Seattle Dive Bar Guide

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Sometimes, all you're looking for is a cheap pint of beer in a relatively clean glass. The only perk you want is a stale bowl of peanuts or a dusty popcorn machine in the corner. You want a grizzled bartender that pours recklessly strong drinks and doesn't know mixology past two ingredients. Popped collars? Try pull-tabs. For those dressed-down evenings, try one of the following.

Canterbury

534 15th Ave. E.
Seattle, WA 98112
206.322.3130

When someone says "Capitol Hill bar," something on Broadway comes to mind. A place that's a little trendy, a lot gay, and with tight, black jeans all around. Not so at the Canterbury. It's tucked away in the neighborhood part of Cap Hill, next to nothing, and a glorious dive. Shuffleboard and pool—two dive bar staples—are highlights.

Redwood

514 E. Howell St.
Seattle WA 98122
206.329.1952

This is another Capitol Hill dive tucked slightly off the main drag. With pinball to play and peanut shells to toss on the floor, the vibe is far from urban. While certainly a dive, the bar has a wide following, and the weekends rarely see it anything but packed. If you want a lonely beer to drown your sorrows, best to look elsewhere on this list.

Summit Public House

601 Summit Ave. E.
Seattle WA 98102
206.324.7611

Another tucked away, Capitol Hill neighborhood dive, the Summit Public House is a favorite watering hole of many in the area. It's not super divey, but whenever you allow dogs inside your bar, you at least deserve honorable mention. Twenty-five beers on tap and pool never hurt, either.

The Knarr Tavern

5633 University Way NE
Seattle WA 98105
206.525.3323

The Knarr's "Kill the Keg" nights are a hit—$2 pints until the keg runs out (usually Manny's or Fat Tire) on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Paired with crappy pool tables, shuffleboard, elusive bartenders, and a convenient location in the heart of the U-District, the Knarr is an Ave. cornerstone.

The Bit Saloon

4818 17th Ave. N.W.
Seattle WA 98107
206.782.1680

This charming self-proclaimed dive is decidedly located off the main strip of semi-trendy bars in Ballard. The bar features a small, square dance floor lovingly partitioned off by duct tape. In the adjacent room, a ping-pong table sees steady action on most nights when there isn't a raucous metal band playing onstage.

Ballard Grill and Alehouse

4300 Leary Way NW
Seattle WA 98107
206.782.9024

If you were to put me in the middle of the intersection that separates Hale's Alehouse and the Ballard Grill, I would instinctively bolt to the Ballard Grill. The two are opposites, to be sure. On the south, you have an expensive craft brewery with a theater out back. The Ballard Bar and Grill is a dilapidated shack with nothing but trash in the rear. Inside, there's dirt-cheap PBR, pool, darts, Golden Tee, and pinball.

The Buckaroo Tavern

4201 Fremont Ave. N.
Seattle WA 98107
206.788.9677

With roots dating back to 1938 and 25 beers on tap, the Buck is where it's at if you're looking for an upper-Fremont dive. The cash only bar has cheap beer, decent micro-brew prices and not a lot else. Photos of the place usually show it crowded with motorcycles out front, but the vibe is laid back. Grab a booth, grab a picture, and revel in the old-timey charm.

The Baranof Lounge

8549 Greenwood Ave. N.
Seattle WA 98103
206.782.9260

At the cross-hairs of 85th and Greenwood you’ll find the welcoming doors of the Baranof, open 20 of 24hrs daily. A swingin karaoke joint on Saturdays and stiff drink central everyday, Baranof is a Greenwood staple. The nautical décor, vintage beer signs, repetitive juke and drunken sailor style of bar tending will keep you afloat late into the evening. But if nothing else come for the morning after to get your fill of greasy spoon goodness.

Leny's Place

2219 N. 56th St.
Seattle WA 98103
206.632.9175

Leny's Place is classic joint in the Greenwood area. For a bar that looks unassuming from the outside, this place is huge. It's large enough to use the circular bar in the middle setup, and is classic dive in every way. And they aren’t shy when it comes to pouring booze.

Little Red Hen

7115 Woodlawn Ave. N.E.
Seattle WA 98115
206.522.1168

Green Lake's Little Red Hen is Seattle's only true country bar. Sure, we've got Ballard, but they're into that alt-country, indie-folk, anti-Nashville sound that just doesn't jell with the Dwight Yoakam types. It's country without prefix, seven nights a week. Look for karaoke on Wednesdays and unabashed twang every other night of the week.

Pacific Inn Pub

3501 Stone Way N.
Seattle WA 98103
206.547.2967

Succulent fish and chips, portholes for windows, a good selection of draft beer, and inexpensive wells make the PIP a favorite of Fremont locals and Seattleites. Looks like a bit of a shipwreck from the outside, but the interior has some comfy booths and plenty of charm to go around.

Some potential dive bars cross the line between "charmingly dirty" and "breeding ground for tuberculosis." Your first clue that you've stumbled into the latter is a happy hour that starts between 6 a.m. and noon. Icehouse on tap is another red flag. The following three bars deserve honorable mention for bravely feeding homeless persons their fuel. Cheers!

Dome Stadium Tavern

214 4th Ave S.
Seattle WA 98104
206.682.7612

When I went into the Dome after a day at the office, I was the only patron. I chatted up the bartender to pass the time as I sipped my frosty Budweiser (a steal at $2.25). We talked politics: "Don't matter who's in charge. Ain't nothing gonna change." We talked fiscal policy: "Last time I filed my taxes, the government took my return for a student load I never paid. So I haven't filed in years." The bar was briefly shut down for numerous drug (read: meth) and alcohol violations. I thanked the man for his company and left.

The Hurricane Cafe

2230 7th Ave.
Seattle WA 98121
206.682.5858

This place is scary mainly because it shares its name with a popular 24 oz. malt liquor brand. It also appears from the outside to be more of a skuzzy dance club than a no-frills eatery. But once inside, it's actually a Beth's-style diner located a stone's throw from South Lake Union. The full bar is open until 2 a.m. every night, and you can stick around afterwards for some pancakes or biscuits and gravy that—while nothing special—are prefect on the way home from a downtown binge.

Joe's Bar and Grill

500 S King St
Seattle WA 98104
206.223.9266

Joe's is a long-standing respite for homeless people that happen to have two nickels to rub together and a thirst for domestic lager. I popped in on a Monday afternoon and ambled up to the bar. "Is this seat taken?" I asked the older gentleman at the bar. "Break 'er in," he growled. The man next to him, it turned out, had been cut off. He argued with the bartender and then challenged anyone in the bar to a fight. The general sentiment was, "No one wants to fight you, sir." 'Lil Wayne played on the jukebox. Perhaps the man had been there since happy hour—conveniently 7 a.m. to noon.