Had a very odd interaction with the doormen at this bar. I was let through the first door with my fiancé and then was stopped at the second and asked to leave. We had only been out for one drink prior at dinner (and therefore very sober) and very confused as to why we were being asked to leave. Super unfortunate as this seemed like a great late night spot near our hotel. After our interaction I wouldn't recommend to anyone visiting the area. read more

Rocket Bar on 7th Street in DC is a great place to go for drinks, games, and much more. I really like the space and everything that they have available here. I have had a really good experience every time I have been here. read more

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

Fun, low key laid back place without any of the DC pretense that unfortunately tends to permeate most of the places downtown these days. They have shuffleboard, pool, darts, and skeeball so it's a good place to go chill after work and they have a beat the clock special on football Sundays where their house Rocket Fuel beer is $1 at noon and the prices go up $1 an hour from there. It's the best deal in town and this place fills up pretty fast so I think the secret is out. They don't serve food at all but you can bring food in from any of the places around Chinatown or you can actually bring your own snacks in and they're fine with that. About "the smell", yes this place does have a slight basement type smell but once you are there for a couple of minutes you don't even notice it. This place is worth checking out for sure if you're in the area. read more

I never really noticed this much walking by on the street. I really only went in because the Pinball Map app said it had a pinball machine. My regular place was closed, so I decided to check out this one. Wasn't disappointed. Very cute space/ robot theme with lots of games. I may come back if they get more pinball machines. They only had one and it wasn't that great. Also the TouchTunes app wouldn't play the two songs I selected for the jukebox, so I ended up getting a refund. read more

Rocket Bar - Entrance to basement bar - Pool Halls Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

See all

The bar was not deaf-friendly. They closed early, even though we had already ordered drinks. The security staff yelled at us and another customer to leave, even though it was before closing time. We had a bad experience and won't be going back there again. read more

Good bar to fraternize with other people in their young 20s. Rocket bar has been packed every time that I have visited on the weekend. They offer plenty of TVs, pool tables, and shuffleboard tables in addition to some arcade cabinets. The music is loud, but it provides exactly the environment that you would expect. I would recommend Rocket Bar for those searching for the particular ambiance that they provide. read more

Oof. Went to rocket bar last night (10/10/22) and have never experienced outward rudeness/mean-ness from a bartender for no reason before that evening. Went to the larger bar on the right to get drinks before the Killers show at Capital One. There was a crowd by the bar and some other guy was waiting to order in front of me. When the bartender looked at me for my order I turned to him to let him order since I didn't want to be rude and cut in front of him. The bartender goes "How about when I look at you that means you order?" She then, unprompted, goes "The way i see it, i don't come to your job and tell you how to do it." Mind you, I don't think I've said a word to her yet? Finally i order my drinks and as she's making them, the guy next to me goes "hey thanks for trying, it was a nice gesture." I said "no problem, I tried" and the bartender now yells over the crowd "Or we could all just order at once?!??" I'm not sure the day she was having and maybe it's a fluke incident but as someone who has worked in customer service, yiiiikes. She was belittling for no reason. Things were busy but like...don't be a jerk to a customer for no reason. Went to the other bar in the space the rest of the night. All other staff were lovely but the one bartender really ruined the experience for me. Can't imagine I'll head back any time soon when she's working. read more

Not impressed. Drinks are cheap and easy to get. Nothing top shelf. Everyone in here was a child. I'm in my thirties and they all look like teens are with fake IDs. Definitely full of babies, if you're into that. I was surprised I didn't see any politicians in here, lol. Best thing you can actually play in here is the skee ball tables in the back, or the rather empty shuffle boards littering the venue. The one thing I really wanted to play? Billiards. But not only was there no person to actually get a table from.. but also there was a ton.. I mean literally everyone had a drink on the table and asses on it as well. Nothing is enforced here and security is merely just wait staff cleaning up messes. Signs clearly stating no drinks nor asses on tables is heavily ignored. Simply put, rocket bar is a teenage hangout where an abundance of children can get drunk and grind. There is little to no place for actual dancing and thus they've flooded the one thing this place is known for. I will absolutely not, come back here. I just wanted to play billiards, but considering no ability to buy a table.. then the fact that I'll definitely have to fight a teen to GTFO a table.. yikes. So, all in all.. if you like Fighting children, feeling like your in a high school party, or simply hitting on children, this is the place for you. Words to management: actually enforce the rules you put in place and put together a gaming area for us adults. Also, put together a dance floor for the children to play. read more

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

See all

Great happy hour! Wish the music was better but it's a cool vibe. They don't sell food but You can bring your own food in which is convenient. The bartenders are cool. read more

$6 for a mixed drink - ehh so so on that, wish it was cheaper, but for the area it's average (as much as I've witness from visiting) It's a dive bar/ arcade bar. All games are 9 credits to play. And for $10 you get 90 credits = 10 games. Shuffle board and pool is $12 to play for 2 players I like the atmosphere/vibe. A lot of mid 20's. Big bathrooms with lots of stalls in the women's - that's a plus because no waiting in line. read more

Amazing can't complain. We we for a bar crawl, and I can't wait to come back. The people were fantastic and it was a fun fun environment.

