Nightlife Agenda Pick of the Week

We're counting down the minutes until 2 a.m. on January 27, when Dr. Dremo's Taphouse closes its doors to the public forever. Allow us to get nostalgic for a second: The place opened in 1993 as Bardo Rodeo, one of the area's first brewpubs and one of the only outposts of cool on the otherwise desolate and not-very-hip Wilson Boulevard. Owner Bill Stewart had been behind two nearby spots, Roratonga Rodeo (now Galaxy Hut) and Amdo (now part of Iota), but this former Oldsmobile dealership was his baby, with a totem pole outside the door and a vintage Plymouth crashing through the front window. Bardo quickly became popular with Arlington's burgeoning population of young professionals and folks from all over Northern Virginia followed. While not fancy -- the bathrooms were legendarily bad, and there was no air conditioning on one floor -- it was the place to go. Stewart later abandoned the brewpub idea and Bardo became an ill-conceived sushi place called Ningaloo before morphing into the vast drinking hall now known as Dr. Dremo's. On Saturday night, join former Bardo doorman and manager Andrew Stewart -- Bill's younger brother -- and what he estimates as a crowd of "70 to 80" former bartenders, staffers and regulars who are getting together to talk about the glory days. Hey, remember when William Kennedy Smith punched a bouncer? Good times, good times.

Looking for more after-dark fun? This week's Nightlife Agenda column also features include "True" hip-hop, Yeasayer, sing-along opera and a charity ball.