Trade

As far as gay bars go, it’s one of the better ones around. It definitely has a better vibe than Number 9 and the patio out back will be a nice addition when it’s warmer out. I went on a busy night and the service was ok — nothing special. I would imagine they are still working out kinks.

If you want a bar to misplace your credit card and insist you have it, this is the place for you. I ordered my last drink and asked the bartender to close out my tab. He informed me my tab was already closed. When I responded I didn’t close my tab he searched for my card and couldn’t find it. He told me to search my pockets as if I had my card.
After asking the other bartender, they again insisted I had my card. Following that, instead of assisting me or calling over someone to help me, they started serving customers again. After 7 minutes I asked for the manager who continued the blame the customer routine. He finally decided to search the Rolodex where they keep the cards and low and behold there it was: misfiled.
My friend later tried to close his tab and the bartender didn’t seem to understand. I’m starting to think the bartenders are too fresh to know what they’re doing.

Great prices! The drinks are good and strong. Plus the have the square ice cubes that are perfect for drinks. Can’t wait until Spring for their huge patio!

So what do you do on the first night of the new year… go to a new gay bar of course!
My understanding of Trade is that it is a new «divey» (?) gay bar. It’s a bit of a paradox that really does not seem to work. First, its location on P and 14^th sure was divey perhaps circa 1996 but not in 2016 with Logan all in its gentrified grandeur. And second, new and dive is a bad oxymoron and not a paradoxical statement that probably fits together… now take a place like Wonderland that has been there for ages and has withstood the test of time, and has a feel of authenticity, then yes I’d call it a dive bar… but no to that label on Trade. Now that isn’t necessarily a bad thing but all in all, Trade was what I was just expecting. a new gay bar! I say it felt like being in a cleaner version of J.R.‘s. The gay demo it is I supposed trying to attract are the bear/​otter hipsters of DC?
All in all, it is a nice alternative to our brethren twinky and super jock havens of Nellie’s and Town.
It seems to fit the Logan vibe of now so I’ll take it… the true test now is if it will find its niche of a crowd to stay relevant… hopefully it does but we’ll see.

It’s a nice addition to DC nightlife. It has a very unique look and feel to it. It is new so a wide range of people are going there. Bar staff are friendly and efficient. The bar is nicely furnished but yet maintains a nice casual laid back vibe.

A few people in my office have been raving about Trade since it opened, and I finally went last night. I was very impressed: the space is somewhat narrow, but deceptively large, with a lot of seating in the darker back area. It was pretty crowded by the time we left, but still felt spacious. (Then again, this was a weekday night, so maybe it’s absolutely packed on the weekends.)
The drink prices are the biggest draw: four beers for $ 12 is virtually unheard of in this city. Bartenders were friendly and some staff came around every so often to clear empty glasses; no complaints about the service.
Bonus points for having a gender neutral bathroom.

Fierce atmosphere, fierce ambiance, fierce happy hour, FIERCE bartenders. Tired, horrible, horribly tired music. Tired token Str8 couple grinding in front of all the gay boys. Tired millennial queers on Grindr, literally on Grindr. A gay «dive» bar it is not.

Compared to other gay dive bars I’ve visited across the country, I wouldn’t necessarily consider Trade to be a gay dive bar. The décor and seating in this place create an ambiance that is more loungy than divey. When you walk in, there’s the main bar on the right side; keep walking and you’ll find upholstered benches lining the walls. There’s also an outdoor patio, which I presume is still waiting on a permit approval for alcohol consumption. (Normally in December, there’d be no desire to drink outside, but with this atypical 60 degree plus weather, that patio would’ve been the perfect setting to sit out and enjoy the balmy December weather.)
During happy hour, the drinks come in tall pint glasses, but for a gay bar, they felt a bit weak. If the owners are looking to distinguish themselves from the other bars and to embody the whole concept of being a dive bar, stiffer drinks are a must! Filling up pint glasses with more mix and marketing it as a deal isn’t going to stick. (This observation wasn’t just based on 1 drink.)
Overall, there really isn’t anything unique about Trade that sets it apart from all the other gay bars in the neighborhood. I’m sure they just need some time to figure out where they truly stand in the spectrum of DC’s gay bars, because for now, hyping it up as a dive bar is far from precise.

I like the bar but there are some sketchy semi-​abusive patrons that are obviously friends of the bartenders. Ruined my night for me.
Tonight was my second night there and this one very drunk guy kept pulling on my ear and rubbing my back, and repeatedly being way overly hands-​on — I asked him several times to stop. He started taking straws out of random glasses on the bar and putting them *INTO* my drink — this was in between randomly holding his credit card in front of my face (I’m assuming trying to impress me?) and ripping up coasters and throwing them at me.
After say, five minutes of ignoring him he decided to stick *HIS FINGERS IN MY DRINK*.
I asked him to please move to another section of the bar and then asked the bartender to ask him to leave me alone. The bartender obviously knew him (by name) and after asking him to move a couple of times the bartender ultimately asked *ME* to move down a few seats because «it’d be easier for me to move than it would be to corral him to another part of the bar.»
Prior to this he was doing the same sort of things to another (disabled) customer who complained loudly, but after no staff came to his aid (despite being 2 – 3 feet away so I’m sure they heard him…) the guy actually started to call the police — or at least pretended to do so to get away from this person.
This was a very odd experience for my second time at this place. I’m sure I’ll be back, but this has soured my opinion of an otherwise cool bar.

Echoing off Nate H, this bar definitely has a lot of hype without a lot to support it… yet. The long lines, extremely packed premises, and lack of something that makes this unique is what left me feeling a little less than fulfilled. Though loving Number 9 and Town and the fact that this dynamic duo just opened this bar I am definitely going to update this review and hopefully see the following in the future below.
Though what I want to give 4 or 5 stars for in the future:
–Give us something unique! Number 9 brought in the popular BOGO, the piano in the front, and the HUGE booth against the wall. Town brought space (what’s that) to a DC bar, true dancing, and a huge space for drag queens. What will Trade bring?
— The back porch (it looks like permits still being worked on) is going to be a great and welcomed addition. Excited to see that.
— DJ booth and dancing? Hopefully. It looks like it has that set to work, but with the crowds/​crowd I do not think they have the space or patience for it yet.
This place has the potential to be banging so I’m excited to see where it goes. For now, I’m going to leave it right at A-​OK.