Came on a Tuesday night with my buddy, bar was pretty empty. The bartender with dreadlocks was horrible, on his phone most of the night, stood there for 5-10 minutes waiting to get his attention. It was weird because he would only pay attention when a girl was at the bar. Still gave him a good tip but he made us consider not to for the first time. read more

Great hh drink prices. They dont serve food. Good selection on jukebox. Can be a little musty in the bsr area. Provably spilled drinks on the floor. But the place is huge with alot of games to play read more

Rocket Bar - Happy hour daily until 8!! - Pool Halls Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

A great basement bar for hanging with friends. The space is large and for a Friday night, was not packed at all. But as Jim B. said, the rates for games is a bit steep. $20/hr for tabletop shuffleboard? (It is based on per person and day of the week.) At least we got some good pictures! The drinks are good. I enjoyed my martini and Ketel One lemon drop. It's a good job I was sated from Matchbox pizza as hot dogs are your only option here. Come for an hour or so to get merry with your friends, not to eat the rotating hot dogs! read more

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

THIS IS THE COOLEST SPOT I've came across in a looooonnnng time! They did EVERYTHING RIGHT! I can't believe I'm just now finding out about this! Perfect date idea for couples or friends just hanging out! Chucke cheese for adults! You can bring your own food and they have a open bar! Also it's super close to the capital one arena! Cool staff and everything was super clean! read more

See all

I was at the bar (usually great atmosphere) with the exception of the staff who seemed to remove 7 individuals or so for no reason. when I asked them what happened out of curiosity and concern I was met with a lack of professionalism. The bartenders pretended that they didn't know what happened and the lady at the front with the bouncers were pushing agendas. They shoved many bystanders. frankly, I have been to this bar many times and enjoyed it, but this is the last straw. no class, no reason. the owners should consider firing these individuals. read more

Absolutely love this place in Chinatown DC. I am a huge pool fan so this place was perfect for me. They have many pool tables so you don't have worry about waiting a lot. Go grab a drink, get a pool stick and enjoy your time. I would definitely go back to this place as the prices is very nominal. read more

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

Staff were extremely rude and hostile. I was falsely accused of trying to steal someone else's drink and kicked out. I will NOT be returning to this establishment. If you are looking for a place to get drinks before or after an event at Capital One Arena, pick a different bar. This is unfortunate because Rocket Bar was my go-to spot since the closing of Fado read more

When we first entered, we tried to show the bouncer our IDs. The bouncer said we weren't allowed to stand there because we were blocking people (even though nobody else was anywhere near us). He told us to keep moving, but once we started into the bar, he got mad that we didn't give him our IDs to check, even though we tried to. Put a bad taste in our mouths. We had one beer each and then left. read more

Get ready for liftoff! Rocket Bar is a lively, fun place to meet pals. You can play pool ($4 per person for 4 people), darts or video games. The space theme is fun. The bar even has a "Rocket Fuel" brew. They don't serve food but allow food to be brought in. Some restaurants will even deliver to Rocket Bar. This is a place to hang and watch a game and not have a conversation (unless you come early). When the place is packed it is harder to hear. The bathrooms are clean and right around the corner from the stairs. I didn't notice an elevator. Bonus points for the Star Wars video games. read more

See all

Finally I dont have to travel yonder to play pool. Also happy to see some things coming back to chinatown. Its really dead hopefully this starts something read more

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

Such a fun spot especially if you want games options and great beverage prices! Loved it! for a bar with a lot of younger people, I was impressed with how observant the staff was and would grab empty glasses, trash, etc! read more

Happy Hour from 4-8pm? Yaaas please !!! If you are like me and sometimes prefer a fun dive bar which offers pool tables, darts , music that won't kill ur ear drums and affordable drinks this is the place for you . As I've gotten older , I've spent so much time in DC doing the high end foo foo bars and drinks and this place offers a great change in pace! And given its location ( heart of downtown DC) it's a great place to meet before and after events! Not the best place for a date night but as a fun night out with friends , or a place to pregame after game ! This is the spot witch cheap drinks and great service ! read more

