Southern Efficiency

I definitely recommend this spot and would love to try it again. We went for a late-​night bite to eat and thoroughly enjoyed the Southern style menu. The rolls were fabulous! There’s an emphasis on seafood and the food is very rich, which I really liked but it might not be for everyone. It was surprisingly crowded when we visited but added to the experience and all of the other diners around us seemed happy too. I would like to try their brunch!

Great place to go for cocktails — specifically whiskey. The bar itself is small and has very limited seating and decent standing room. Would recommend for drinks after dinner.

Loved this place. It’s a bar, not a sit-​down get served by waiter place. The bartenders were very nice. I tried four different whiskies. All very good. The food was excellent. Absolutely loved the chicken sandwich. I’d come back here again. Highly recommended.

My first time here the bartender seemed like he had an attitude just because I ask him for a cocktail menu. I have been bartending for years it’s ok to multi-​task. Secondly, he did not speak strange especially when a guest walks into your establishment speaking to he/​she is the first thing you should do but guess that’s me. Maybe it’s because I am African-​American with a bush? Either way u drink was free not sure if I will come back again. It seem as though white people don’t appreciate our money!!! Facts only

Southern efficiency is one of Derek Brown’s three Shaw locations, all lined up next to each other. All three have almost identical vibes, with a long, narrow space, chill atmosphere, and a complex cocktail focus. However, this spot has brighter décor than the others. What mostly sets the three apart is that each focuses on its own liquor and own special theme. This one goes southern, and the menu is positively loaded with juleps. We had two, which were decent, but not spectacular. I prefer the themes of mockingbird hill and eat the rich, as well as the darker decors those places offer (I prefer hiding from the world while I drink). It’s not a bad spot by any means, just not my scene.
If you need to use the restroom, go through the unmarked door in back, which leads to eat the rich next door — they share the back space amd kitchen.

My first time here started slow… until I tasted the cocktails.
I stopped by Southern Efficiency on a Friday night around 9:45 PM and the place was pretty full which surprised me. I sat at the bar and picked up a cocktail menu. This is a whiskey bar so they have a wide variety of whiskey to taste as well as mostly whiskey based cocktails. They are a few cocktails that have other spirits but expect whiskey… it’s hard to go wrong with whiskey.
There was only a little bad, so I’ll get that out of the way first. There isn’t a lot of space behind the bar and they seem to have two bartenders behind the bar. The rest of the staff are food runners, bar backs, etc. My first drink order was taken by one of the runner/​bar backs and it took maybe 20 – 25 minutes to get my first drink. It seemed in-​efficient for that many people 4 – 5 in total) to be behind the bar with a pretty full house but only two bartenders making drinks. I felt a little forgotten but my walnut Old Fashioned was on the bartender’s mental list to be made and when I did get my drink it was really good.
The Walnut Old Fashioned was strong like any good old fashioned should be but you could also taste a little bit of Walnut. Definitely a good variation on the Old Fashioned cocktail. The next drink I had was the Nashville Advil. Smoke whiskey, lemon, ginger… it’s my favorite cocktail I’ve had here. Subtly smoke, nice tart from the lemon and a little heat from the ginger. I came back Saturday night around the same time and the crowd was lighter and service was great. I had the Rugbrod Old Fashioned, interesting variation but I wasn’t a huge fan of the salt. If you’re into that umami thing you might enjoy it. I also had the Lion’s Tail which has a good all spice flavor and a little tart. Another solid cocktail.
These cocktails, while strong didn’t hit too hard. They offer water which I spaced each drink with. This is definitely a solid cocktail bar that on my growing list of «off the slightly beaten path» cocktail bars where you can enjoy a real cocktail.

One of the best bars I have ever been to. The cocktails were amazing and so innovative. Loved how the bartenders did their job with so much dedication and passion.

Go for the cocktails. Stay for the cocktails.
Pros: Blissful cocktails, intimate atmosphere, relaxed setting
Cons: Unremarkable food
It was a Tuesday when we went to Southern Efficiency (SE). We went after we left the opening night of Miracle on 7^th Street at Mockingbird Hill (MH). There was some overflow traffic from MH making SE busier than usual for a weekday night at 8pm. We easily found three seats at the bar which was a luxury after standing in the crowd at MH. The bartender that night was Liz who was friendly and eager to take our order.
It’s no surprise that Derek Brown’s bar would have divine drinks and a grand selection of choices for every palate. Notable cocktails include the Walnut Old Fashioned described by the bartender as tasting like a Honey Nut Cheerio. As someone doesn’t normally go for rye as my spirit, I loved this cocktail. I prefer my drinks not too sweet and it did not disappoint. My friend ordered the Champagne Julep (draft) and it was also incredible. I love that it’s served over ice. Who doesn’t love a cocktail that incorporates champagne? The Mamie Trahan Taylor was too salty for me but my companions loved it. You really can’t go wrong with a list like this.
Unfortunately, they did forget to put in our order for our Main Courses so I can’t tell you how the fried oysters or bacon mac & cheese taste. The chips were delectable and the dip was as garlicky as it notes. The biscuits were traditional but I ended up putting the pear butter and the pimento cheese from the saltine and cheese appetizer on the biscuits and making a nice little sandwich. It was a busier night so when we alerted them that we didn’t have our food after waiting 30 minutes, we decided to cancel the order.
I’ll be back for the cocktails for sure.

