Best Dive Bars in Philadelphia

A list of the hottest established and up-and-coming dive bars that the city of Philadelphia has to offer.

Kung-Fu Necktie

Kung-Fu Necktie is a dive bar slash music venue in Fishtown. They generally have awesome indie bands scheduled to perform shows, which attracts a very large hipster crowd, but somehow does not translate into a pretentious crowd.

They have a nice selection of beers here and pitchers at a very reasonable price, and of course they have the city wide specials to take advantage of if you're on a budget. They have pinball machines, a nice sized dance floor, a nice stage for performing acts, and a jukebox with a huge selection of sorts of respectable music.

What really stands out at Kung-Fu Necktie is the dedication and hard work the owner puts into his bar. From scheduling incredible acts to perform at the venue, to picking what beers to have in stock, Kung-Fu Necktie is an emerging bar that I respect.

I highly recommend you stop in here for a show or just a drink if you're in the area, as it is one of the best dive bars Philadelphia has to offer (without being given a complimentary side of pretentious).

Kung-Fu Necktie is located at 1248 North Front Street in Philadelphia.

Tattooed Mom

Tattooed Mom is a dive bar located in downtown Philadelphia between the many cheesesteak restaurants that South Street has to offer. The reason I love it here is because of their delicious and affordable bar food. They have tater tots, just like back in the high school days, a good selection of vegan food, corn dogs, and much more.

The décor is strange yet perfect for the atmosphere. There is an upstairs with two pool tables as well as a small room where you can smoke cigarettes, which is great considering it's near impossible to find a place that allows indoor smoking. There is G.I. Joes, Dum Dum Pops, and Styrofoam green walls.

Tattooed Mom is a decent size, and generally has a friendly crowd of (mostly tattooed up) welcoming people to kick it with. The bar can be found at 530 South Street in Philadelphia.

Bob & Barbara's

Bob and Barbara's is the definitive dive bar: dark, dirty, with a selection of cheap drinks. The crowd normally consists of a friendly mixture of neighborhood locals. This bar is all about the three dollar Pabst Blue Ribbon special - a can of PBR and a single shot of Jim Beam.

The great thing about Bob & Barbara's is their theme nights, which range from bingo night to the Thursday night drag show. I have also had the pleasure of being at Bob & Barbara's when they had a live jazz band in for the evening. There was no cover charge on this particular night and there was a relatively small amount of people, but the positive vibe of the bar and the great live music made for a fun night.

If you're on a tight budget and you're in the mood for some Pabst, Bob & Barbara's is a dive bar you can't afford to miss out on any longer. The bar is located at 1509 South Street in Philadelphia, so don't be scared to stop in if you are ever in the area.

Honorable Mentions

Be sure to check out the following dive bars, which also have a lot to offer:

Doobie's - on 22^nd & Lombard

Dirty Frank's Bar - on 13^th & Pine

Oscar's Tavern - on 15^th & Sanson