Orlando Dive Bar Guide

Vibrant, Neon-Friendly Dive Scene

As the weather gets nicer, the dive bars change, moving out of layouts that favor hunkering down amid the Midwestern or East Coast cold, transitioning into inside-outside hybrids that let the drinking spill out into the sun. Orlando is, of course, a great place to witness that phenomenon, some of the city’s dive bars more like elaborate porches with air conditioned buildings attached, though of course the occasional no-window dive bar does exist.

Whiskey Lou’s Lounge in the city’s Milk District serves as a good example of a hybrid Orlando dive bar, a bit of outdoor space to be sure but the magic coming from the neon-laced exterior marked by the heavy usage of opaque glass blocks that only let the suggestion of light through. The building looks more like a dive bar complex than a standalone drinking establishment, a beacon that dates back to 1969.

Wally’s Bar & Liquors is another Orlando dive bar standout that demonstrates one of the state’s great benefits, the combo dive bar and to-go package store, in this case one that opens at 7 AM and sells late, serving all manner of drinking requirements. Though closed in 2018, the space was reopened in 2019 with the dive bar’s signature and let’s just say risqué vintage wallpaper intact, a relief for regulars.

Orlando’s continued influx of new residents and entertainment dollars threatens city dive bars from time to time, Hideaway Bar one such example with a happy ending. After originally declining to sell to developers gobbling up nearby land, a swap has been worked out to allow the dive bar to move across the street into new digs. Time will tell if the charm travels with it.

Of course the options extend from there, each dive bar reflecting a bit of the neighborhood that surrounds it. But for a city so built on mass entertainment and heavily-marketed attractions, dive bars provide a valuable city reset button, allowing for visitors and regulars to experience bit of actual Orlando rather than some of its intentionally-crafted pieces.

Dive Bar Map

Orlando 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.

Airport

Jerry's Nice & Easy

5470 Hoffner Ave
Orlando, FL 32812
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Downtown

Casey's On Central

50 E Central Blvd Suite E
Orlando, FL 32801
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East Central

Whiskey Lou's Lounge

121 N Bumby Ave
Orlando, FL 32803
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Kirkman South

Sloppy Taco Palace

4892 S Kirkman Rd
Orlando, FL 32811
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Park Lake

Hideaway Bar

516 Virginia Dr
Orlando, FL 32803
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Park Lake

Wally's Bar & Liquors

1001 N Mills Ave
Orlando, FL 32803
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Winter Park

Spatz

1025 W Fairbanks Ave
Winter Park, FL 32789
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Other Dive Bar Options

Caboose Bar

1827 N Orange Ave
Orlando, FL 32804
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Muldoon's Saloon

7439 Aloma Ave
Winter Park, FL 32792
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Orena Sports Bar

6159 Westwood Blvd
Orlando, FL 32821
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O'Shucks Pub & Karaoke Bar

7467 International Dr
Orlando, FL 32819
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Sportstown Billiards

2414 E Robinson St
Orlando, FL 32803
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Stagger Inn

100 E Central Blvd
Orlando, FL 32801
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Tanqueray’s

100 S Orange Ave
Orlando, FL 32801
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The Lucky Lure

1427 N Orange Ave
Orlando, FL 32804
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Uncle Lou's Entertainment Hall

1016 N Mills Ave
Orlando, FL 32803
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Will's Pub

1042 N Mills Ave
Orlando, FL 32803
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What Did We Miss?

5 + 8 =

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