This is the story of how one little brick led to one little bar and how that little bar led to Bars by Dawson Restaurant Industries
Geoffrey Dawson is no stranger to the Washington D.C. area. Born and raised in the heart of the Nation’s Capital, Geoff has designed, built and operated more than 35 nightlife spots during the past 30 years. He mixes equal parts passion and creativity while imagining and developing unique neighborhood hangouts.
A history of building amazing bars…
1992
Bedrock
Billiards
Washington, DC
3740 sq ft
1993
Atomic
Billiards
Washington, DC
2500 sq ft
1994
Buffalo
Billiards
Washington, DC
14,343 sq ft
1996
Carpool
Washington, DC
9600 sq ft
Geoff’s journey in the D.C. bar business began in 1992, when Geoff, then a residential contractor, designed, built and opened Bedrock Billiards in Adams Morgan. This little neighborhood bar is still thriving and remains his sentimental favorite. After the success of Bedrock Billiards, Geoff continued to create and open other establishments such as Atomic Billiards, Buffalo Billiards (DC, Nashville, Philadelphia, Gaithersburg, MD and Austin, TX), Carpool and Mackey’s. Each of these businesses stands alone, each with a unique identity, signature décor, and overall concept.
Building a bar can be exhilerating…
In 2004 when the Verizon Center opened in downtown DC, Geoff and Bedrock Bars were brought in to open Velocity Grill, a 20,000 square foot venue within the Verizon Center. It lasted only a year. Having learned many valuable lessons from that failure, Geoff returned soon after to open RocketBar, Iron Horse, Penn Social and Jackpot within two blocks of the Verizon Center.
Recent openings include Franklin Hall, Slice & Pie, Lost & Found and Tall Boy in Shaw DC. With no plans of slowing down, Dawson is dedicated to creating fun, neighborhood centered spots while also sharing his entrepreneurship journey through mentorship and teaching.
Where we’re going from here…
We like projects that are…
Musings…
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