Located at the east end of the H Street Corridor,
The Pursuit Wine Bar features an extensive by-the-glass wine list paired with contemporary American comfort foods. The Pursuit Wine Bar's interior was designed to create a comfortable and relaxing environment. The first floor includes a lively bar, open kitchen and secret garden patio out back. The upstairs lounge houses several comfortable couches and is an ideal setting to kick back and enjoy a few glasses of wine with good friends. Over 45 different wines by the glass are available from a wine list that knows no geographical or varietal boundaries. Closest Metro is Union Station.
The bar was full when we arrived, so we headed upstairs and had our picking of seats in the more cozy area. We sat by the window and looked over the wine menu.
With so many by-the-glass options, we decided to order flights. Three half-pour glasses of white or red wines were available. We went with the French white flight:
Vive le vin de France! made up of
Languedoc Blanc,
Côtes de Gascogne, and
Côtes-du-Rhôn. My favorite was the dry
Côtes de Gascogne with lots of minerality.
We also shared the red flight:
Pinot Noir, You're a Star made up of
K Cellars from Bulgaria,
Wait from California, and
Saint Verny from France. We have had the
Bulgarian wine before and enjoyed it. We also liked the boozy Californian Pinot Noir, but I could pass on the French one. It was a bit sour to me. After these tastings, we each ordered a full glass of a different wine from the long menu. Keith chose the
2013 Shiraz from Barossa Valley Estate, Australia and I chose the
2013 Cabernet Sauvignon from Aviary, California. They were both deep bold wines and perfect for Fall.
The food menu is limited, with a few cheese or meat boards, salads and most notable various grilled cheese sandwiches. We decided to share two sandwiches, one with a side of chips and the other with a small side salad. The
Chicken Bacon Ranch was made with sourdough, pepper jack, ranch, grilled chicken, bacon and tomato. It was a decent sized sandwich that was filling and had great flavor. It paired best with the white wines. We also shared the
Little Salty Sweet made with challah, brie, honey, prosciutto and dried dates. Paired with the red wines, this sandwich brought out the chocolate notes and was a nice balance of salty and sweet.
Overall, the Pursuit Wine Bar is a cute place for wine lovers and would be the perfect spot for a first date. If you are hungry though, I would recommend you go somewhere else for a full meal, however this spot is great as a prequel.
Total Rating:
3.35
Food: 3.5, Price: 2.5, Service: 3.5, Ambience: 3.5, Accessibility: 4.5
