The 10 best bars in Boston
This list covers ten bars inside the city limits of Boston, from Charlestown and Fort Point to Jamaica Plain and Dorchester. The mix is deliberate: two taverns with long histories, three neighborhood pubs, a cash-only South End dive, two cocktail rooms and two late-night spots downtown and in Fort Point. Visitors planning one night out and residents looking for a new regular stop can both use the list.
The list favors independent, locally run bars that are open all year and that local press has covered for years. Prices run from $5 to $13 for a draft beer at Warren Tavern to $13 for a specialty cocktail at Delux Cafe and $24 for the burger at jm Curley. Two of the ten take cash only.
How we chose
The ten bars are in alphabetical order, not ranked. Each one was confirmed open in 2026 through the bar’s own website or dated local coverage. Selection rested on longevity, repeated coverage in outlets such as The Boston Globe, Boston.com, Time Out Boston and Boston magazine, and named, dated awards. Star ratings on review sites played no part. Bars in Cambridge, Somerville and Brookline were left out because those are separate municipalities.
Hours and prices below come from each business and change without notice. Call ahead if you are making a special trip.
Brendan Behan Pub
Named for the Irish playwright, Brendan Behan Pub is a small, dim room on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain with no kitchen. Customers carry in takeout from nearby restaurants and buy their drinks at the bar, an arrangement Jamaica Plain News described again in February 2026. Craft Beer & Brewing counted 20 draft lines in a June 2022 profile, most of them given to New England breweries, with Guinness alongside. The same profile reported that the pub takes cash only and keeps an ATM on site, so bring bills. Time Out Boston included the pub on a list of the city’s best bars updated April 28, 2026.
Hours: Check current hours before you go.
Address: 378 Centre St., Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
Why they made the list
- Michael Soltani has owned the pub since 2007, according to Jamaica Plain News.
- The pub dates to the 1980s, according to Boston Restaurant Talk as cited by Jamaica Plain News.
- A dartboard hangs in the room, per the 2022 Craft Beer & Brewing profile.
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Delux Cafe
Delux Cafe is a South End dive at the corner of Chandler and Clarendon streets. Time Out Boston’s April 2025 review describes an Elvis bust lamp at the end of the bar, holiday lights on the shelves, and old records and movie memorabilia on wood-paneled walls. A Lite-Brite sign above the bar spells out the cash-only rule. The kitchen sends out quesadillas, cauliflower or jerk chicken tacos and a cheeseburger on brioche, going by the menu Time Out reviewed. Specialty cocktails were $13 when Time Out updated a citywide bar list on April 28, 2026. Arrive early to get a booth.
Hours: Check current hours before you go.
Address: 100 Chandler St., Boston, MA 02116
Why they made the list
- Time Out Boston placed the bar on a list of the city’s best bars updated April 28, 2026.
- Card payments are not accepted, so every tab is settled in cash.
- Seating includes booths and diner-style tables, according to Time Out Boston.
Eire Pub
On Adams Street in Dorchester, Eire Pub opened as a men’s bar and now runs a full kitchen, by the pub’s own account. The website says the same family has owned the business for more than 60 years. Photo captions on the site date a visit from President Ronald Reagan to 1983, and the pub says President Bill Clinton also stopped in. The food is straightforward pub cooking: fish and chips, a fried haddock sandwich on a brioche roll, steak tips, and chicken curry over fries or rice. Doors open at 10 a.m. six days a week, which makes the pub a workable lunch stop.
Hours: Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to midnight; Sunday, noon to midnight.
Address: 795 Adams St., Boston, MA 02124
Why they made the list
- The pub describes the bar as a regular stop for local, national and international political candidates.
- Curry fries are on the specials list posted on the pub’s website.
- The kitchen also makes pizza, a club sandwich and fish tacos, according to the pub’s website.
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The Haven
Scottish owner Jason Waddleton founded The Haven in 2010, and the Amory Street pub in Jamaica Plain still builds the week around Scottish food and whisky. Monday is quiz night at 7 p.m., and a bluegrass jam plays on Thursdays. The whisky program includes ticketed tastings; the November 2026 calendar lists a Bruichladdich Octomore release night and a single-barrel launch for Torabhaig, an Isle of Skye distillery. Brunch runs Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Sunday mornings are for televised sports. Book ahead for the tasting nights, since the pub requires tickets or reservations for them.
Hours: Dinner daily, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; brunch Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; the bar stays open later. Check current hours for weekday lunch.
Address: 284 Amory St., Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
Why they made the list
- The pub has been open since 2010 under the same founder, according to the pub’s website.
- An assembly room and a patio can be rented on Friday and Saturday nights after 8 p.m.
- Weekday lunch is served from noon to 5 p.m., according to the pub’s website.
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Hecate
A short stair below Public Alley 443 in Back Bay leads to Hecate, a candlelit cocktail bar that holds 24 people. The team behind the Greek restaurant Krasi runs the room, and the drinks are listed in a leather-bound book of folklore-themed cocktails, according to Boston magazine. Snacks reviewed by Time Out Boston in May 2025 included stuffed dates, fried chicken and chickpea fritters. The bar takes no reservations and has no phone, so Time Out’s advice is to line up about 30 minutes before opening. Hecate ranked No. 88 on the 51-to-100 extension of North America’s 50 Best Bars for 2026, Time Out Boston reported on April 1, 2026.
