Sign of the Whale 1825 M Street Northwest, Washington, District of Columbia 20036

"Fantastic bar experience on a Friday night! Friendly bartender, lively Gen-Z crowd, and a vibrant atmosphere with two floors, including a cozy second-floor bar and space. Security was welcoming, making it a great spot for those who love to party, dance, and enjoy loud music. We encountered a brief disturbance with a fight breaking out. Unfortunately that was the only negative experience we had."

"Best place for happy hour in DC. They have a very nice place and seating arrangements. Their staff was super nice. The food was amazing and their price was super as well. We ordered their truffles fries, quesadillas, tacos, wings, pretzel with beer cheese, and everything was amazingly good."

"I came in for drag brunch this past weekend celebrating a friend’s birthday and had an amazing time! Laura and Trinity, our bartenders, took excellent care of us—very speedy and consistent service. I wasn’t a fan of the meal I had but the service, drinks, and performances more than made up for it. Excellent experience, I’ll definitely be coming back."

"I went to brunch the weekend of pride with my girlfriend, and I loved being in a welcoming space with so many young queer people. Pictured is her smoke salmon bagel which was amazing. I got the French toast but it wasn’t that special. The servers were drunk and didn’t refill my bottomless mimosas at all. If you get bottomless, I recommend asking for a bottle at your table to get your money’s worth since gratuity is included. More importantly, they weren’t refilling waters. The drag performance was amazing and there were several Black and brown performers."

"I don't even know where to begin. Me and four friends went for drag brunch on Sunday during Pride. My friends arrived before I did and were seated in the back in a booth. My friend went to slide in to the booth and some brown substance was on the seat which then got on her hands. They requested another table. Table number two was so unbalanced and falling apart that any movement you made your drink went flying. We realized it was going to be a problem and we moved to our third table. Two friends ordered coffee to start. One asked for cream and sugar and was told, "I don't think we have sugar right now. I'll check." By the time the sugar came out, the coffee was gone. Three of five did bottomless mimosas but had to go up to the bar for constant refills before finally requesting they just give us the bottle of champagne. There were three people working - two bartenders and one server. One bartender was eating her breakfast behind the bar, one bartender was on and off her cell phone making calls, and the third staff member was responsible for serving every table at the restaurant - AND IT WAS HER FIRST DAY SERVING THERE. Dana was so positive and seemed happy to be there which is about the only positive I can say for SOTW. One hour into being seated we placed our food orders. The first two orders came out after 30 minutes. The next two came out 15 minutes later. The last plate arrived 20 minutes after that. The person who received their food last waited 60 minutes for her food and ate alone because we were all finished. The chicken and waffles were good. Definitely do not order the side of bacon or the hash browns. The bacon was clearly cooked previously and microwaved because it was the texture of beef jerky and had absolute zero grease on it - bone dry bacon. The hasbrowns weren't fried or even pan fried and had zero flavor. Last and certainly not least.... The cleanliness. The floors were so sticky and dirty from the previous nights party. There was gum stuck in various places on the brick wall near my head at the table. The women's restroom has two stalls. The first stall has a toilet that is sideways so your leg hits the wall while you're going. It had one roll of toilet paper that was down to the last few squares. The second stall had vomit caked on the toilet from the night before (clearly wasn't that day because we got there when they opened) so nobody could use that stall. The sink had no hand soap. And to make matters worse, the bathroom obviously reeked of vomit. The drag was supposed to start at 12:30. The performers came out at 1:05. Five minutes into the show the microphone died and the MC had to yell for each performer coming out. I don't think it needs to be said but I will never return and I certainly don't recommend this place to anybody. I don't know how they have business or have remained in business this long. They automatically add 20% gratuity to your check so nobody really seems to give a s*** about your experience - they'll get tipped regardless. Hope this helps the next person not make the same mistake we did."