Free NYE in Clarendon

Here's a list of all the places in Clarendon that offer 2018 New Year's Eve celebrations without a cover or ticket:

Citizen Burger offers food and drink specials, free champagne toast and $5 snacks. They are also doing a New Year's day brunch with $5 bloody Mary's.

G.O.A.T. is throwing their first New Year's party for free with no dress codes at their "No Rookies NYE" night.

Rhodeside Grill will have DJ Welvin all night, champagne toast at midnight and free party favors.

Ms Peacock's Lounge, the back room at the brand new Board Room, has their full menu offered from 6 pm to 2 am with a wide variety of champagnes and sparkling cocktails with no cover charge. 50% off all Dom Perignon bottles. Reservations welcome but you can also just walk in.

Hunan Number One also has no cover charge. Starting 9pm, their usual giant beer specials and juke box.

Spider Kelly's has no cover and music by DJ Beneficial and DJ Storm.

Clarendon NYE parties with a cover

Continuing with Clarendon New Year's Eve parties, here is a list of venues where you will need to purchase a ticket ahead of time or pay cover at the door. See the previous post for free NYE events.

Whitlows party starts at 8pm and features music by Back To Zero. $34 ticket includes buffet, party favors and champagne toast.

Clarendon Ballroom will have Liquid A on stage and DJ Hurley providing music in the downstairs lounge. Tickets are about $100 and include full dinner buffet, 4 drink tickets, and champagne.  Cocktail attire required. Bring cash. Ballroom also offers a $2 coat check for the frigid NYE night.

Clarendon Grill will host live music by Turtle Recall for $55 currently, going up to $65 soon. Party starts at 8pm and includes 3 drinks, food buffet and champagne toast.

Mister Days general admission tickets are up to $45 per person now, and will go up to $55. That includes 3 drink tickets, a VIP entrance and you have to be in the door before 11pm. Also available are $300 and $500 tables for 4 to 8 people with champagne, drink tickets and red bulls. DJ Mario will be playing hits from the 1980s up to today before they show the live New York City ball drop on all 20 of their TV screens.

Green Pig Bistro offers $75 dinner menu which includes two appetizers, entrée, desert and either two glasses of either Malbec or Gruner Vetliner wine.

BaBa features NYE party packages in the swanky basement of Ambar. Their dinner party prices range from $55, $65 or $75 depending on table or bar seats and timing. Or you can choose to pay $20 cover at the door that includes passed canapés and a cash bar. The DJ starts after 9pm.

Barley Mac in Rosslyn has a $50 package starting at 9pm with bourbon and whiskey pours, passed hors d’oeuvres and a midnight champagne toast in the bar area only.

Ireland's Four Courts in Courthouse has no cover before 9pm, and $10 after that. Live music with Eddie Pasa. Free party favors and champagne toast.

GOAT Ugly Sweater Party

G.O.A.T is having an ugly sweater party starting at 9pm this Wednesday, December 19 featuring holiday drink specials and prizes for the best dressed.

Mister Days Customer Appreciation Holidy Party

From 5-8pm on Wednesday December 19, Mister Days is throwing their annual Customer Appreciation Holiday Party. They will be having holly jolly holiday specials, a DJ playing your favorite festive tracks, and more.

Don Tito Taco Eating Contest

Don Tito is hosting its second annual taco eating contest on Monday, December 4 upstairs on the 2nd floor at 7:00pm. The cost to enter the contest is $20 and includes all of your tacos. This is a sell-out event and you must purchase tickets in advance to be a part of it. Contest will be limited to 100 contestants.

Preliminary Round: The first round will be a speed round as each contestant will eat as many tacos as they can in one minute. These will be pure chicken and beef tacos.

Championship Round: The championship round will include one winner from each of the first 10 rounds. This round will be the first person to eat 10 tacos. These will be all types of tacos with varying levels of spiciness. The first person to eat all 10 is the new Taco King or Queen of Arlington.

The winner will win a $150 Don Tito gift card, as well as a championship belt so that all will know who is the true Taco King of Arlington! The second place contestant will win a $100 Don Tito gift card, and third place will receive a $50 Don Tito gift card.

Piano Fight Club at Clarendon Grill

Clarendon Grill is starting a new weekly event on Thursdays featuring dueling pianos. The Piano Fight Club starts on November 30 around 9pm.

The Giving Gathering at Jammin Java

Every year The Giving Gathering gives the opportunity to hit five birds with one stone for the holidays: support The Miracle Foundation charity, a chance to win a raffle prize, support local artisans, find unique gifts for the holidays, and enjoy a Hot Toddy while you shop! From 2-9pm Sunday, November 26, Jammin Java will be transformed from a music venue into a cozy and unique Christmas market that will spike your coffee and raffle off unique gifts!

Each artisan is hand-picked by Sonia Coonen, bar manager of Jammin Java, for variety and spunk, that sets the event apart from the typical holiday craft fair. The Giving Gathering began five years ago with the vision to gather the community, inspire and support one another, and come together to raise money for a charitable cause. This year, DJ couple, Pat and Kellie, are volunteering to set a melodic atmosphere. Last, but certainty not least, a charity is selected, and each artist makes a generous donation to the raffle table to entice the community to purchase raffle tickets. 100% of the proceeds made will be going directly to The Miracle Foundation, a transparent and non-profit charity that ensures orphans around the world are educated, fed, loved, and safe through a measurable and systematic method. Raffle ends and winners will be announced at 8pm sharp, with the option of receiving text messages if absent.

JMU Sunday Funday at A-Town

Calling all JMU grads! On Sunday, November 19th, A-Town will be hosting a special purple and gold version of their famed (or infamous) Sunday Funday brunch party. They will welcome all Duke Dogs to come for a day of football and fun. All JMU grads will receive 25% off  brunch buffet or any other food all day. As always, you can expect champagne and beverage specials, live entertainment, NFL action on 40 TVs and 2 big screens, and a great chance to celebrate with your fellow JMU grads!

Mister Days celebrates 40 years

It's hard to believe a long time favorite Clarendon bar Mister Days will be celebrating its 40th anniversary this year! Starting Monday November 13, Mister Days will be having a week long birthday celebration with "blast form the past" drink specials, giveaways and plenty of nostalgia.

For the first 24 years, Mister Days resided in Washington DC starting out in Dupont circle and moving locations several times. In 2001 the DC locations closed but its spirit lived on across the river to its current home at Highland Street and Washington Blvd.

Clarendon Halloween Crawl

The annual Halloween bar crawl returns the Saturday after the Tuesday holiday on November 4th in Clarendon. Use promo code LASTCALL until Tuesday night to save 20% off the tickets, now at $20 a person before the discount. Tickets get you a souvenir haunted mug, party favors, excusive drink and food specials, free pictures of the event and a raffle entry to win great prizes. Although you don't need a ticket to get entry to any of the participating bars, you need to be in some sort of costume to have fun and fit in with the expected large crowd. So far the bars celebrating are Clarendon Grill, Pamplona, Bar Bao, Mister Days, Whitlow’s, Hunan Number One and Oz.