Dallas Dive Bar Guide
Diverse Neighborhoods, Unique Dive Bars
Dive bar diversity comes with the type of urban diversity that serves as one of Dallas’ signature features. The city’s neighborhoods shift from reclaimed urban cores to forgotten stretches of highway-adjacent to semi-suburban neighborhoods, all offering their own flavor of dive bar offering. Where Fireplace Lounge looks a bit like an abandoned building on the side of the road, The Grapevine Bar serves as the classic neighborhood dive bar hub. Where Reno’s Chop Shop Saloon persists as a biker dive bar in a quickly evolving Deep Ellum district, The Goat sits in a strip mall quietly cranking out great blues.
Dallas is, of course, no small city. And some of the dive bars presented here sit a fair distance away from each other, but with that distance comes unique, hyper-localized flavor. Because Dallas continues to grow, at times that growth means a dive bar gets renovated or a new concept is introduced. Normally, a revamped dive bar is a death sentence, but Ships Lounge has persisted since 1947 despite strip mall renovations and Mike’s Gemini Twin is only a handful of years old but might be the best cocktail dive bar in the city.
Though the Dallas sprawl is real, the result is a compelling and diverse set of dive bars that makes for good touring of the city. That one of those dive bars features a patio that resembles a prison but still makes for a fun drinking locale in the shadow of an old drive-in diner shelter (Charlie’s Star Lounge) only underscores the strength of Dallas’ dive bar inventory.
Dallas is, of course, no small city. And some of the dive bars presented here sit a fair distance away from each other, but with that distance comes unique, hyper-localized flavor. Because Dallas continues to grow, at times that growth means a dive bar gets renovated or a new concept is introduced. Normally, a revamped dive bar is a death sentence, but Ships Lounge has persisted since 1947 despite strip mall renovations and Mike’s Gemini Twin is only a handful of years old but might be the best cocktail dive bar in the city.
Though the Dallas sprawl is real, the result is a compelling and diverse set of dive bars that makes for good touring of the city. That one of those dive bars features a patio that resembles a prison but still makes for a fun drinking locale in the shadow of an old drive-in diner shelter (Charlie’s Star Lounge) only underscores the strength of Dallas’ dive bar inventory.
Dive Bar Map
Dallas Dive Bar Reviews
Ranked Order
Adair's Saloon
Review Rating: 10 out of 10
Few dive bars can rival Adair's Saloon, where decades of graffiti cake the walls and a single egg is on the menu.
Fireplace Lounge
Review Rating: 10 out of 10
Yes, this white, rectangle shoebox of a dive bar just off the highway does indeed boast a fireplace inside.
Lakewood Landing
Review Rating: 9 out of 10
Picture a steakhouse circa 1960, age it up a few decades and remove the steak. In an awesome way.
Lee Harvey's
Review Rating: 9 out of 10
The front yard is great, but inside may be better where Lee Harvey's doubles as a vintage beer sign museum.
Reno's Chop Shop Saloon
Review Rating: 9 out of 10
Black paint, bras hanging from the ceiling, dollar bills everywhere and live music to keep Deep Ellum cool.
Charlie's Star Lounge
Review Rating: 8 out of 10
A front patio in the style of a prison perfectly complements the drive-in food shelter in the parking lot.
Grapevine Bar
Review Rating: 8 out of 10
Years of organic growth at this neighborhood dive manifests in purple drapes and Everclear slushees.
Mike's Gemini Twin
Review Rating: 8 out of 10
Dive bar or not, keep an eye out for the stripper pole and perhaps the best cocktail dive in Dallas.
Ships Lounge
Review Rating: 7 out of 10
The years have not been kind to the strip mall that hosts Ships, but inside the classic vibe is alive.
Wits End
Review Rating: 7 out of 10
To get to the rooftop bar, walk past the sawed-in-half food truck bursting from a brick wall.
The Goat
Review Rating: 7 out of 10
Dim lighting and live blues go together perfectly in this east Dallas staple.
Single Wide
Review Rating: 5 out of 10
A little too intentional to be a true dive bar, don't let that ruin a good Yoo-Hoo cocktail opportunity.
Dallas Bar Crawls
Deep Ellum
Dodging trendy nightclubs in favor of divey, stalwart gems.
Dallas Dive Bars Not Yet Reviewed
Must Visit Recommendations
Unfortunately, we have not yet been to every single dive bar in the city, but there probably a few more punch cards on our livers, so we’ll make it there soon. In the meantime, the curated list of dives below comes highly recommended by a variety of friends, online sources and drunks.