This is a cool, trendy little bar that offers a good mix of cocktails and a food. I like how chill it is. Despite being a small space; I still you could have a decent happy hour in here with about 20 people easily. This place has solid chill vibes that reflects the attitude over the overall establishment plus the bartenders.
I don’t know if I would say this is a true ‘southern’ kind of place, but what fare they do offer — they’ve got something right.

Definitely had a great experience here.
Small whiskey bar, in the middle of a trio of bars/​restaurants under the same ownership. Simple drink menu with very knowledgeable and friendly staff to answer questions. General questions or helping to discover your drink profile if you’d like such assistance.
Drinks were good and well constructed. Not the beat I’ve had (I personally make a better old fashioned) but far from the worst as well. One treat we did enjoy tho were an order of the bourbon balls! These things are great, but we didn’t want to over indulge and asked for to go packaging. Apparently we were the first to do so because we were provided with a plastic salad tumbler to take just a couple of balls to go. Not a problem for me, but might want to get something smaller.
Nice establishment!

Out of all the three bars that Derek Brown owns, this was my favorite.
Maybe it’s cause I’ve spent the past few years in Texas. Maybe it’s cause I’m a whiskey fiend. Maybe it’s cause our bartender was a supremely talented mixologist and the other guy working behind the bar was hilarious and engaged us in conversation for an hour.
Or maybe it’s the cocktails infused with an artichoke varietal liquor, which sounds disgusting but was one of the best drinks I’ve had in a loooong time, especially when I trusted our fancy pants bartender to mix me something he came up with. Pro tip: trust your bartender and let him give you some cocktail magic (please don’t make this filthy, you know what I mean).
Also: Parker house rolls. That was all I tried from this menu and even though I have gluten issues I shoveled two in my face and hummed happily the whole time. Worth it.

I’m not a whiskey drinker but Southern Efficiency mixes a mean drink. Just north of the Shaw metro and accessible from all the bus lines that run through Florida Ave, Southern Efficiency is small but mighty. All of the bartenders are extremely friendly and happy to make suggestions especially for non-​whiskey drinkers like me!
Next time I’ll have to sample some of the food as well.

Southern Efficiency has not only earned these five starts but a special place in my whiskey, bourbon, scotch drinking heart!
While visiting DC for work my companion and I stopped in for drinks since the owner is a friend of hers.
We immediately put ourselves in the hands of our bartender Paul (I recommend you do the same it will lead to something good). Who crafted some amazing drinks for us based on our taste. What he served us not only displayed his knowledge but his attention to detail.
In regards to food try the Devil Ham a delicious blend of three hams and a touch of mayo that is totally worth the sin!

After a delicious dinner not far away, we were wandering back to the Metro when we spotted a few bars. Decided bourbon was always fun and came in for a drink.
The space is pretty dang small — almost all bar seating, either at the bar, at the counter behind or a few seats at the window. I hear there’s a restaurant attached? But I’m not sure where it was in relation to the bar.
The menu is a whole lotta brown liquor, plus some beer, cider, wine and house cocktails and some food (we were not hungry so that didn’t apply to us).
I asked for the fish house punch, I guess they were out of part of it? or something — but the friendly bartender basically made me a cocktail of rum and apple brandy and it was really smooth and really good. My husband got the house cola with bourbon — the fanciest Jack and Coke ever. Really good, too.
I was mildly amused by two women sitting nearby who were complaining about the lack of table service. Get up and order at the bar, ladies — it’s about five steps away and there are only two employees.
Basically if you love bourbon or whiskey or scotch or craft cocktails … this is a great spot.

My wife and I came here for brunch and had a decent time, but probably won’t come back. Like many people in the DC metro area, we are fans of brunch, and when we saw Southern Efficiency’s biscuit-​centered menu and positive reviews, we couldn’t resist giving it a try. We came away with mixed feelings. While I’m sure this place is a great bar at night, I can’t recommend it as a destination for brunch.
The place itself is pretty cool, but make no mistake, this is «bar» first and «restaurant» second. We had our brunch sitting side-​by-​side at the window facing the street. We thought this was fun but it definitely isn’t for everyone. There’s also no real wait-​service to speak of. The bartender was super friendly and did come around to take our order and bring us our food, but the whole experience was quite minimalist. Nothing wrong with that, and definitely in line with the «gastropub» movement, but you should know what to expect if you make the trip here (we didn’t).
The food was good, but nothing special. I had the white whiskey mary and the fried chicken while my wife had two biscuits with butter and jam. I didn’t love the bloody, but that was more an issue of preference than quality — I am a fan of bold, spicy bloodies, and this was very bright, acidic, and raw. The fried chicken was delicious, but there wasn’t much on the plate. I think I would’ve needed two or three orders to feel satisfied. My wife enjoyed her biscuits but was very disappointed that the place didn’t serve tea. For her, hot tea is a «must» to enjoy brunch and we were surprised that Southern Efficiency didn’t have any options at all. We ended up stopping at Uprising Muffin Company next door to get tea and coffee after finishing brunch.
Overall, I would recommend the brunch as a low-​key option for people living in the area who don’t want to travel too far before they start their drinking. The food is good, but in brunch-​crazed DC, it doesn’t distinguish Southern Efficiency enough to draw customers from across the city.

