2610 Best Bars in USA

This genuine Irish pub has doubled as a bohemian oasis since 1969. Drink Guinness and Bass on tap and many Irish whiskies; hear light rock, Irish, or country music nightly, usually by 10:30 pm; shows are 21-plus. Narrow and cozy, the Plough is a comfy, noisy den for locals and students, yet a fine place to have lunch alone. The cover charge varies, but the popular weekday beer and burger specials remain the same. Fun fact: literary magazine Ploughshares was founded here.

A decidedly unglamorous pub where old-timers swap stories over pints of Guinness, this is your best bet for traditional Irish music. Bay Area musicians (and, once in a while, big-name bands) perform every night except Monday and Tuesday. Talented locals gather for seisiúns, informal sessions where musicians sit around a table and drink and eat while chiming in; anyone skilled at Irish traditional music can play.

Part of a new generation of younger bars on Spring Garden, Poison Heart offers the appealing combination of fairly priced freezer cocktails (think very, very cold martinis) and house-made waffle fries. They serve other things, but these are the main attractions at this buzzy, dimly lit bar.

The original and short-lived Pony, which got bulldozed along with the rest of the 500 block of Pine Street, was notorious for wild fun. The current incarnation, just a bit more polished and with an amazing patio, retains some of the former space's decorating touches (including vintage nude photos). There's a small dance floor and a mix of gays, lesbians, and their friends, and the patio is open year-round, thanks to a retractable roof and gas firepit.

Open in some form since 1977, Poor David's Pub is one of Dallas's longest-running live-music venues. It's just south of Downtown.

Pops got its start more than 40 years ago and it's Chicago's only champagne bar. These days there's a focus on small-grower producers. The basement is home to Watershed, a cozy spot with limestone walls focused on Great Lakes regional craft beers and spirits.

At this Southern-inflected bar you can have your cocktails and eat your fried oysters and smoked cheddar biscuits, too. Located in far West Chelsea (a short walk from the 7 line's 34th Street–Hudson Yards subway station), this relaxed watering hole from New York restaurateur and hospitality king Danny Meyer is an intimate space to quaff and nibble the night away. The bar also offers a nice happy hour with discounted signature cocktails from 3 to 7 pm.

Boatyard workers and beer enthusiasts congregate at this casual but highly popular (and pet-welcoming) Boat Haven brewery to enjoy a pint. There's an outdoor beer garden during warmer months, and live bands often perform; food trucks sometimes appear as well. Regular brews include the English-style Bitter End IPA, lightly smoky Peeping Peater Scotch Ale, and crisply refreshing Yoda's Green Tea Gold.

Scandinavian-inspired dishes and serious craft cocktails drive this hip locale that also offers excellent charcuterie and seafood boards. If it's free, grab a seat in the intimate alpine-style hut, off to the side of the main room. And don't miss the excellent happy hour, weekdays 1–6.

Among Hell's Kitchen's gay lounges, Posh offers an array of special party nights and drag shows, ample room for flirting and dancing, plenty of neon decor (plus artwork by local artists), and long hours to suit any schedule, from 2 pm to 4 am. Daily happy "hour" from 2 to 9 pm draws a steady clientele.

Serving boldly flavored saisons, grisettes, and other fine, mostly old-world-style ales and lagers as well as soft pretzels with hummus, chili, and other tasty edibles, this terrific brewery in downtown Peterborough has a beautiful setting inside the stately 1837 G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic) meeting hall.

Postino has grown from a small neighborhood haunt into several separate destinations throughout the Valley. More than 40 wines are poured by the glass. Order a few grazing items off the menu (the bruschetta is unmatched by any in the Valley) and settle in, or carry out a bottle of wine, hunk of cheese, and loaf of bread for a twilight picnic.

This bar atop the Historic District Hyatt House serves beer by the ounce from their 70 taps, allowing patrons to sample ad infinitum. Its biggest draw, however, is the view. From its ninth-floor vantage, it's the highest rooftop bar in the city.

Atlanta-based Monday Night Brewing set up its first Nashville outpost in an old meatpacking plant in Germantown, an easy walk from local beer favorite Bearded Iris and from other Nashville-via-Atlanta transplant The Optimist. The space is large and lively and the brews are fresh and adventurous; Monday Night especially excels at making sour beers, so stop in for all your mouth-puckering needs.

