, connect four, shuffleboard...you name it. The crowd is fun and laid back. Lets face it -they just wanna playyy!...and drink. The decor is my fave part and comes complete with a full galaxy painted on brightly colored walls, a glittery bar, round hanging colored lights, and the newest addition - a huge silver robot when you first walk downstairs! Recently expanded to a larger space with 3 bars, there's enough room that you won't have to worry about someone throwing off your winning pool shot - although there is a good chance you'll be waiting in line to get in. read more

In a basement. Smells like bleach. GREAT MUSIC. Clean bathrooms! Wasn't our vibe, so we left. Bouncer was nice though!

I had my birthday party at Rocket Bar based on recommendations from a few friends. It was a great first experience. I went on a Tuesday night so it could be completely different on a weekend night. The place is big enough so everything is spaced out and you're not right on top of each other. We got there at around 6 and it wasn't very busy. I didn't mind because it enabled us to get a table right away. We took full advantage of the Pats Blue Ribbon daily special. A can of PBR for 3 bucks. Later in the night we got a game of shuffleboard going. Their rates for the games are reasonable. I believe their pool table rates are cheaper than Buffalo Billiards. The retro cartoon drawings of robots and rockets, along with hanging up old comic books made Rocket Bar stand out in my mind. In a way Rocket Bar reminds me of an old rec center like in the movie, Dazed and Confused. I didn't encounter any drunken jackasses like other reviewers mentioned. I think going on a Tuesday night helped. I would definitely go back if I'm looking for some place different to hang out after work. Where else can you play shuffleboard, drink PBR and have Guns and Roses' Rocket Queen playing on the jukebox? read more

How many reviews for one place is too many? Rocket bar might not benefit from my two cents, but I'm gonna give it anyway! A long overdue happy hour, which we renamed ecstatic hour, where we were celebrating our graduation from grad school a week and half ago, brought us to Rocket Bar. First of all it's super convenient, steps off the metro. I wasn't feeling the beer (rare for me!), so I started with a medori sour, which was delicious! The bar service was really quick and friendly. The next drink was recommended by a friend, a butterscotch martini, which the bartender made REALLY strong, but was also delicious! But the BEST part about this place, they have SKEE BALL! (in addition to all the other bar games, shuffle board, pool, video games, even a table pac man). After I enjoyed thoroughly kicking the asses of my friends at skee ball we closed our tab and went for food. I was extremely surprised to find out my two mixed drinks were only $5 each and then $2 up charge for a martini... way cheaper than I was expecting! Yay Rocket Bar, I'll be back!! read more

What I liked - good beer selection, good amount of people but not at all crowded, shuffleboard and pool, panic_tv - http://www.panictelevision.com/ - which is an amalgamation of odd clips, old and new. It makes an acid trip look as organized and coherent as a presidential debate. What I didn't like - rates for said pool tables and shuffleboards, music a bit loud for my old man ears, only hot dogs available on site to eat (although apparently you can bring in your own food). It's a decent place, I had fun, but one of those spots you swing in for a couple hours and then swing out. EDIT: Wow!! They opened up another wing to this place and what a change! More pool tables, another bar, arcade games with Donkey Kong! And Skee Ball!!!! You hear that?!?!? Skee Ball!!! Oh man, oh man. read more

I was already pretty tipsy on my way in to Rocket Bar. The additional shots, beer, and Cosmopolitan caused further blurriness, but I do remember having a good time! The bouncer was friendly, although that could have been because I was drunk and I'm pretty sure I was laying it on pretty thick. Oops. They've got pool tables, shuffleboard tables, and some arcade games, none of which I'm normally into when out at a bar. However, I did manage to lose miserably at a couple of games of Buck Hunter. I felt like all the game prices were high, but again I haven't played arcade games since they were a quarter (back in my day, sonny, we played games with joysticks, not guns!). The one perk was that the jukebox was FREE. I figured that it probably had years of songs on backup and therefore we'd never get to hear our music, but I believe that Jim and Kori may have heard some of their selections while we were there (yet again, it's all a little fuzzy). You're welcome to bring in your own food (umm.. takeout from Matchbox, anyone?) but they do have some hotdogs available on a little spinning rack right as you walk in the door. Some girl has to monitor it the whole time-- she can't even talk to you. Poor little hot dog girl. read more

This is probably one of the better bars in Penn Quarter/Chinatown, which isn't really saying much at all. It's dirty, grimy and smelly. They have skeeball, shuffleboard, darts and pool, which is probably impossible to play once it gets crowded here. They don't do food but they allow you to bring food from surrounding establishments in the bar. Props for having a somewhat different beer selection and double props for carrying Dale's Pale Ale. Before you come here, make sure there is no Capitals or Wizards game going on. If there is, just be sure to grab a seat about 10-15 minutes before the game ends because once the game is over, everyone raids this bar and all of sudden you will not be able to move. Strike that, it's probably best to just avoid the bar in general if there is any event about to end at the Verizon Center. Overall, let's just say that if my friend wasn't a bartender here, I would never come in here. read more

Let me clear this up once and for all. Rocket does not smell like a porta-potty. There is only a faint odor of what the girls described as "stale, sour beer" as you come down the narrow stars. That said, you'll stop noticing it after a while. It was Halloween Eve, and the place soon filled up with red Caps jerseys, mostly with superstar Alex Ovechkin's name on the back. I assume they were there to get their buzz on before the match up with the Islanders. We were farewelling a co-worker, and with no red on, we retreated to the back bar. As sports bars go, this if definitely not a Greene Turtle or even an Irish Pub. It's a warehouse with no pretentions. Think of Kevin James playing the Albert Brennaman in the movie, Hitch. Just a basic guy. This is a no-frills, no food bar. Lots of TVs. Drinking only. If you want something to eat, bring it yourself. We opened the place at 4:00. Had no trouble getting served. They have at least 10 beers on draft for $5.50 a pint, and of course, cans of PBR for $3.00. Oh, and at least at 6:00, the bathroom was still clean. read more

