If you’re ready for a panda party, pop on down to the Passenger in Shaw. For the month of April, the bar will be celebrating the National Zoo’s recent arrivals with a panda pop-up, complete with panda-themed cocktails, decor, and, yes, bartenders dressed in panda onesies.
“I thought it would be fun. Everybody loves pandas,” says owner Tom Brown. “I kind of boiled it down to adorable, adorably fierce, and a little clumsy.”
The bar is now decked out as a proper panda’s paradise, complete with balloons, streamers, bamboo, and even a claw machine chock-full of panda plushies. Panda-inspired tunes also rock the space, starting off with Mandopop hits in the early evening and Chinese house music and death metal later at night as bargoers start getting up and dancing.
“I’m talking to some local DJs about doing some dance parties. I think maybe if we can organize it where everybody dresses like a panda for a night, it would be kind of fun,” says Brown. “There’s so many stressful things going on in DC right now. And I think it’s time for us to just come together and party like pandas.”
A special pop-up menu is serving up a host of panda-themed cocktails, including two named after DC’s newest pandas, Qing Bao and Bao Li. There’s also a boozy “Panda Killer” pandan liqueur-and-rye whisky boba, with a non-alcoholic “Baby Panda” option for any kids who want to partake in the panda pandemonium. BOGO free drink deals are on offer weekdays from 5 PM to 7 PM.
And by the way, the bartender that’s whipping up your drink will indeed look like a giant, humanoid panda. “I got panda onesies for all the staff to wear, they’re going to love them,” says Brown. “I got a crew that likes to have fun, so it works out well.”
Food specials are currently still in the works, and Brown is in talks with a close chef friend. “I don’t know if fried bamboo leaves are a thing.”
Amazingly, this isn’t the only panda pop-up bar. You can also find panda drinks at Woodley Park gastropub Duke’s Counter, where their Bamboo Bar serves up panda-ritas and panda coladas.
The Passenger. 1539 Seventh St., NW. 202-853-3588.