This place is very bias not much more to be said there I came here for the first time a day or so ago and all was great until the bartender messed up by over charging me for a drink I never asked for an then got mad at me an told security to throw me out when all I wanted was to close my tab... so they charged me for two drinks I didn't even order an closed my old tab an new tab at %20. The little man that was a security seems very power hungry an tried to joke around and charge me to come in and once another guard saw him he immediately said it's fine go inside just because he got caught. Go to U street better drinks an more fun never going back. 1/10 for this place read more

Drinks were mediocre at best and the games were pretty fun unfortunately the bar tender who runs the pool balls was pretty rude

If it was just the bar and drinks I would say a five; however, the remainder of the staff sat on chairs playing with their phones. Great location and ambiance though. read more

As a frequent customer here, I have to say I really enjoy this bar. Rocket bar might be a bit hard to find in Chinatown because it is just a tiny door in between 2 stores on 7th street. But once you go down the stairs and go through the bottom entrance you will realize this bar is HUGE!!! There are 3 main areas and each area has a bar. This place gets crowded during the weekend because of all the entertainments at this bar. There are about 5-6 pool tables (you can rent the balls by the desk at the left stage corner when you first entered the bar, the hourly rate varies depending on # of players and days of the week, between $10-$20). There are darts and board games for rent ($2), various arcade machine (pac-Mac, pinballs, street fighters, golfing), 2 skit ball machine ($0.50/game). There are also TV around the bars so great for sports game watching! I highly recommend this bar if you want a fun night out filled with fun activities other than just crazy dancing! On Saturday night a draft beer ranges from $5-$7. Mix drink is about $8. Another great thing about Rocket bar is if you check in on Yelp you get 20% off your drink tab!!! :) read more

Bartenders were extremely rude and took forever to make drinks. I'll definitely not be returning to this bar which is unfortunate because I did like the atmosphere and vibes with the pool table but yeah, bartenders were no bueno. read more

The guy who controls the pool games is a tool. Sorry handing out pool balls is too stressful for you.

I've been to Rocket Bar twice or three times now..usually around 9-10pm. I don't choose to go here during happy hour as they don't serve food...and when I'm drinking I need to eat! It's a lively, loud, bar with a fun theme. There are pool tables, shuffle board board games, and darts all for rent. The rental prices did seem a bit steep in my opinion but my group of friends still rented pool and shuffleboard tables. It's a little dark inside and a little bit dingy but not unbearably so. The drinks are priced fairly -- $5 for rail drinks during non-happy hour times. That's a great deal! My drinks have always been well made, so no complaints there. They have a few different options for seating: a few counter seats towards the middle of the bar, barstools, and plush couches and booths around the exterior of the bar. Overall, it isn't my favorite bar to go to in Gallery Place but definitely worth stopping through if you're looking for a new spot to try. read more

Both white and black bartenders were acting racist. They didn't want to serve us l. And when we have a tip deserved which was zero then we we were dissed, had to wait and took a while to host us again. As Spanish ppl I don't like how they treat us read more

I always really enjoy this bar. They don't have food, but they allow you to bring in outside food. Pool/shuffleboard is charged and prorated by the hour and varies depending on how many people are playing. Prices are not too high - $20/hour for 4 people. read more

I am a fan of this galactic themed basement bar! Plenty of room to sit, dance, drink, and play pool and darts. Darts are $3 plus your ID. We were warned that the place smelled like stale beer, but I didn't notice anything. Great prices! Worth the stop, if you are in the area! read more

Good prices for drinks. Not too long of a wait for pool table. Nice environment. Will be back on another Saturday night for billiards and arcade games. read more

Rocket Bar is your typical dive bar. They are being your own food. The drinks are decently priced. If you want you can control the music with the touch tunes machine. They also have plenty of pool tables, dart boards, and gaming systems to enhance the experience. It's a spot you go to for cheap drinks and fun you can create for your group. read more

This is a cool little bar. It is separated into two from what I can tell. A bar with some games and then a room with pool tables and some darts. That's the side we were on. I was there for a friends 30th birthday party turned surprise engagement party. The staff was real cool about us setting up our stuff by some tables with food and cake. The only problem I had was the problems smelled like straight vomit. I didn't take a star off cause we had an awesome night but yeah no you could smell it just walking out it was horrible. The drinks were a little pricey and not that good. And we can people playing on our reserved pool tables the whole night. All in all it was a great night though. Loved seeing my friend get engaged. Other than that, the bar didn't see too terribly packed for a Saturday night. It was my first time there and it was a nice spot. read more