This place is like arcade meets nasty dive bar meets people dressed like they should be a way better bars. Why i might come back: I brought chipotle in and ate it with a yummy beer Beers weren't terribly priced. People were nice watched my friend play this ridic game with a punching bag. Really funny. SKEE-BALL!!!!! Which i ROCK at! only 50 cent! Why i don't want to come back: Kind of creepy basement Smelled like a port-o-potty really packed (but i guess it was friday) really loud. read more

This was a disappointment. I'm a big fan of games in bars and Rocket Bar has a pretty sweet selection--shuffleboard, skee ball, pool, darts, buck hunter, etc.--but it's hard to play when all the tabletop surfaces and floors are so sticky and spill-covered that there's nowhere to put down your purse. I'm a dive bar fan, but this was beyond. The whole front room smelled intensely of urine, and the music was so loud that my friends and I had to cup our hands and yell into each others' ears. The back room is better (make a left at the bottom of the stairs). It's interesting--as you walk from the front room into the back room, the urine smell disappears. It smacks you in the face again when you re-enter. Anyway, the back room doesn't smell like a urinal, and the music is at a volume that allows for slightly easier conversation. There are 3 shuffleboard tables back here (you pay per 20 minutes to rent the game pieces) as well as darts and another bar. If you can get a game table, that's what makes this bar worth putting up with. As others have stated, drinks are too expensive here for a divey sports bar, and there's no food, though if there was I'd be loathe to try it anyway. Dress is anything goes. There's jeans and t-shirts mingling with slutty boob shirts mingling with business suits. Rocket Bar is near the Verizon Center, Chinatown metro, etc., so honestly I'll probably end up back here, but I'm not excited about it. read more

Rocket Bar is a basement bar right by the Verizon Center. You have to be on the lookout for it because the entrance isn't that obvious. There is no cover to get in (or at least there wasn't on the two nights I went there). They have a bunch of TV's for sports, multiple pool tables, darts, a shuffleboard table, and some video games (definitely Golden Tee, possibly Buck Hunter?). On a Sunday night during football season it's a great place to watch the games. They have a lot of TV's with all the games on, and it wasn't crowded at all. The bartenders were also nice as hell. They were giving away free raspberry M&M's and scratch-off lottery tickets, and they didn't give me any shit for having only three beers during the almost six hours I sat at the bar. On a Friday night when there's a home Caps game, it's a fun place to party. It's pretty crowded, with plenty of young people. The music is loud, but not so loud you can't have a conversation. My only complaint is that the shots were pretty expensive, but part of that could be the fact that I was forced to order lemon drops, which I think are a waste of money, for the mostly female crowd I was with. When will women realize that if the goal is to get drunk or at least tipsy, lemon drops are not a cost-effective way to go? They're barely alcoholic! The pool was also a little expensive. All in all though, it seems like a fun place where one could have a good time, meet new people, and get drunk with ease. Plus it's right by the Metro so you don't have to stumble or crawl far to get home. read more

This place is fun! A group of Yelpers stopped here on the Mariko bday celebration pub crawl. We ended up sticking around for a while. There was shuffleboard and good music playing. I think we drank a lot there. But it was all good. This place is down in the basement under the city and could easily be missed if you're just walking by. There's pool tables and cool decor. You can rent board games or play darts or shuffleboard (as we did). Bartenders were fast and friendly, prices seemed reasonable. This is a good place to come hang out for a few drinks and move on. Oddly enough, there's this weird hot dog rotisserie thingy (think 7-11 hot dogs) that apparently you can buy a hotdog from. There was a poor girl, looking bored out of her mind, sitting there just waiting to sell you a hot dog. $3.50 gets you a dog, chips and a pickle. Good deal? I don't know. I don't eat hot dogs. I just thought it was odd and very out of place. If you're looking for other food here, you're out of luck. They don't serve any. But you can feel free to bring your own in from any of the fine establishments in the area or even order a pizza to be delivered. I'd definitely hang here again. read more

You would think Rocket Bar would be on a rooftop or something... not in an underground basement with all the painting of rockets on the side as you go down haha Mainly I'm at this fine establishment for the fun divey atmostphere, cheap drinks, and to play BIG BUCK HUNTER! read more

A solid 3.5 star rating for Rocket Bar. I'm in a list mood today so a list is what you get heh. Pros: Skee-ball - Donkey Kong - Buck Hunter - Pool - Darts - Lots of "cool" areas to hang in - Good amount of TVs (for the game) - Beer selection is decent. Cons: Well, nothing really... so why not give them four stars! Hurray! Oh! I have something to add. If you are playing pub golf, they won't let you in with real golf clubs. read more

I liked this place...although I'm a little surprised, after reading reviews from some of my fave yelpers. I got into chinatown a little early for my very first hockey game at Verizon Center. I still had to wait around for the partner and partner's fam to get there and Clyde's had a line forming out the doors. So, I ran over to much less crowded Rocket Bar for a drink. Maybe it was because I was alone and was being my naturally awkward self, but the bartenders were extremely nice to me. And aside from one weirdo frat boy's creepy stare, I rather enjoyed my time here, which was spent nursing a cheap Guinness. I don't know that I'd come here on a weekend, but if you're just waiting around for a game - it beats the crowds at some of the more visible places. read more