Enjoy a Cold Pint at Astro Beer Hall

Spanning 14,000 square feet across two levels, Astro Beer Hall at 4001 Campbell Avenue in Shirlington is a joint venture of restaurateurs Elliot Spaisman and Jeff Halpern, featuring a two-level beer hall, a game room, a 140-seat patio — the biggest in Shirlington — and a full-service coffee shop housing a robot that makes nine varieties of cake doughnuts to order. The space-race theme runs throughout, from the murals covering the walls to the menu naming conventions to the retro lounge downstairs called 1969 — a speakeasy-style bar open from 4 p.m. daily, decked out in custom artwork paying homage to the cultural spirit of its namesake year. The whole enterprise has the feel of a place designed by people who genuinely love both beer and theatrics, and it works.

The main hall features 24 beers on draft, signature craft cocktails, arcade games, pool tables, dart boards, and plenty of screens for sports alongside a food menu anchored by fried chicken in many forms — wings, sandwiches, sliders — plus smash burgers, chicken and waffles, tater tots, and the fresh-made doughnuts that have become something of a signature. The Astronomic Burger stacks two 4-ounce Pat LaFrieda beef patties with pimento cheese, fried onions, smoked bacon, pickled jalapeños, and hickory barbecue sauce—a burger that earns its place on any serious list of Arlington’s best. Open seven days a week from 10 a.m. on weekends and 11 a.m. on weekdays. Visit astrobeerhall.com for current hours and events.