Got Game?
For couples who enjoy a little healthy competition, the Game Library at Clarendon’s Board Room Game Bar & Brewery is stocked with every board game you’ve ever played, plus some you may not have heard of. (The list of Monopoly options alone is 13 names long, plus five versions in other languages.) Share a plate of loaded nachos or General Tso’s pork wings and sip award-winning, house-made craft brews. For an extra challenge, stop in for Trivia Tuesdays at 7 p.m. // 925 N. Garfield St., Arlington (Clarendon)
In Ballston, Punch Bowl Social has so many games in one place, you may need a strategy just to choose which one to tackle first. There’s bowling, karaoke and a vintage arcade, not to mention table games including ping pong, billiards and foosball. Giant Jenga, corn hole, bocce, darts and board games are also available. Fuel up for the competition with a shareable plate of cilantro honey wings or get an advantage with an entrée for one, such as crispy cauliflower tacos. // 4238 Wilson Blvd., Suite 1180, Arlington (Ballston)
Or, visit Escape Room Arlington, where you can put your compatibility to the test by being locked in a room full of puzzles you need to solve together to get out. Choose from five rooms of varying difficulty, such as Poe’s Chambers (a hunt for the cause of Edgar Allen Poe’s demise) and Supervillains (a race to save the city from supervillains who escaped the comic book). // 2301 Columbia Pike, Arlington
Bring the Dogs
Got a sociable fur baby? Double date with your pooches in tow at The Perch, an 11-story-high rooftop park in Tysons. Pups can play in the Sky Bark Pup Park and humans can play mini golf at Perch Putt, stroll the Great Lawn and grab food truck fare. The new Bap Bowl dishes up casual Korean eats such as rice bowls piled with braised short ribs or roasted salmon, while Los Dos Carlos Street Tacos offers soft tacos with a side of Dorito Pie (black beans, corn, green onion, cilantro, jalapeños, cheddar cheese, sour cream and guacamole). To wash it all down, Rhum Roost serves beer, wine and tiki drinks, including The Birdie (Reposado Mezcal and Tequila, lime, and Q Grapefruit Soda). Or, meander over to Starr Hill Biergarten to grab a brew and watch a game on the outdoor amphitheater’s big screen. Note that there are water stations throughout to keep your doggo hydrated, too. // 1805 Capital One Drive, 11th Floor, Tysons
If fawning over Fido or Fifi brings you together, you’ve got plenty of dog-friendly restaurants to choose from, too. Consider a visit Copperwood Tavern in Shirlington, where your pup can vie for “Dog of the Month” recognition on the Dog Wall of Fame (to enter the running, simply submit a photo) while you and your date dig into venison chili, braised rabbit pasta and filet mignon. Bonus: Copperwood is an 11-minute walk from Shirlington Dog Park. Another option is Courthaus Social, which dishes up American food for humans and canine cuisine such as pork broth “dog brew” and peanut butter biscuits. Weather not ideal for outdoor dining? Shirlington’s Snouts & Stouts has a large indoor doggie play area and a cafe serving salads and pastries in addition to beer, wine and signature cocktails. Naturally, you can also get snacks for pups, including chicken or beef rice bowls and a dog-friendly margarita (cucumber, applesauce, Greek yogurt and a crushed-treat rim).
Tout Your Talent
Teamwork makes the dream work, and two heads are better than one. Show off what you know at a local trivia night, which are almost as common as Starbucks around here. Ballston Local, voted Best Trivia Night by Arlington Magazine readers in 2023, hosts two trivia nights per week (Monday and Wednesday) and serves brain food such as Baller Nachos, chicken parm pizza and short rib grilled cheese. Or head to Caboose Commons in the Mosaic District on Trivia Tuesdays and nosh on fried pickle chips or an ahi tuna poke bowl while sipping brain-stimulating hand-crafted coffees or celebratory beers.
Want to wow your date with your vocal range? Area karaoke bars are here for it. In fact, Freddie’s Beach Bar in Crystal City offers karaoke every night from 8 p.m.-1:30 a.m.—unless there’s bingo (until 10 p.m. Wednesdays) or a drag show (until 11 p.m. on the first Sunday of the month). Prep your vocal cords with beachy fare like shrimp and crab cakes. MusicBox Karaoke Lounge in Falls Church also turns up the tunes nightly from 5 p.m.-12:30 a.m. Reserve a party room for two and dine on Asian fusion foods such as bulgogi fries and Singapore curry rice noodles as you design a set list.
Are you a poet and you know it? Or do you fancy yourself funny? Open mic nights give you an opportunity to bond over your practiced haikus and best jokes. Busboys and Poets in Shirlington has an open mic night on Mondays from 8-10 p.m., plus vegan and vegetarian food options for those following plant-based diets. McLean’s Shipgarten hosts a Live Music and Open Mic Night every Tuesday from 5-9:30 p.m. Admission is free and happy hour specials such as half-off burgers, $5 cocktails and $6 house beers run until 9 p.m.
Go for Romance
Of course, you can never go wrong with an intimate dinner for two, and there’s no shortage of romantic dinner options in this area. Maybe start with an aphrodisiac like oysters on the half shell at Lyon Hall, or a pot of mussels to share, followed by entrees such as filet medallions or grilled branzino. For a Parisian bistro-style tête-à-tête, reserve a table at Café Colline, order a bottle of wine or BYOB and make your way leisurely through plates of duck confit, steak frites and tuna niçoise before finishing up with a classic crème brulée. Or snuggle up in a booth resembling a birdcage at Ellie Bird in Falls Church, where you can share orders of blistered shishito mushrooms, grilled sea bream and spinach ricotta triangoli with pickled blueberries. For a sweet ending, order a piece of Rachel’s Chocolate Cake with chai buttercream, caramel ganache and vanilla ice cream, and two forks.
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Want a dining room with a view? National Landing’s rotating Skydome Restaurant serves up sweeping views of the Arlington and D.C. skylines, including the Washington Monument and U.S. Air Force Memorial, along with tapas such as grilled octopus and crab dip that are great to share. In Clarendon, Buena Vida’s beachy rooftop lounge transports guests to Mexico’s Yucatan with Passion Fruit Martinis and the Margarita Al Pastor (bacon- and serrano-infused tequila, pineapple, lime and agave with smoked jalapeño salt) along with crab and shrimp enchiladas. In the Mosaic District, park yourself at a rooftop table at French brasserie Parc de Ville to people watch, eat escargot and pork pâté, and sip specialty cocktails such as the Bittered Bee’s Knees.
If wining and dining is in order, channel your inner sommelier with a wine-tasting date at Screwtop Wine Bar, a comfortable, neighborly spot in Clarendon for wine flights, cheese plates and entrees like bison meatloaf and parmesan herb-crusted salmon atop a cauliflower mash. Every Tuesday from 5:30-7, it hosts a wine tasting ($5-$15). In Ballston, attend a patio wine tasting (reds on Aug. 15 and 17, whites on Sept. 5 and 7) at Pirouette, a wine shop and restaurant serving pair-worthy fare such as duck a l’orange, roasted cauliflower and Basque cheesecake with vermouth plums. Another idea: Turn a tasting into a mini-trip with a drive to one of these adults-only nearby vineyards.