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Kinda DecentBars2026 preview

#119Global

Silver Lyan

Washington DC, USA · Vault cocktail bar · North America

Silver Lyan occupies a former bank vault below Riggs Washington DC and builds drinks around exchange and the city's culture. Bookings are recommended, while walk-ins join a first-come waitlist.

Description source · Checked 2026-09-09

Plan Your Visit

900 F St NW, Washington, DC 20004, USAPenn Quarter

Open in Maps Website Reserve
Style
Vault cocktail barChecked 2026-09-09 · Source
Hours
Tuesday–Friday 5pm–late; Saturday 4pm–late; Sunday 5pm–11pm.Checked 2026-09-09 · Source
Booking
Bookings are recommended; walk-ins are accepted all night first come, first served. Groups over 12 should email sales@riggsdc.com.Checked 2026-09-09 · Source
Prices
Current cocktails US$19–29; boozeless versions US$14; shooters US$11.Checked 2026-09-09 · Source
Menu
View the venue’s menu ↗Checked 2026-09-09 · Source

Hours and menus can change. Check the venue’s latest details before visiting.

@silverlyan

The score & its evidence

Seven signals. One score.

48.5 / 100

The composite combines the seven weighted signals and the published adjustments. The chart shows each signal before weighting.

Read the full calculation
Signal / 100Score
Guest ratings
76.3
World's 50 Best
—None found · Checked; no qualifying signal found; contributes zero
Top 500 Bars
48.9
Spirited Awards
—None found · Checked; no qualifying signal found; contributes zero
Regional Recognition
55.5
Serious press
42.1
Social Vibes
79.4

Weights: Guest ratings 23% · World's 50 Best 12% · Top 500 Bars 10% · Spirited 12% · Regional Recognition 18% · Press 10% · Social Vibes 15%

Missing evidence, confirmed none and evidence outside a scoring window each contribute zero. We do not redistribute their fixed weight to other signals.

Social Vibes

Score read updated:

positive2 cited links; not a count of independent customer reviews· medium confidence

Sentiment score

80/ 100

Historical 80/100 and medium confidence retained. This source check qualifies attribution without recalculating the proprietary score or establishing a representative current customer sample.

Score context

Eater’s August 2025 feature describes Silver Lyan’s elaborate cocktail programme and quotes its team. The cited Axios article could not be reread. These sources do not establish a customer consensus about the concepts or drinks.

Guest sources checked:

This read cites editorial or award context. Those links are distinct from guest accounts; only the reviewed links in Reviews & press count toward Press.

Editorial citations in this read

Read the press coverage below ↓

How They Treat Staff

Score read updated:

mostly positiveOne cited publisher interview with a named bartender; not a count of independent employee reviews.· low confidence

Staff score

78/ 100

Historical proprietary staff score; this source-attribution review does not independently revalidate the number.

Score context

In Brian Oh’s Eater report published on 1 August 2025, Silver Lyan head bartender Sam Nellis describes collaborative menu writing that includes non-bar staff. This is an attributed account of menu development, not an independent employee-review sample or a verification of pay, hours or current workplace conditions.

Staff sources checked:

This 8 October 2026 review concerns saved source attribution. The source was published on 1 August 2025 and captured on 7 October 2026; the visit date is unknown.

Workplace score details

Positive workplace signals

  • Named head bartender describes non-bar staff contributing to menu development

Sources cited for this score

  • dc.eater.comeater

    Eater — Brian Oh, published 1 August 2025: an attributed menu-development account from Silver Lyan head bartender Sam Nellis, not an independent employee sample. The article identifies 900 F Street NW in the Riggs hotel. Its nine-month figure concerns menu development, not employee tenure. The saved body was captured on 7 October 2026 and reviewed on 8 October 2026; visit date unknown. The stored sample joins two quoted sentences across the speaker attribution and normalizes apostrophes; it is not one contiguous source quotation.

Crowd signal

Google 4.7★ across 525 reviews.

View on Google · Checked . Ratings and review counts can change.

Awards

Results from the three global systems scored separately in our formula.

Top 500 Bars

Regional Recognition

Regional and national lists, local awards and bartender peer picks considered for this room's Regional Recognition score. The strongest result from each program and year scores; assessed guides use the latest accepted dated status once.

North America's 50 Best Bars

Reviews & press