There's nothing like playing pool in the backroom of a neighborhood dive -- I've got a soft spot for quarter-operated tables in smoky rooms -- but the striking Orange Ball Billiards has raised the bar for D.C. area pool halls.
The spacious former furniture store is filled with rows of gorgeous Brunswick Gold Crown pool tables, all 28 of which are covered in smooth, championship-quality Simonis cloth. Forget the scuffed and stained tables at your local saloon: These babies are kept in tip-top shape because Orange Ball hosts tournaments on the regional pro-am Tiger Pool Tour, which offers thousands of dollars in cash prizes. Sticks are straight and balls run true, so if you scratch while trying to drop a ball into the corner pocket, you have no one to blame but yourself.
Pool is the focal point, but Orange Ball also serves as an above-average sports bar. More than 40 televisions of varying sizes cover the walls, including several huge projection screens that are put to good use for pay-per-view boxing events. Eight dartboards hang on the walls. Groups of leather couches and love seats are arranged for lounging around the room. Bartenders are quick, even when crowds surround the circular bar, and a number of nightly specials means drinks are almost always on the cheap side. Too bad food isn't a strong point.
You'd think billiards, darts and dozens of TVs would be enough of a draw, but Orange Ball has more activities scheduled than the summer session at the local rec center. The kickball crowd comes by for friendly (if noisy) beer pong tournaments on Tuesdays. (Games start at 9, but teams generally arrive earlier for "practice" at 7.) Wednesday's 9-ball tournament brings out professionals and amateurs; the only requirement for entry is the $20 fee.
Poker players can enjoy a few hands of Texas Hold 'Em from Saturday through Wednesday. Trivia geeks get their game on Tuesday nights. Dart and 8-ball leagues call Orange Ball home on Wednesdays.
On weekends, dancers take over a section of the floor around the dart lanes as a DJ spins hip-hop, Top 40, salsa and reggae, and on the last Saturday of the month, the Fiesta Latina adds merengue, reggaeton and salsa to the mix, along with margarita specials.
Of course, this is a pool hall, and so it attracts groups of young men that hang out and occasionally get rowdy -- that's why you'll find dress codes and burly security guards with metal detectors at the front door Fridays and Saturdays. But Orange Ball's positives -- pool tables, beer pong, poker and plenty of televisions -- make this a place to consider the next time you want to play billiards or watch a game.
--Fritz Hahn (August 3, 2007)
