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Northward Bound
At Outta the Way Cafe, a Derwood neighborhood institution, patrons, from left, Julie Kirklin, Jason Smith, Kara Johnson-Smith and Drew Kirklin sip some brews.
(Mark Finkenstaedt For The Washington Post)
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On weekends, though, Pelican Pete's looks more spring break than beach week, slammed with younger 20-somethings dancing, gossiping, practicing pickup lines and showing off their new Hollister polos and Abercrombie skirts. The bartenders are run ragged by crowds shouting for Miller Lite bottles, mini pitchers of Budweiser and shooters, and the long bar area is packed three deep. Why? Draft beers are $2.25 and mixed drinks are about a buck more.
The noise and energy (and the drink prices) remind me of my days bar-hopping in College Park. If you don't want to relive your college years -- or if you're older than, say, 27 -- you might want to skip this one or come during the week when the pace is slower. On the other hand, that's missing the point.
Bentz Street Sports Bar
6 S. Bentz St., Frederick
301-620-2222
http:/
This used to be the Bentz Street Raw Bar, which featured Maryland crabs and live jazz and blues music, but when new owners took over in 2004, they dumped the "raw" for "sports" and turned the converted garage into a hard-partying nightspot.
Most of the space is given over to a dining room with huge booths and walls lined with flat-screen TVs. On Fridays, modern rock and cover bands take over the stage that fills one corner, while DJ Savure gets hands in the air and bodies grinding to hip-hop, R&B and techno on Saturdays, when a diverse post-college crowd shows up to dance or just hang out at the bar. On Mondays and Wednesdays, a few dozen people show up for Texas Hold 'Em tournaments (starting at 7 and 10 p.m.) and half-price burgers or wings.
Pool tables fill a narrow room in the rear, but it's better to push past to the wooden back deck, which overlooks the canal-like Carroll Creek and the historic downtown. On Thursday night, DJ Savure spins on the patio and bartenders serve drinks from the outdoor bar.
Sports becomes a more important part of the programming in the fall, when college alumni groups gather to watch football games. (Penn State and West Virginia are the biggest draws.) Weekend NASCAR viewing parties merit exclusive drink specials, including $2 domestic drafts.
Two things to watch out for: Parking can be a bit of a pain, since the bar is a couple of blocks west of downtown. And special mention must be given to the cramped bathrooms, which are some of the worst I've seen in a while. They're going to be renovated soon, according to taped-up signs. It can't come soon enough.
Brewer's Alley
124 N. Market St., Frederick
301-631-0089, http:/
On a rainy Saturday night, Brewer's Alley is packed. Double-dating couples share tables, groups of 20-something guys in ball caps are standing at the bar cheering on the Orioles, who are beating the Yankees on the flat-screen TVs, and the bartenders are pouring beer after beer. Domed lamps overhead are casting a soft -- make that flattering -- yellow light onto the crowd and the walls of the 19th-century building, which formerly served as Frederick's City Hall.
I push my way to the front of the high-ceilinged pub, past gleaming copper tanks where the beers are made, and order a pint of the special Resinator Double IPA. The cask-conditioned ale is pumped into my glass by hand, as it might be in an English tavern. The bartender brings me a pint of dark liquid with a rich head. "Three dollars," he says, setting it on the weathered wooden bar. Three dollars? Wait, is there a Saturday happy hour? Score!
Apparently living in Washington skews your perception of the price of alcohol. Three bucks is the regular price for one of the award-winning beers at Brewer's Alley, which is nearly half what some inside-the-Beltway brew pubs charge. Six of Tom Flores's creations are on draft at any time, and the Dunkleweizen -- a dark, spicy wheat beer -- the golden Koelsch and that delicious Double IPA are all standouts. It's worth the $6 (including tax) you pay for a sampler, which arrives as six five-ounce glasses on a little Lazy Susan. You'll want to pick something to go with the fish and chips, because the North Carolina catfish, cooked in a spicy Old Bay batter and served with tangy coleslaw, is better than any I've had in a while.
As lively as Brewer's Alley is on weekends, I think I prefer the slower pace of weekdays. The patio offers great people-watching of folks on Market Street, the city's main drag for dining and window shopping. Mondays and Tuesdays feature jazz upstairs, beginning at 8, and during Wednesday's happy hour, which runs from 8 to close, beers are $1.50 and there's a free Cajun buffet from 9 until the food runs out. (If you prefer cocktails to beer, mixed drinks are also cheap; they sell for $2 during weekday happy hours, which run from 4 to 7.)
Fritz Hahn is the bars and clubs editor for washingtonpost.com.
