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Featured bars: Mate - Washington dc

Georgetown joins the "in" crowd

Every local DC party monster knows that Georgetown’s nightlife is known for it’s yuppie-natured bars and college-frat polo-wearing crowd. Typically, if you’re headed out to hear good music and enjoy a classy lounge, Georgetown is the last place you’ll head, as there are plenty of other spots in the city to dive into. This stamp is progressively transforming with Maté restaurant and lounge, the new-comer to the Georgetown scene.

The design of this venue contributes to the posh feel and uniqueness of the lounge. Ultramodern mingles with funky retro, as suggested by the vicious black and white color scheme with the lipstick-red lounging chairs. Although this is atypical of Georgetown, it’s a refreshing change and hopefully there’s more to come.

From the creator of Chi-Cha lounge, Gua-rapo and Gazuza comes this latin/sushi venture for those who love to explore with their taste buds. The name “Mate” stand for the South American herb used primarily for energy and revitalization. This herb can be found in several of the drinks and dishes offered and is known to be the pick-me-upper you might be looking for, as there is no falling asleep after drinking it!

Expect the crowd to be dolled up due to the stringency of the dress code --absolutely no sneakers, hats, t-shirts --no matter what it says on it, where you bought it or how much you paid for it. The bouncer won’t budge regardless of who you are --just ask tennis celebrity Andy Roddick, who was asked to remove his hat at the door. So, you get the point --suck it up and dress up!

Live DJs typically spin an assortment of house beats, however, not much dancing goes on. This is more of a “see and be seen”, “lounge and groove to it” type of locale. There have already been many celebrity sightings, so if you’re star struck, give it a shot on a weekend, although since the venue opened in May, it’s been hot on almost every night of the week. We recommend checking it out on a Friday or Saturday; however, the buzz kill is that it closes at 1:30am so it might be more of a “starter” spot than a place to wind up at.

Maté is situated in the same building of the Ritz Carlton Georgetown on K Street by the Waterfront. Cab it if you can, as parking is tough to find and the few lots around the area fill up to capacity making it impossible to leave!

Mate - 3101 K Street NW, Georgetown
202 333 2006
Hours: Daily 6pm-2am - Sushi bar closes 12:30am
www.latinconcepts.com

Review by Alicia Ocasio