The FAB Lounge

If you are interested in good music and dancing — Go! Fab is a raucous of fun! Don’t expect too much of anything but sweaty women who may or may not be hot and a packed dancefloor. Drinks are always strong and the music is always thumping but if you do miss this party, you won’t miss a thing!

They are closed now. Where does everyone go?’@Nellies and need a place like this for girls.

Fab lounge is like that terrible ex girlfriend you knowwww you shouldn’t call after a breakup/​while drunk and then call anyways and end up sleeping with. It’s pretty bad, but so pleasantly familiar and easy. I’ve been coming here since my freshman year of college with increasing time between my drunken adventures. Like my stupid ex, my love has finally faded away.
While fab was great when I was underage, broke and looking to flirt with a doorman or two to allow me in to drink until the lights were cut on, it no longer has the same appeal it did when I was a young, fresh lessie. Wanna be in your mid-​20s and feel like the oldest lesbian at the bar? Not old enough to get into Mova or Mad Momos? Looking for $ 3 rail shots and a short jaunt to pizza afterwards? Hit up Fab. It’s grimy and paint is peeling and the bathroom lines are always 10 people long. Baby dykes galore. If that’s your thing, Fab is totally for you. If not, wait for a party at Mova. Also, the bartender (the owner’s brother I think) is awesome and has been there forever.
If this place threw more parties for queer professionals, i could see myself coming back. It really isn’t terrible. I just don’t think I have anymore nights of 19 year olds attempting to grind against me left in me. You’ve cornered the lesbians born in the 90s scene and it’s worked well for you. Good for you, Fab.

I love going here and their long islands will get you right ;)

The «So Not» Fab Lounge or AAAW (Angry African American Women). Unfriendly and rude. Really awkward.

This is a place where you go when all else fails and you know that there’s one place in the city that will have strong drinks, decent music and chill vibes. You might run into someone random from your past, or present… You might see a random guy break dancing in the middle of the floor… its a dive joint that has a lot of potential if they can be consistent with the crowd.
Sad to say that they actually charge 5 dollars now, which makes you think twice for a dive bar, but I can understand that they have to stay in the business. You never know what your going to get in this place, so just be equipped with good friends who are not pretentious and are willing to have a good time.

This place is absolutely THE worst! I’m so glad that I didn’t have to pay a cover charge. The bartender kept making my friend’s drinks way too strong, and it took him 15 minutes to make my drink because he kept forgetting about it! Everyone stood against the wall and just stared for a good portion of the night, making it very awkward to dance. The worst part is that someone stole my friend’s wallet and phone from her purse that was literally right next to us, as we were standing against the bar. What prompted me to write this review is the fact that another friend of mine went last night and her friend had her things stolen! I say the owners rename it the GhettoFab Lounge. If you value your hard-​earned property, I wouldn’t go.

Some comments about Fab lounge.
The following will happen if you go:
1. Most likely run into someone who looks underage… aaand they probably are depending on the night you go.
2. It will get crowded and someone will grab you on the butt. It just happens– let it go.
3. You will get a delicious drink that is nice and strong for you to shake your groove thang from the bartenders.
4. You will smell the bathroom as the evening wares on. I blame this on the fact that this place is owned by men.
5. You will sweat because the place gets so hot with all the people inside.
6. You will not pay anything to get in! YAY.
While the location is awesome (dupont circle), this place just screams sketch all over. Ok place to go and get your drunk dance on… not quite the place to go if you’re looking to meet someone who is slightly non-​sketchy.

I was there on a Sunday night and there was a $ 5 cover charge. The drinks were mediocre and I felt out of place being the only female and non African-​American. Everyone was having fun and dancing to pretty good music though. Maybe I picked the wrong night but I did not have much fun.

If you’re like me you love those awkward moments when you run into people you know, like people you work with, at a real dive, sketch spot and you both know that from there on you have to be nice to each other since you have dirt on each other…
If you’re like me, you like FAB lounge. Its that spot! Its apparently the ethnic lesbian kick-​it spot and while I don’t know why I just typed that or what the hell it would matter if the scene is chill and the drinks are strong I guess some folks wanna know but worry not my babies… the drinks are strong and the DJ has decent taste (there is a correlary between my opinion of the music and the strength of the drinks).

I have attempted to come here at least 3 times, before deciding it wasn’t my thing. First off, going into the bar is like going into someone’s old and small apartment. Which is fine for the cozy factor but sometimes it’s wayyyyyyy too loud. You can’t come here to talk and catch up with friends… just expect to dance. Although, the nights I have come here no one has really danced until close to last call when they have had one too many. By then, I’m tired and over it. (I’m so old… I know)
The bartenders are kinda snooty… the drinks aren’t expensive but depending on who you get they can either be super strong or all juice. So yeah, coming here is a hit or miss with the drinks. But not one of my favorites.

Okay. Ive given this place about 6 different tries in the last 2 years and I just can’t say that its the place to be.
I wouldn’t really bother trying to get here if you live far away. The tables are all pushed to the side so you have people dancing in a small corner and then other people staring at you as though they are looking for fresh meat. I always feel like I’m a zoo animal when I get there and everyone sitting on the side is looking to see who they want next.
It would be much better if this place just remained a casual lounge where you can sit with friends and relax rather then try to be a dance spot.
The drinks are also VERY expensive (about $ 10/​drink) and they have a $ 35 card limit (which sucks if you can only afford/​want beer but dont have any cash on you or if you want to leave early because the party is so bad but you have only had one drink).
Also, lately its become more of a boy zone which is kind of sad as lesbians have few places of their own in DC. That being said, the boys always know how to have fun.
All in all, if you have no where else to go and/​or you are visiting DC or your friend lives a block away (as is the case with me), its perfect. You can walk in and if the party isn’t want you want, you can leave and walk back home (which has happened every single time).

