Recessions

Reviews

• Grace D.

  star star star star star_border 11 June 2026

  I love this little basement bar! Easy to find and close to the metro, with karaoke basically every day? Nice.
  
  It's surprisingly spacious and the acoustics for karaoke aren't bad. They have a huge selection of songs and a great set-up. The mic on a stand gives you a wide range of performance options if you're a ham, and if not, is great to hide behind or hold if you don't know what to do with your hands. I appreciate the volume they keep everything at, so you can have a conversation not just between songs. On slow days or with small crowds, the DJ might come in for a song, to keep things interesting.
  
  In addition to karaoke, I had a fabulous time chatting with the bartender about old travel stories and playing pool with a cool employee. The bar will break a dollar into quarters if you need them for a pool table, so don't be afraid to ask. In my limited experience, everyone who works here is chill.
  
  If I lived around here, I'd probably be a regular. I can't speak to the menu at all, but I love the vibe.

• Dave N.

  star star star star star_border 9 June 2026

  You go to a dive like Recessions, you have to know what you're going for. For me, it's the happy hour with cheap beers, bigger beers, and apps that make it worth it. You don't come here for curated taps of beer, you go because the pints are $4/5/6 or you're crazy enough to get the Kong size. The apps are pretty hit or miss and are likely frozen fair, but for $5 you can't really expect more than that.
  
  And honestly the staff and DJs have been pretty chill the nights I'm there, so I usually look forward to their Tue-Sat karaoke nights as soon as happy hour ends. Earlier in the week it's pretty hit or miss if it's gonna take off, so if you want that I'd say Thursday Friday Saturday are your best bets. It does tend to be predominated by whatever group dynamics are there - one night was filled with car guilty pleasure throwbacks, while another Saturday midnight had a crew spittin' rhymes while somehow nailing every Prince hit on Earth.
  
  But consistently between the regulars and whoever's popping in, I've only had pretty good vibes here. Kinda feels like the communal joint you'd find in Cheers. At least for me, since Circ stops just a light away, Recessions is my go-to spot in the city whenever I'm feeling the microphone mood.

• Aya T.

  star star star star star_border 18 May 2026

  I was pleasantly surprised by this hole in the wall, not pretentious bar in downtown DC. The entrance is not so noticeable surrounded by other business next to each other. Going down the hallway to the bar made me feel like I was heading to an office. The bar is not big. We came here for karaoke and it has very good list of songs and fun crowd. Nothing fancy, seriously. From chairs, tables to floor, everything looks old but it made us comfortable to walk in casual outfit. The A.C. was not running well and we felt warm all the time. Not sure if it was only the night we went... regardless of that, I will return more.

• Breanna E.

  star star star star star 14 May 2026

  Great happy hour. Cheap drinks and good food!!! $4 rail drinks, and $5 appetizers. Including mozzarella sticks, fries, and chicken tenders!! A fantastic spot

• Susan C.

  star star star star star 13 May 2026

  We had a great time here on a Thursday night. Decent drink prices,nice friendly bartenders and a lively karaoke crowd that had us singing along and smiling all evening. Nice woman's room too! That's not always the case in a so called dive bar. ( I love dive bars but this was definitely a step up from that category.)