Mister Days is bringing its “Rally in the Alley” fundraiser back to Clarendon this weekend, with barbecue, a DJ and thousands of expected revelers.
The event is scheduled for this Saturday (March 28) from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 1101 N. Highland Street, with a portion of 11th Street closing to make room for the festivities. Admission is $10, with proceeds going to the Mister Days Reach Out Foundation, which supports Arlingtonians in need.
Bobby Lee, the bar’s founder and the creator of the rally, said he expects 2,000-3,000 people this year — a significant jump from last year’s event, when the rally returned to Arlington for the first time since Mister Days left D.C.’s Dupont Circle area in 2001. Lee said at the time that he expected a few hundred people and had only shut down half a block.
Clarendon neighbor Smokecraft Modern Barbecue, located just up the street at 1051 N. Highland Street, “will bring the meat,” Mister Days said.
Lee hosted the first Rally in the Alley in 1979 when Mister Days was located between L and M Streets NW in D.C. The event grew into one of Washington’s biggest bar scene traditions, at times drawing as many as 15,000 people. What started as a St. Patrick’s Day party eventually became a charity event supporting scholarships and other local causes.
Mister Days reopened in Clarendon in late 2024 at the former Clarendon Grill and Pinemoor space after a five-year hiatus.
