Brooklyn
Brooklyn's dive bars are the rooms locals defend hardest. Cheap, loud, exactly right. The dive bars on this list span every neighbourhood worth a trip — Williamsburg, Bushwick, Crown Heights, Carroll Gardens all show up — and every price tier from a $5 local pour to a $25 hotel-bar tasting. Each bar earns its spot for a different reason. We have visited every one.
WILLIAMSBURG · $$$$ · COCKTAIL BARS
World-famous oyster-and-absinthe parlour. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: Tuesday and Wednesday before 9pm, when the regulars haven't filled the room yet. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Saturday after 10pm gets crowded — book ahead or arrive early.
RED HOOK · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS
Heritage cocktail-and-American-food bar from St. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: any weeknight between 7pm and 9pm, when the bar settles into its rhythm and the bartender has time to talk. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Friday from 8pm fills up; reserve a counter seat or a high table.
COBBLE HILL · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS
Diner-turned-cocktail-bar with neon signage from 1951 preserved. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: Sunday from 6pm, when it's the room's quietest premium night and the kitchen is unhurried. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Avoid post-match nights if the local team is playing — the upstairs gets loud.
WILLIAMSBURG · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS
Cocktail bar from cocktail historian Jeremy Oertel. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: Thursday late or Friday early, when you'll catch the room building toward its weekend tempo. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. First-Friday traffic in the district can mean a 20-minute wait at the door.
CROWN HEIGHTS · $$ · COCKTAIL BARS
Live-music-and-cocktails bar with funk-and-soul DJs Friday and Saturday. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: Tuesday and Wednesday before 9pm, when the regulars haven't filled the room yet. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Saturday after 10pm gets crowded — book ahead or arrive early.
RED HOOK · $$ · COCKTAIL BARS
1890s longshoreman's bar that has not changed in 130 years. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: any weeknight between 7pm and 9pm, when the bar settles into its rhythm and the bartender has time to talk. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Friday from 8pm fills up; reserve a counter seat or a high table.
Use this guide either as a single curated route through Brooklyn or as a checklist to revisit over a long weekend. Reservations are flagged where they matter. Otherwise, walk in. Below: the ten dive bars that any serious drinker in Brooklyn would tell you to put on the list.
World-famous oyster-and-absinthe parlour. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: Tuesday and Wednesday before 9pm, when the regulars haven't filled the room yet. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Saturday after 10pm gets crowded — book ahead or arrive early.
Heritage cocktail-and-American-food bar from St. Order: Williamsburg-rye Old Fashioned. Best time: any weeknight between 7pm and 9pm, when the bar settles into its rhythm and the bartender has time to talk. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Friday from 8pm fills up; reserve a counter seat or a high table.
Looking beyond Brooklyn? See our guide to the best dive bars worldwide, or compare dive bars city by city. Or find dive bars near you.