Cloak-and-dagger Cocktails at PX

follow the blue light to PX

Friday night’s drinking adventure took me over to Old Town, Alexandria, a quaint spot on the Potomac in Northern Virginia. Our destination was PX, a modern speakeasy with no number and no sign out front. Before we get into the specifics of PX, I’d like to take a moment to acknowledge the current trend that has everyone looking backward to the roaring twenties and the era of national Prohibition. Bars are springing up everywhere that pride themselves equally on both the clandestine nature of their entrances and the quality of the ingredients that go into the cocktails - house made bitters and tonics, freshly squeezed juices, and hand-cut blocks of ice. These old-school establishments are the polar opposite of the slick lounges and scene-y spots of the early 2000’s. Whether this genre of bar has staying power or is just another fad has yet to be seen, but with places like PDT (short for Please Don’t Tell...oops, just did) and Little Branch in Manhattan leading the charge, the speakeasy seems to have carved out its own niche for now.

No address is listed for PX, just a vague “Follow the blue light” on their website. A quick Google search, however, turned up 728 King Street as the address, simultaneously demystifying their directions and ruining any romantic notion of a search through the rainy night for a blue lamppost. A knock on the door led to the opening of a metal peephole. “Name, please?” said the voice on the other side of the door. Though their criteria for admission is unclear, apparently we passed muster, because we were escorted inside to a small table with water carafes, white croc-embossed menus, and homemade potato chips (a welcome touch). We settled in to the white leather chairs and took in the scene.


As my friend Kyle said (somewhat ironically) a few years ago, “staying in is the new going out,” and the atmosphere of PX seems to have taken that mantra to heart. The vibe was more akin to a friend’s living room than a bar. Quiet and relaxed, the dark paneled walls were mirrored and lined with shelves of empty crystal containers and vintage silver cocktail shakers. A mysterious girl in a tight red dress sat idly at the bar, lending a sense of noir mystique to the whole joint.

The cocktail list is small but concentrated, and there was nary a disappointed palate in my group. For the amount of labor that goes into creating each drink, the prices are quite reasonable ($11-14 each). Equally cool is watching the bartender create each drink; for some, including the Sherlock Holmes, the fruit is set aflame to give a fragrant aroma to the cocktail. Standouts include the Bittersweet, a combination of gin, bitters, and sweet vermouth ($12) and the Cure All, a complicated and delicious mix of tequila, gin, turmeric, and basil coconut water ($12). Even the seemingly simple gin and tonic ($12.50), crafted with house-made tonic, was heads and shoulders above any other G&T I’ve ever tasted; the tonic was at once sweet and tangy, and the Citadelle gin may soon find itself a permanent place in my home bar. Another must try - if only for the song and dance that comes along with it - is the absinthe. Ice water is diffused out of a large carafe over sugar cubes resting on a spoon with a skull and crossbones carved out of it into the absinthe in the bottom of the glass. Spooky, I know, but the lovely licorice aroma of the drink is well worth the $16 price tag.

If I could find any fault with the establishment, it would be the lack of a real energy. It could have just been an off night, or perhaps the room we sat in, but the atmosphere was lacking a certain intangible feeling. (There appeared to be more seats to the place behind a white curtain, but I dared not peek inside, too worried we might be ever so politely asked to leave.) For sure, the place is more suited for a hushed conversation among friends than a raucous tête-à-tête, but there was still something left to be desired.

All in all, I would definitely recommend a visit to this place. It’s only 20 minutes by cab from DC proper, and well worth the trip. Throw on your velvet dinner jacket or vintage dress and prepare to enter a world of hush-hush cocktailing, roaring 20’s style. That is, if you can get past the door...

PX, 728 King Street, Alexandria, VA (no phone)