Alas, here I am again writing about cocktails. I’m starting to think I have a drinking problem.
Anyways, go here. Get the «Flower of the South» cocktail and wait for your taste buds to be like, «wtf just happened?»

Stopped here because we were in the neighborhood looking for a place to have a drink and a bite to eat later in the evening. Got here right before the kitchen closed at 11 and they were super nice about us breaking the unwritten rule of not ordering a bunch of food right before the kitchen closes. We put in a order quickly based on recommendations from the bartender. Excellent patty melt, fried chicken biscuit sandwich, and pimento cheese. Not huge, bulky portions — just reasonable, classy plates of southern food.
The first thing I noticed when I walked through the door was that this place smells like delicious cocktails. Citrus, bitters, spirits. I have to make note that they have an extensive whiskey collection and make a respectable Manhattan.

The third of Derick Brown’s trifecta of restaurants next to the Shaw Metro station is winner! Southern Efficiency is his homage to whiskey, particularly bourbon; there are 113 American whiskeys on the menu, plus a few Scotches and Irish whiskys as well.
But the cocktails and beers are not to be overlooked either. His «jar» cocktails (pre-​mixed and housed in jars) include the outstanding Chatham Artillery Punch: Evan Williams bourbon, Jamaican rum, white zinfandel, sparkling wine, and lemon cordial. The four draft beers include Legend Brown Ale, 3 Star Phoenix Rye Saison, and Mother Earth Kolsch. There are two draft cocktails as well: Mint Julep and Red Sky at Night (white whiskey, strawberry soda, and Campari).
The menu is necessarily small (SE shares a kitchen and bathrooms with next door’s Eat the Rich) and leans Southern. There are only four mains (a fish, a pork, a chicken, and a vegetable dish), none of which I tried, but the pressed ham appetizer with pickles and bourbon jelly made a great accompaniment to my evening of drinking; nothing like salty pork products to encourage one to order another!

How can a bar that’s so simple be so good? When I first walked in and saw how small and straightforward Southern Efficiency is, I didn’t think I’d like it. But the drinks are great, the food is amazing and the service is perfect. The size ends up being an added asset, giving the bar a quaint and intimate feel.
On our first visit we celebrated Venu’s birthday and shut the bar down at the end of the night. Despite Shaw being the latest «up and coming» neighborhood, Southern Efficiency was surprisingly quiet and the bartender said that the volume was normal. Certainly surprised me but I’m not about to complain about having a prime seat at the bar and the full attention of the bartender. I’m sure that won’t be normal for long.
Our second trip was quite the opposite given that it was a Kentucky Derby party. There are no TVs but they piped in the audio of the race on the speaker system. The place was packed to the brim but did begin to clear out early as it seems like this is frequently used as a stop in a crawl rather than an all night spot.
The cocktail menu isn’t huge, however, in typical Derek Brown (or Brown brothers) fashion, there are daily drink specials written on the wall which steal the show. There is one tap for cocktails (like the mint julep the day of the Derby) and some of the menu cocktails are served in jam jars which is not only adorable, but saves time and they tend to be a dollar or two less. So far the Brown Derby is my favorite drink I’ve had here. Always nice to see classic cocktails done well.
The product the kitchen is putting out is what really pushes Southern Efficiency up to the five star level. Everything we’ve had here was great. The pimento cheese with crackers is just right for snacking. They knocked it out of the park with the Hot Brown (open faced sandwich of turkey, bacon and mornay sauce) as a full meal — it was plenty big for dinner or split between two if you’re sampling other menu items as well. The bourbon balls were the perfect sweet end to a excellent Southern meal.
When JFK said that DC was a city of southern efficiency and northern charm, it is obvious that this isn’t the Southern Efficiency he meant. As a city we might be working on our charm still, but we’ve definitely got our Southern Efficiency down pat, and that’s no longer an insult.

I love the southern-​inspired theme and homey feeling of Southern Efficiency. Favorite part of this place: They serve cocktails in jam jars– Genius. The only thing that could have made this more enjoyable for me is if they gave me my water in a mason jar.
The bar stools are oddly comfortable here. Apparently they are made out of old tractor seats, which is interesting.
The cocktail I got was just ok, but I’m not ready to down-​grade this place, yet –I got the Blackstrap & Switchel which was basically a «give yourself diabetes» cocktail made out of blackstrap rum, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and ginger beer. It was way too sweet for my taste, so if you don’t like super sweet drinks, order something else!