Today is the day many of us have been waiting for: the Olympic games have started! For those who don’t have cable or prefer to watch the events in the presence of a crowd, Drink DC and Washingtonian have provided some great places in the DC area that will be showing the Olympics and offering food and/or drink specials.

Regardless of whether or not you’re a fan of the Olympics, we hope you enjoy the weekend. This weekend’s recommendations consists of a lot of beer options so we hope you’re thirsty!

Here are our weekend recommendations for the DC Area:

2012 Olympic Kickoff Party at Grand Central

Grand Central is hosting a festive Olympic kickoff party tonight. Wearing red, white, and blue earns you $4 “American shots”. You can also get $3 Bud Lights, $4 drafts, rails or house wine, and $5 craft drafts. There will also be food specials at this event. This event runs from 8-11pm tonight and is free, however, make sure you register to ensure a spot at the party. For more information, click here.

Drink the District: Beer Edition

Tomorrow, over 40 craft beers, DC food trucks and more will come together for Drink the District. Breweries such as Flying Dog, Magic Hat, New Belgium, and Dogfish Head will all be there. This is a two-session event which makes it perfect to fit in some time to watch the Olympics throughout the day. The first session is from 12-4pm and the second session is from 5-9pm. You can save money and buy your tickets in advance or you can get tickets at the door. To buy tickets or for more information about the event, click here.

Beer Brewing at Smith Commons: Part 3

Tomorrow is round 3 of Smith Common’s Back Porch Brew Series. The series is hosted by The DC Homebrewers Club, Smith Commons, and The Reverend JP. This event consists of DIY beermaking where professionals and homebrewers will be discussing various techniques and tips to create the perfect brew. For this session, the team will be recreating an ale version of Smith Commons’ Felicity Watermelon Smith cocktail. The event will take place tomorrow from 1-7pm. For more information, click here.

We hope you have a great weekend!