DC wins the Bronze! Glad it's not the gold or silver..."booziest state" #goodgrief
My friends and I have certainly done our part; however, five drinks in sitting is a lot and can be pretty expensive.
D.C. takes bronze for booziest in U.S.
WASHINGTON -- D.C. is one of the booziest places in the country, according to a new government survey, placing third among all "states" for binge drinking.
Almost a third of all Washingtonians have reported binge drinking in the past month, according to a CBS News analysis of the report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
But many in Washington are split on whether that's accurate portrayal, or if it's a bad thing.
"It's a drinking town, no doubt about it," says George Mallios, owner of Fox & Hounds in Dupont. Mallios and his brother-in-law opened the doors at the lounge in the early 1960s, and weathered the ensuing riots that boarded up many District businesses.
Bars in the 60s and 70s could serve alcohol until 2 a.m. during the week, and 3 a.m. on the weekends, said Mallios. Establishments close to adjacent Montgomery County became a popular destination after they were forced to close their bars at midnight, he said.
Mallios started the bar under the principles his partner had learned from his native Chicago: "Let it flow." Their bartenders serve a "heavy drink" with just booze in a glass with some ice, and provide the customer with a bottle of Schweppes or other mixers to measure their own ratio.
But five drinks in one sitting -- the SAMHSA definition* of "binge drinking" -- is too much, Mallios said, "especially if you pour a strong drink like how we pour it."
"If someone had five drinks in my place he'd be wiped out," he said, and his bartenders know to cut patrons off before then.
However, power corridor staple Old Ebbitt across town has a different approach to the three feet of mahogany.
"People are going out to drink to work out business deals or work out policy," said spokesperson Maureen Hirsch, from Clyde's Restaurant Group, which own the bar near the White House. "There's a lot of entertaining in D.C."
Much of Old Ebbitt's clientele will start off with a drink, perhaps split a bottle or two among three people at dinner and stay for a while afterward, Hirsch said. It isn't uncommon for diners to stay for four hours, she said, which comes to about 1 1/4 drinks an hour.
"I'm not sure I would define binge drinking as five or more drinks in one sitting," she said.
Hirsch is surprised, however, that D.C. gets bronze for "booziest," since the rest of the top of the list includes North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a19mxk
