Stalled Sports Bar Dudley’s Is Now Opening This Summer

Local restaurateur Reese Gardner (Copperwood Tavern, Quinn’s on the Corner, Tulips) now predicts that the neighborhood sports bar he first talked about opening three years ago will finally join the Shirlington dining scene this summer.

Till then, he plans to occupy his time with visiting reality TV stars, 40-ounce bottles of rosé, and Stanley Cup finals fever.

Gardner tells Eater slow-moving Dudley’s Sport & Ale is actually nearing the finish line; he’s now hoping to unveil the 12,000-square-foot gathering place in July or August. In addition, he’s adding a new basement bar at months-old Dupont Circle restaurant Tulips in the coming weeks.

The to-do items on his immediate radar include welcoming Bravo Summer House personalities Kyle Cooke and Amanda Batula to his Rosslyn bar, Quinn’s (1776 Wilson Boulevard), on Saturday, June 2 for a weekend bacchanal. The “Rosé all day” event is scheduled to run from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. The drink of choice: French wine with unusual packaging.

“We are going to be playing old-school hip hop, with people carrying 40s of rosé and Kyle dumping it down people’s throats,” Gardner says. His PR team says Gardner first got Cooke to make an appearance last summer at his now-defunct Orange Anchor bar. “Last year I took too many shots,” recalls Cooke. Along with lots of photo ops and passed bottles, the 150-person bar will be airing Game 3 of the Washington Capitals-Vegas Golden Knights series with free red jello shots served for every goal scored.

Now that Gardner and Cooke are drinking buddies, recruiting the fitness app entrepreneur for round two was easy. Cooke, who’s been filmed drinking bottles of Whispering Angel at Hamptons’ pool and polo parties, reveals he’s not exclusively a rosé drinker. His current summertime favorite: Boston Beer Company’s hard seltzer, Truly.

Other bars in the area continue to capitalize on the pink drink this summer. Whaley’s Rose Garden is back in full swing, and downtown’s Honeysuckle is experimenting with a next-generation version: Three Olives Rosé Vodka. Bar manager Brad Gamble is pairing the newly released spirit with fresh lemon juice and blood orange Italian soda.

“All that’s missing is a bigger glass and a pool,” Gamble tells Eater.

• Dupont’s Getting a Sexy Champagne Room for Christmas [EDC]
• Dudley’s, Just Chocolate Palace, Hoa Tuc, More Coming [EDC]