The Good… It’s FREE! Strong drinks… good music. party (African American, Lesbian) crowd!
The Bad… Crowded as in SHOULDER to SHOULDER… long lines for the bathroom.
The Ugly… The average age is 21 and it’s so hot, the walls drip water! EEK!

Minimum Age: Not sure.
Cost: Free
Crowd: Mixed, 20’s.
Dress Code: None.
Music: Top 40, Hip Hop, Pop
Date Attended: 10÷03÷09, Saturday
Located in the Dupont Circle area which is known for the gay community, this particular night was «ladies» night. There were only but a handful of guys at this bar/​lounge. If you’re a guy looking for a lady, this probably isn’t the place for you. It is good if you want a nice chill night out. No cover, strong drinks, good music, relaxed atmosphere. If you’re tired of the table service clubs all throughout DC, this is one of the places where you can actually have a seat and not pay! Wow…
Pros: No cover charge to get in. Strong, reasonably priced drinks. Good dj. Tables and chairs to sit on.
Cons: None that I can think of.

Make sure to brush up on your sign language if you plan on having any type of conversation with friends at this bar. Upon first arriving, I thought the atmosphere was pretty chill until I went to sit on one of the lounge sofa’s and someone quickly grabbed me by the arm and said not to sit there because someone had thrown up on it, gross! The music is entirely too loud for the space and the space is entirely too small for the amount of people who actually show up. The drinks are overpriced, I got charged $ 6 for a glass of tonic water! As usual there is one bathroom for the ladies and the line starts early and wraps around throughout the bar. The layout of the space is hideous and leaves no room for bar access let alone dancing or just chillin with friends, you either end up standing awkwardly pushed up against the wall or getting swept up into the mass of usual suspects girating and sweating all over the dance floor. On the plus side, there is not cover and the drinks are strong, when you can actually get one. What happened to real ladies nights like Liquid Ladies and Hung Jury?

I didn’t know this was a gay bar when I went. I didn’t know it was a gay bar after I left. I only discovered it was a gay bar when I looked it up to write this review. Therefore I can only concur that it must *suck* as a gay bar. The fact that the only guys in there were all hitting on me kind of enforces that opinion too. It also sucks as a regular bar. The atmosphere could be kind of nice, but it’s all dark and dingy and everything feels unpleasantly sticky. I went on a Wednesday and the place was dead, but it was still loud and sweaty and smelly like an overcrowded dance club. The big problem is with the service though. I bought two drinks (didn’t start a tab) and after waiting twenty minutes for my drink to be made and another half hour for him to actually run my card, the bartender charged me for someone else’s $ 80 tab. He also spilled vodka all over my card. I was able to get the $ 80 taken off, but it took four days of harassing the manager over the phone. Not worth it.

Thank god there are more dyke nights opening up and more chill mixed scenes. I went to the ladies nights here when they first began and they were VERY mellow. Not a lot of folks showed up and it was nice. Low lighting, groovy music, more of a place you first meet up with your friends to catch up, get lit, and THEN go to the club.
The space isn’t ideal for jam packed dance nights as it’s a circular bar with half a wall separating the lounge and dance area. The achille’s heel of most dance bars is that you have to WALK THROUGH the dance floor to get a drink, use the restroom, get to your bag, LEAVE, etc. Not a smart design and not fun. Unless you like ‘accidentally’ brushing up against the ladies or copping a feel as you get by, you big perv.
I know some of my friends dislike this place exactly for that reason — bad layout. And with the different ‘ladies’ nights’ now using the same venues (which is awesome, I can’t believe there’s more than 2 ladies nights in DC!) perhaps she went on a bad night. She said all the other ladies were in their 30s, very preppy in business casual, and not very friendly. This hasn’t been the crowd the nights I’ve gone.
Also, I can’t knock the layout as this is a very common issue and I think Fab Lounge makes up for it in its crowd and vibe. And what are the alternatives?
Plus — the drinks were pretty strong from what I remember!
I guess word of this ladies night plus the demise of other longstanding ladies nights have boosted Fab Lounge’s popularity. The last time I went to their ‘ladies night’ at tail end of summer — DAMN it was PACKED hip to hip with grinding bodies and people standing on the walls chatting. Not a really easy place to ‘meet people’ IMHO unless you go out to loiter and smoke, but my friends say they have met people here.
Solid bet for a dykey night! And again — where else are you gonna go? Exactly.

I went on a Friday night that happened to be ladies night at the time. I had a blast and there was no cover! However I also went on a Thursday night and it was dead. Maybe 4 or 5 other people. A friend of mine joined me and we like to drink martini’s with an olive or two. It seems that some fruit flies had gotten into the olives and totally grossed me out. After the bartender made the second martini and again it had fruit flies floating to the top I suggested that we leave. I would go back but I’d def think twice about ordering the martini with an olive.

Typically, when I go out to a bar with my gay boyfriends, I have to look fierce. If I just throw on a pair of torn jeans and a sweatshirt, I get chastised by either my friends or I get a toss-​off comment by a patron (teasing, of course).
That’s why I am glad FAB opened up. Depending on the night it is a gay or lesbian crowd. and sometimes a little bit of both. The vibe is kind of laid back– not trying to hard to be hip or cool. And, for a nice change at an «alternative bar» the drinks are not super expensive. The night we were there the happy hour specials were $ 2.50 for beers and $ 2 for gin & tonics.
And for those of us who still lament the loss of Badlands. a dance floor bigger than a postage stamp. Hurray!