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Enough energy for a party, but also a place where people are able to socialize in an intimate environment.
“Enough energy for a party, but also a place where people are able to socialize in an intimate environment” is what owner, and Executive Creative Director Farid Nouri felt Washington, DC needed when he opened the Eighteenth Street Lounge in 1995. After almost two decades of premiere house parties, Farid’s vision has created a legacy unmatched by any other venue in the District.
The Eighteenth Street Lounge unknowingly changed the face of DC’s dance music culture forever. The Lounge has been independently operated and curated since its inception in 1995.
Energy. Music. Culture.
The Eighteenth Street Lounge is dedicated to providing Washington DC with the greatest regional and world-class DJ talent, as well as live music ranging from traditional Jazz and Funk, to Reggae and a hybrid of Latin sounds.
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The ESL Legacy
Eighteenth Street Lounge has been known as an epicenter for live music, dancing, and community since 1995. In 2020, after 25 years of operations in Dupont Circle, Eighteenth Street Lounge closed their doors due to COVID-19. After two years, the original ownership decided to reopen in a new location in Shaw.
“Through some resolve and popular demand, 18th Street Lounge kept its name, but took up new digs on 9th Street beside other bars and restaurants occupying Blagden Alley, a back street once singled out by Eleanor Roosevelt and other New Deal reformers as an emblem of the city’s urban decay, but now lined with trendy shops.”
– New York Times
“The two-level, 5,000-square-foot space at 1230 Ninth Street NW is about half the size of the original. Like the original location, the pared-down replacement will sport a rooftop deck, have a bar on each level, and will be capable of hosting multiple live acts at once.”
– Eater DC