Seeking Asylum From the Typical Bar
By Fritz Hahn
Washington Post Weekend Section
Friday, February 27, 2004
On Adams Morgan's crowded, neon-lit 18th Street strip, it's always easy to spot Asylum -- just look for the phalanx of Harley-Davidson hogs and streamlined Japanese motorcycles parked outside.
Since opening in a low-ceilinged basement seven years ago, the dungeon-chic decor at Asylum (2471 18th St. NW; 202-319-9353), metal-heavy jukebox and biker-friendly staff have made it one of the most incongruent (and enjoyable) hangouts in Adams Morgan. And when Asylum expanded earlier this month into the street-level Pizza Movers restaurant upstairs, it was time to make a splash.
Interior designer Lee Wheeler seems to have taken a page from an ancient copy of "Vlad Dracul Living": Suits of armor, broadswords and iron lanterns hang on gray stone walls. Behind the bar, mirror frames are lined with skulls and long bones. The head of a giant red dragon hides a DJ booth behind its luminous eyes. (A smoke machine soon will enable the beast to snort a little fire.) "This is like the dragon's lair, with skulls and bones around," says longtime Asylum bartender Mike Ryan. "To me, it's like he just finished a big meal."
The music is just as idiosyncratic. One night, a DJ spins Billy Idol and Joan Jett before segueing into vintage speed metal, including Slayer's "War Ensemble" and Metallica's "Jump in the Fire." Another visit finds a soundtrack of frantic old-school punk from the likes of Black Flag and Agent Orange. I don't think I'd ever heard Suicidal Tendencies' manic "Institutionalized" at full blast in a bar before.
Asylum's gothic decor and pounding music might be off-putting for those used to the neighborhood's swank lounges or college bars -- I've seen a few people come in, do a double take and head back out -- but it's the kind of place where Hill staffers can mingle with bike messengers (and vice versa), and everyone is welcome. Well, almost everyone. "No yuppies allowed," owner Jim Andrade says with a smirk.
Then again, Andrade also decries Asylum's longstanding reputation as a biker bar. "Some of our customers and employees like to ride motorcycles, and the next thing I know, we're being called a biker bar," Andrade gripes. "Some old bikers came in here and looked around and said, 'This isn't a biker bar!' Well, I never said it was."
Maybe people were confused by the designated motorcycle parking outside (monitored by closed circuit cameras), the vintage bike suspended from the ceiling in the front window, or the large collection of motorcycle license plates that hang downstairs. It's a party pit stop for the Harley-riding veterans who come to Washington for Rolling Thunder every Memorial Day.
You don't have to know the difference between a Sportster and a Road King to take advantage of the weekly Miller High Life Countdown (formerly the Shiner Bock Countdown), one of the most popular happy hours in town. Every Saturday night, pints of High Life cost a quarter from 5 to 6, with the price increasing 50 cents per hour until 11.
Just make sure you order from the bar downstairs. "We're trying to get the restaurant going early" and saving tables upstairs for diners, Ryan says.
As Asylum expanded, so did its kitchen -- and the number of vegan items on the menu. In addition to Sunday's long-running vegan brunch, there's now a full menu of meatless items, but "we also do great steak and eggs," Andrade says.
Still, the heart of Asylum is the excellent bar staff -- as a whole, they're one of the better teams in the area. They take great pride in the place, and it comes as no surprise that many members of the bar and kitchen staff volunteered their time to assemble the second floor. "At one point, we had a day shift and a night shift [working construction]," Ryan says. "I put blood, sweat and tears into the place, literally."
