Fast Eddie's: DC: A-to-Z Becomes DC: A-to-G-string!

"Oops!" pretty much sums it up. As in, "oops, I didn't realize this bar was going to smell like urine." And, "oops, I didn't know this place transformed into a strip club at 7:30 sharp." I apologize, but there is a silver lining here: was not the whole point of this endeavor to venture out to new bars, visit new neighborhoods, and meet new people? Are not strippers people to? I dare say yes.

But perhaps I mislead. In reality, the basement was a strip club, the middle level was a restaurant where strippers happened to be dancing in the corners, and the upstairs was simply a pretty decent pool hall. (Where off-duty strippers congregated). This place was certainly a surprise. When we first arrived, we sat down to dinner that was tastier than you'd imagine knowing what you know now about the place. Midway through my delicious chicken terriaki kebabs (which I'm told is not your average strip club cuisine), the host stops by to tell us that, at 7:30, the lights would go down, cell phones would be prohibited, and "dancers would arrive." You can imagine I about choked on my chicken when I heard this.

The host was right. At 7:30 sharp Fast Eddie's transformed from a place named after Paul Newman's character in "The Hustler," to a place where other types of hustling might be expected. The host transformed into a bouncer. Our 60-year old cracked out waitress transformed into a 60-year old cracked out waitress in a see-through nighty. And DC: A-to-Z transformed into DC: A-to-XXX.

Anyway, we had another good turnout, despite the fact that God was making it rain outside and the Devil was making it rain inside. Once the "dancers" got started, we moved upstairs to play some pool and watch the look on our late-arriving friends' faces when they walked in and immediately saw boobies. I especially enjoyed watching Amy walk in, realize what was afoot, and run upstairs to escape the nudity -- only to have the bouncer chase after her to demand to see her ID. Other highlights included the fact that this was Kristen's first night out after moving back to DC, and Rachel's first ever trip to an establishment such as this.

All confusion aside, one thing was clear: $1 beers made the trip well worth it ... until the prices increased to $5 at 8:00. Thanks to all the good sports that stuck around and forgave my FUBAR move. I won't be going back, but at least I've got a pretty good happy hour story. I hope you can join us next week for our G bar -- and I promise it's not Good Guys!

All-star of the week: Keenan [last name unknown], who came to Fast Eddie's on her first date with one of our A-to-Z regulars, and not only wasn't bothered by the fact it was a strip club, but proceeded to befriend every one of the dancers in the place. Rumor has it she even went back into the dressing room at one point to share life stories. Good times.

Average A-to-Zer rating: 3 out of 5.