...I told you that I was so full that I don’t think I’ll be able to eat again for days. That is exactly what Lindy’s Red Lion does to you. With a menu including over 30 different kinds of hamburgers, how could you leave feeling anything less than stuffed? Of all the restaurants in Foggy Bottom (TGIF...Bertuccis...), I feel pretty safe making the claim that it has the most character. When you first enter, it is hard not to notice the crowd that is made up by your not-so-typical Foggy Bottom residents. Although there were some college students scattered about, I found myself wondering where these people came from and why flocked here at this hole in the wall place. There was a gathering of people around the bar either sitting, or walking around with burger in hand, as well as small tables crowded by people. I came with Devon and her friend Maren, our guest investigator of all things Bohemian in Foggy Bottom. We went right at the time when work was letting out and people would head to their favorite local bar for a drink. It took a good ten minutes for us to even get noticed waiting for a table and after that, another five to get seated. The waiter led us through the jammed restaurant and I must admit, I felt a like a little bit of an outsider as we shuffled through all of the ‘regulars’. It seemed like the waiters knew their regular patrons and vice-versa and needless to say, Devon, Maren and I did not appear to be regulars. You know the feeling you get when you walk into a party and know nobody there? This was a little bit too similar...
While analyzing the surrounding setting I couldn’t help but feel a connection between Lindy’s and any one of the bars that Richard Lloyd refers to in his book, Neo-Bohemia. In Neo-Bohemia, Lloyd discusses the way that many of the bars in the Wicker Park area of Chicago come to represent their own social hub for the workers and patrons. He analyzes the way that a lifestyle can be built around these bars and how there is an interconnected community between bars in a neighborhood that is constructed by the way that these patrons and workers create a social dynamic within each bar. In my mind, this dynamic could easily translate over to life at Lindy’s and the real low-key and tight-knit impression that I got from it could very well have its own social circle (one that we were most definitely not a part of). The decor looked as though it hadn’t been touched in years. Various old beer taps cover the walls, but most impressive of all was the photograph of Robert F. Kennedy that was positioned right near the front door that was signed personally by RFK to Lindy. There was also a mirrored wall across from the bar, trying to give off the illusion that you actually weren’t all packed in. As we were being led up to our table we passed a door that led to outside seating which was quite a surprise. We followed the man up the stairs to the second floor which again surprised us with a third tier that jutted off of that. There is a lot more to the restaurant than meets the eye.
The menu took some time to tackle. We were all overwhelmed by the abundance of options including some extremely unique spins on regular hamburgers. With names like “Capital Punishment”, “Davy Crockett," “Blue Beard” it is near impossible to settle on just one burger. Devon and I therefore opted for the most satisfying option which allowed you to pick for different burgers that were prepared in “miniature form”. Our poor vegetarian friend Maren had to settle on just one regular sized burger. The service was great and the food was even better. We all left extremely satisfied and unnaturally full. It was a fun experience that really enabled me to feel more connected to the parts of Foggy Bottom that I know very little about. Although it’s not exactly my scene and I don’t see myself becoming one of Lindy’s beer guzzling, hamburger munching regulars anytime soon, I would not hesitate to go back.
-JC
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