The very swanky but very inviting indoor-outdoor Press features firepits with seating overlooking the private pool at the Four Seasons, cooled off by misters in the hotter months—and it's open until 11 pm (midnight on weekends). Like everything at the upscale resort, the libations and accompanying bites are near perfection. Live music is offered during Press Play from 5 to 8 pm Thursdays. Free high-speed Internet and access to digital newspapers and magazines from 100 countries highlight the complimentary services at this lobby bar that doubles as a coffee shop by day.

Mad Men and New Girl both had multiple scenes filmed in this Old Hollywood relic, which dates back to the early 1900s. The Prince is trimmed with vintage fabric wallpaper and bedecked with a stately mahogany bar; the grand piano waits in the wings. Squire lamps punctuate red-leather booths where you can enjoy Korean fare and standard cocktails, wine, and beer. Whatever you do, get the deep-fried chicken.

A neighborhood lounge that turns DJ-driven dance spot late at night, this newer entry on the Halsted Street strip makes a striking statement with its signature visual, a cloud-like illuminated ceiling sculpture that's visible from the street.

This underground jazz lounge lives up to its name with a slinky speakeasy style. Red lighting, dark wood, and leather-tufted couches provide a cozy 1920s–'30s-inspired backdrop to the live music every night. There's a "cocktail attire" dress code (encouraged in the spirit of the era, but not required) and cell phones are not allowed at the bar.

This Prohibition-theme gastropub has the city's longest bar, live music seven nights a week, and a late-night food menu that's available until midnight on weekends.

These cozy quarters on King Street, complete with communal tables surrounded by bar stools, bustle at happy hour and on weekend evenings. The bartenders here are among the city's best, equally skilled in classic cocktails and creative takes on new spirits.

This subterranean cocktail bar mixes up specialty and classic drinks in an intimate space with rough rock walls. The whiskey list is deep, and a nice selection of wines by the glass rounds out the drinks book. A menu of small plates is on offer.

A golden motorcycle emerges from a vine-covered brick wall inside this enchanting, loosely German-themed beer garden that pours a carefully curated selection of North Carolina's best ales. The kitchen offers a small menu highlighted by spätzle (German egg noodles), stroganoff, and schnitzel. 

German beer fans will raise a stein to this popular neighborhood bar that features 10 imported German drafts in a variety of styles, including pilsner, weissbier, dunkel, and more. They also offer cocktails and wine as well as a menu of tasty German fare, from pretzels to locally made brats. Dark and cozy, Prost! is a laid-back spot most weeknights but gets packed on weekends and around Oktoberfest.

At the northern end of the hip North Mississippi retail and restaurant strip, Prost! is an airy, amber-lit, contemporary bar specializing in old-school German beers like Spaten Lager, Franziskaner Weissbier, and Erdinger Dunkel Weisse. Nosh on Bavarian pretzels and other Euro snacks or venture next door to one of the city's best food-cart pods, Prost! Marketplace. The owners also operate the excellent German pub Stammtisch, on N.E. 28th Avenue.

Considered by some Denverites to be the best bar in town, the laid-back, casual, slightly divey PS Lounge has a well-stocked jukebox and an owner, known to all simply as Pete, who hands out roses to the ladies and a free Alabama Slammer shot to anyone who behaves and seems to be having a good time. Be aware it's cash-only.

Walk into this wood-paneled wonderland and enjoy a little taste of London right in the heart of The Gulch. Anglophiles will be happy to find crispy fish-and-chips, a typical Sunday roast with all the fixings, and shepherd's pie, along with imported British ales that are rare to find on tap. Trivia nights happen every Monday, and it's a popular place for watching both local and overseas soccer games.

Long lists of brews, flat-screens, and fun British decor attract a lively crowd to this popular outpost of a small, family-run chain. Brunch is served on weekends from 10 to 2.

For better or worse, Federal Hill is known for its frat-house vibe. But with its exposed brick interior, old wood floors and vintage photos of Baltimore lining its walls, this pub is a good alternative for adults. (A lack of TVs places the emphasis on conversation.) The pizza is solid, and there's a daily rotation of about 10 beers that are made from in-house recipes, always served two at a time in 10-ounce glass mugs. As for your furry friends? They're welcome on the patio.

Less concerned with the papacy than fine craft beer, the P.O.P.E., as it's called by locals, is a comfy neighborhood joint smack-dab in the middle of the drinking and dining enclave of East Passyunk Avenue. A bona fide neighborhood hangout that gets slammed on the weekends, the bar offers 14 beers on tap and loads more in bottles; the kitchen prepares straightforward fare, including burgers, nachos, and vegetarian options.