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The GW Hatchet

AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

The GW Hatchet

Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

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Officials name senior vice president, chief of staff
By Fiona Riley, Assistant News Editor • March 26, 2024

BAR BELLE: Green drinks for drunken nights

McFadden’s
Where: 2401 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Carded: at the door, very strict
Dress: Dressy casual
Cover: none

The options were running out. Madhatter and Froggy might work when I’m too smashed to stumble out of the 4-RIDE range but they’re getting old. Just when I could stand no more, a new joint opened up on 24th and Penn. The beer gods love me, but that’s just because I like to drink, a lot.

McFadden’s is a new Irish bar that opened on the ground floor of an office building (weird for a college bar but think Front Page). And even though I was disappointed with the Irish bar genre after my Fado debacle the other week, I’ll try anything once, so off I went.

First thing I noticed? Free alcohol. It’s a good way to impress me and it’s a good way to draw customers during opening weekend. The line was down the block. Free drinks from 6 to 8 p.m., with bartenders (think Girls Gone Wild, not Juan from Froggy) pouring shots down customers’ throats spring break style. Finally, a bar after my own heart.

I was impressed by the lack of shady fellows at the bar, but give it time ladies, I’m sure they will find their way to McFadden’s over the next month or so. Still, this weekend there were surprisingly few incidences of sexual harassment.

It didn’t take long to realize that all the girls working at the bar were slamming hot, a plus for guys trying to score, a minus for girl trying to do the same. It’s a shame the way female bartenders flaunt themselves like prostitutes to get good tips from guys (of course this same phenomenon is OK when we do it for free drinks).

It turns out the bartenders weren’t as dangerous as I first thought. Most go to Catholic, which gave the clientele a more diverse feel without being as much of a threat as hot bartenders that live in the “oh can I walk you home” range.

McFadden’s bill of being “the wildest Irish pub on earth” is a bit of a stretch, but as the night sloshed along I became more impressed with the place. It has nice wooden bars and a cool DJ that played a decent selection of top 40 hits. Because the bar is situated in D.C. there are a ton of TVs thrown throughout the place, perfect for watching college ballin’ or shocking and awin’.

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