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This is the grand daddy of them all. Old Town Hard Times Cafe opened in 1980 on this very site. Founders Jim & Fred Parker didn't really know what they were getting in to except they knew how to cook award-winning chili. The rest is history. Parking in rear of building after 6pm Monday-Friday and all day Saturday & Sunday. Onsite Catering available for groups of 25 or more. Click the image above for the specials and events for this location.

Check out our upstairs - we've added some big flat screens for you to catch some of the games!

Old Town lost a premier open mic venue when the Tiffany Tavern closed this year.  Many big name entertainers began their careers playing for free in bars and honky tonks, and three block away the Hard Times Cafe continues the open mic tradition every Tuesday night.  At 9pm the second floor of the Hard Times transforms into an intimate club setting that offers acoustic musicians, poets and comics a late evening opportunity to try out new material and socialize with other artists.  To encourage new talent to participate, Hard Times offers a chance to win 3 hours of recording time at the famous Inner Ear Studio in Shirlington.  Sign up for a set and put your name in the box for a drawing on October 28th.  Call 703-837-0050 and ask for a manager to get more information.

Specials

Specials are for Dine-In only