Rocket Bar - The tables and our surprise set up - Pool Halls Near Me - Washington, DC, District of Columbia

See all

Bartenders are super nice! I made a reservation for pool, but wasn't watching my phone and the bartender (don't recall his name, but he was super swole) came out to find me to let me know that the table was ready. Would definitely come here again! read more

Came in last night. The bartender Maggie was awesome. We brought a baby with us and she was super cool about it. Gave her a jingle blocks to play with, offered snacks to her and talked to us. Great beer! read more

At some dive bar: Man, I wish they would finish up with that pool table already. I've been waiting for nearly 2 hours now. \ O O O / | \ |\\__ _____ / | \ / \ | || || / \ -------------------------------------------------- Farzan If only I possessed super psychic powers that would let me see into the future and know when they will finish their game. \ O O O / | \ |\\__ _____ / | \ / \ | || || / \ -------------------------------------------------- Did somebody say super psychic powers?? / OH SNAP! It's Raven Symone! _ / / /O\ \ O / O O /( )\ | |\\__ _____ / | \ / \ / \ | || || / \ -------------------------------------------------- Raven THAT'S SO RAVEN! _ / \ \ /O\ \ O / \ O / \ O / /( )\ | | _____ | / \ / \ / \ || || / \ -------------------------------------------------- You know what's NOT so Raven? This bar. Here's the scoop, boys. If you want to go play pool but hate waiting for tables then check out Rocket Bar in Chinatown. They have 7 tables, 6 shuffleboards, 6 dartboards and 2 full bars! / _ / err, there's a Chinatown in DC? /O\ O O O / /( )\ / | \ / | \ _____ / | \ / \ / \ / \ || || / \ -------------------------------------------------- non-DC visitor God Jerome, don't you know anything about DC? It's that neighborhood downtown with the cool pizza place everyone goes to, Matchbox. _ \ Ha! Some Chinatown! /O\ O O O / /( )\ / | \ / | \ _____ / | \ / \ / \ / \ || || / \ -------------------------------------------------- Wait, did you just make fun of my fellow Chinese peeps? YOU DISRESPECTIN THE CULTURE? _ / huh? But you're not even Chin- /O\ O O O / /( )\ / | \ / | \ _____ / | \ / \ / \ / \ || || / \ -------------------------------------------------- N O T S O R A V E N . / Oh shit. _ / / \ /O\ O O O /( )\ / | \ / | \ _____ / | \ / \ / \ / \ || || / \ __ (pee) -------------------------------------------------- RAVENOOOUKEN!!! Wow, what a way to go / / //O \ O / ( )= - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (O | | \ / \ -------------------------------------------------- _ /O\ O O /( )\ / | \ / | \ _____ / \ / \ / \ || || \\ ---''--O -------------------------------------------------- Well. That was awkward. _ \ /O\ O O /( )\ / | \ / | \ _____ / \ / \ / \ || || \\ ---''--O -------------------------------------------------- Don't you mean That's... _ / /O\ O O /( )\ / | \ / | \ _____ / \ / \ / \ || || \\ ---''--O -------------------------------------------------- S O R A V E N ! ---------- _ / \ \ \ \ /O\ / \ O / \ O / \ ( ) | | _____ \ / \ / \ / \ || || \\ ---''--O read more

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

The rumors are true! Rocket Bar DOES stink! But in a quirky, interesting and not unpleasant way! As I walked down the stairs toward the entrance, I was hit by the smell of stale beer and bleach. It brought back memories of college and the smell of a frat party! Walking around the bar, shoes sticking to some parts of the floor, surrounded by a veritable sea of twenty-something guys wearing Syracuse and other college gear and sorority-esque women, I really did feel like I walked into a frat house party in progress! I will have to disagree with Brian B, though, there was a high douche-factor on this Saturday night. I thought I was going to be crushed by a well-dressed, fat, goatee-wearing drunk guy who was either going to fall over on top of me or start throwing down with the bouncer who would've knocked the drunk, goateed poseur on top of me...crushing me! Rocket Bar provides a solid dive bar experience with reasonably-priced good beers on tap. There are probably better nights to experience Rocket Bar...after a Georgetown, Caps and/or Wizards game at the Verizon not being a good night...than the night I went. I'll be back, but I'll choose that night more carefully! read more