Restaurant and bar owners continue to jockey for coveted outdoor space they can convert into places they can seat customers as D.C. continues to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic. Church Hall founders Peter Bayne and Geoffrey Dawson managed to secure a charming brick courtyard overlooking the C&O Canal on Grace Street NW owned by Jamestown Properties. The pop-up biergarten in Georgetown opens Wednesday and should last through October. 

Church Hall opened in 2018. The 7,000-square-foot beer hall has been dormant throughout most of the public health emergency. “We closed down back in March,” says General Manager Robert Hess. “While we reopened recently, as you’re finding throughout the city and country, venues are struggling, especially indoor basement bars.”

The new biergarten can seat up to 50 people with social distancing measures in place. Most tables are for two, but a few can seat up to six individuals. Customers will be asked to use a contactless ordering system through GoTab.

Food items include watermelon gazpacho, to which you can add a shot of vodka, bratwursts and hot dogs, and light snacks like fried chickpeas. Hess says they thought about food people would want to eat in summer heat and humidity. 

In building the drink menu, Hess says the team focused on supporting local businesses. Cocktails are made with spirits from Republic Restoratives, Cotton & Reed, and Green Hat. Half of the beers are locally brewed. See the food and drink menus below. 

Church Hall’s biergarten will be open Wednesdays through Fridays from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 10 p.m. Reservations are accepted here. Find it at 3223 Grace St. NW, next to Chaia Tacos.