Hours: Check current hours before you go.
Address: Public Alley 443, Boston, MA 02115 (Back Bay, near Gloucester Street)
Why they made the list
- Boston magazine named Hecate Best Cocktail Bar in the 2022 Best of Boston awards.
- The bar is named for the Greek goddess of magic and witchcraft.
- Time Out Boston reports that the bartenders go by the title spirit guides.
J.J. Foley’s Cafe
Jeremiah Foley, an immigrant from County Kerry, opened J.J. Foley’s Cafe in 1909 on what was then Dover Street in the South End, according to Boston.com in March 2023. The street is now East Berkeley, and the Foley family still runs the bar; owner Mike Foley Sr. told The Boston Globe in July 2026 that the business is in a fifth generation. The Globe also reported that more than 1,000 Boston police officers voted here in 1919 to unionize. One practical note: J.J. Foley’s Bar & Grille downtown is a separate, unaffiliated business, so check the address before meeting friends.
Hours: Check current hours before you go.
Address: 117 East Berkeley St., Boston, MA 02118
Why they made the list
- The president of the Eire Society of Boston identified the bar as the city’s oldest Irish pub in a March 13, 2023, Boston.com article.
- Staff from the Boston Herald drank here when the newspaper’s offices were nearby, according to Time Out Boston.
- Time Out Boston included the pub on a list of the city’s best bars updated April 28, 2026.
jm Curley
Late food is the draw at jm Curley, a Temple Place bar in Downtown Crossing where the kitchen stays open until 1:30 a.m. seven nights a week. The Curley Burger is $24 at lunch and dinner, and a late-night version is $20. Fried pickles are $10, a fry basket is $9 and chicken wings are $17. The bar pours craft beer and cocktails, and a small steakhouse called Bogie’s Place operates in the same building and takes reservations through the same website. On Sundays during football season, wings are $1 all day. Drivers can get discounted parking at the Lafayette Garage.
Hours: Lunch Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; dinner from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday and to 11 p.m. Thursday through Saturday; late-night kitchen until 1:30 a.m. daily.
Address: 21 Temple Pl., Boston, MA 02111
Why they made the list
- The late-night menu includes popcorn chicken and rangoons at $14 each and chicken nachos at $20.
- A veggie burger is available in place of the beef patty.
- The same team opened The Wig Shop, a Downtown Crossing cocktail lounge, according to Time Out Boston.
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Lucky’s Lounge
There is no sign outside Lucky’s Lounge. The Fort Point bar tells customers to follow the red lights down the stairs at 355 Congress Street, where the basement room is decorated as a tribute to Frank Sinatra. Lucky Hour runs daily from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., Monday brings free comedy and Tuesday is trivia night. The menu leans on bar food such as cheeseburger sliders, pretzel bites, wings and pork belly bao buns, and the drinks list includes espresso martinis and mai tais. Sunday starts with the Sinatra Brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The kitchen stays open until 1:30 a.m. Monday through Saturday.
Hours: Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.; Saturday, 4 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Address: 355 Congress St., Boston, MA 02210
Why they made the list
- Weekday lunch is served from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- The bar is open until 2 a.m. every night of the week.
- Smash burgers and a prosciutto flatbread are also on the menu, according to the bar’s website.
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Warren Tavern
Charlestown’s Warren Tavern dates to 1780 by the tavern’s own account and takes the name of Dr. Joseph Warren, the revolutionary leader killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill. The tavern’s website calls the business the oldest tavern in Massachusetts and says George Washington and Paul Revere drank here. On the current menu, clam chowder is $9 a cup or $12 a bowl, burgers are $18 to $19, shepherd’s pie with short rib is $24 and the lobster roll is $32. A 20-ounce Guinness is $9. Weekend doors open at 10 a.m., an hour earlier than on weekdays.
Hours: Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 1 a.m.
Address: 2 Pleasant St., Charlestown, MA 02129
Why they made the list
- The draft list includes New England beers such as Allagash White, Fiddlehead and Harpoon IPA at $8 for 16 ounces.
- The tavern is open until 1 a.m. every night.
- A vegetarian Impossible Burger is on the menu at $18.
Yvonne’s
Yvonne’s fills the former Locke-Ober space on Winter Place in Downtown Crossing. Time Out Boston describes an entrance through a mock hair salon and a 19th-century mahogany bar inside. The restaurant calls the concept a modern supper club, with a main dining room and a separate Library Bar. Shared plates on the current menu include wild Gulf shrimp with green mojo, chicken and quinoa meatballs, and a spicy lamb pizza. Reservations cover supper only, so anyone coming just for cocktails should plan to walk in. Discounted validated parking is available at the Hyatt Regency on Avenue de Lafayette.
Hours: Sunday, 4 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Monday through Thursday, 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Friday and Saturday, 4 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Address: 2 Winter Pl., Boston, MA 02108
Why they made the list
- Time Out Boston ranked Yvonne’s second on a list of the city’s best bars updated April 28, 2026.
- Supper is served until 11 p.m. every night, according to the restaurant’s website.
- No-shows and cancellations made less than 12 hours ahead are charged $25 per person.
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