There are moments in a Land Park nobleman's life when one's financial holdings are, shall we say, tied up--locked away in ventures of speculative brilliance or perhaps ill-timed crypto decisions. In such seasons, one must seek humble refuge without forfeiting the joys of chilled drink and human discourse. And so it was, with coin in short supply and thirst in full command, that I crossed the border into Hollywood Park, that slightly wilder realm beyond our well-manicured hedges. There I discovered The Pocket Club--a bar untouched by time and unbothered by pretense. The decor whispered of 1977--shuffleboard, portable fans, and the faint musk of bygone regrets. Behind the bar stood Janet, barkeep of grit and grace, whose no-nonsense charm and swift service are worth two stars all on their own. She does not suffer fools, nor does she tolerate tab openers who can't finish their drink. When she asked what I wanted, I replied, with the survival instincts of a duke in exile, "Beer." And dear reader, it arrived colder than diplomacy during the French Revolution. I suspect it was imported straight from the glacial plains of Antarctica. The price? An act of mercy. The beer nuts? Divine. The conversation? A robust local debate on pet insurance, which, though not quite the Magna Carta, held its own. For a fleeting moment, I feared catastrophe--Cash Only. But fortune favors the prepared. My hidden emergency $20, tucked in a rarely used chamber of my wallet, saved the day. I was invited to billiards but declined, having found full satisfaction in cold brew, warm banter, and the quiet joy of spending less than ten dollars and still feeling like a king. I even left Janet a modest tithe of gratitude--coin for a queen of her realm read more

Definitely a step back into decades of a dive bar. My friend and I was really skeptical to entering the place. At first it'll be a short walk way past the shuffle board then to the opening of the bar where there's a pool table in the middle. We love to play pool and wanted to try other bars within our area. Do not expect to see young crowds here. It's more so catered to an older and local regulars. They only carry bottle/can beers so nothing on tap. Don't expect to see high end liquors either. I had one shot of Jameson here with a pineapple back and at the end I had an unpleasant after taste in my mouth. So I will probably will not do another shot again. On the positive side, def a welcoming party. The bartender and locals at the bar were friendly and strike up conversations with us and we even played against a couple men at pool. They kept calling us little girls, but we have an old soul within. Lol read more

Pocket Club - Dive Bars Near Me - Sacramento, California

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This Dorothy was not in her usual Kansas when we stumbled on this place. Fortunately, when I hear of a good dive bar I'm rather quite determined to check it out. And what a great find. Don't judge this dive by the sketchy front door. Janet is probably the sweetest bartender alive. Friendly and with a heavy pour. No beers on tap, but the prices are cheap and the vibe is chill. Jukebox with some decent speakers to bump your jams. Clean ladies restroom. Parking lot behind the building with a tv monitor above the bar. FREE shuffleboard. One table. I'm told they have weekly tournaments with free pizza. I better start practicing because we're coming back for sure. read more

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Love finding little gems. This is definitely a no-frills place and, when walking up to it, it seems questionable. What is behind that door? I searched Yelp for a pre-event stop to wet my palate before the evening gig. Pocket Club was close and had 19 decent reviews. Drove up to it, raised an eyebrow, could not park in front so headed to the rear and had no problem with parking along the back street behind the building. Had I known there was a "back door" I'd have saved the exercise walking around to the front. But, using the back door, you miss the full effect. "Cocktails" sign adorns above the door, "No Persons Under 21" in plain view, instructions on how to open the door are very clear ("PULL"), and the lost-in-time mail slot in the door. Do not be afraid, open the door and enter the narrow entry that stretches the length of the shuffle board. At the end of the long entry, a few tall tables, pool table, the bar, wall mounted juke box, and TV's fill the dark chasm. The bar was clean (not sticky) and the place smelled decent. A bit older inside and definitely the décor of a dive bar - Perfect! I had seen a pic of a 24oz tall PBR here at Pocket Club. It must have been happy hour ... $3! As I sat at the bar, listening to conversations of the 5 or so other bar-goers, I thoroughly enjoyed this ice cold can of delightfulness. Want to buy another goer a drink? Ask the bartender for a "chip" and he'll add that to your tab and hand the chip to the lucky patron. The owner seemed a little nervous seeing me on the monitor taking pics out the back door. Hopefully, he will see this an be pleased. I love this place. I wish I was closer and stop here again. Instead, it will remain bookmarked for when I'm cruising Freeport and Sutterville area with a hankerin' for a cold friendly clean and welcoming drink. PS - I suspect this is cash only. read more

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I love this place... With that said... I know not everybody's going to love this place. It's cash only, but drinks are so cheap! Janet's my favorite bartender! Me and buddy come in at least once a month and she always treats us well. Most days there's not much of a crowd, but they sometimes have special events. My buddy have shut this place down a few times. It's fun. They have a good jukebox, pool tables, and a shuffleboard game. Not stuffy, just a place that knows your name and will pour you stiff cheap drinks. What's not to love? read more

Rock it at the Pocket! Okay I stole my wife's line...but it is Rocktober. After work on Wednesday my wife and I took a stroll over to the Pocket Club. A couple PBR Tallboys and some pinball, right? As we walked up to the back door we noticed a woman lugging speakers into the bar. We lucked out...karaoke at the Pocket Club! They also had a spaghetti dinner and birthday cake. Every month the Pocket Club has a birthday celebration with a dinner special, cake and karaoke. I ate some cake, then sang some Cake. My wife did a little Fastball instead of the pinball. We had a great time on a humpday happy hour at John McGraw's Pocket Club. read more

Cash only bar. That being said, you can tell this was a major dive bar. If it wasn't for Janet (the bartender) I would have given this place 3 stars. We showed up just for the shuffle board. Thank you yelp. As we walked in I immediately noticed a pool table. My wife mentioned shuffle board an the bartender jumped into action. Taking us around the corner we see it. An old shuffle board table. Janet proceeds to turn on a bunch of lights and beer signs. After handing over my license Janet gave us some pucks to play. It was free by the way. No draft beer, but there was liquor and a pretty good selection of bottle beers. The beers were I think about 2.75 each or you could get tall cans of pbr for three bucks. As we got hungry the bartender pointed out that there were free little ceasers pizza on the table. About 6 of them. All pepperoni. Later my wife wanted to by a little bag of chips an the lady said wait. She then pulled out a big bag of mixed checks mix an chips. An poured some in a bowl for her. My main complaint is the music was very expensive. Some songs were a DOLLAR. Others were 50 cents. We will definitely be back again some day. read more

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I have been here a couple times now with my SO and this is definitely your neighborhood dive bar. I have to admit, when my SO pulled up I was a bit confused because I didn't even know there was a bar in this small plaza. Any who, they only accept cash here but no worries there's an ATM right next to the bar. Reasons to come here; drinks are cheap and strong, good selection of music on the juke box, a pool table that converts to a ping pong table, and a shuffle board. read more

Pocket Club - Dive Bars Near Me - Sacramento, California

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YYEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS OMG YYEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS I have been looking for a bar like this ever since I set foot in Sac, and lo and behold, Pocket Club has been WALKING DISTANCE from my house for 6 MONTHS and I barely just set foot in here. OMG. Everything. Everything is what I want. Shuffleboard the second you walk through the door. A pool table in the back. TVs playing baseball. $3 well drinks. A jukebox playing 90s rap hits all. night. long. The bartender called up the chinese place next door to order food for somebody. A couple was regaling another customer with their love of Star Wars. Some old guy was hanging out on the slot machine with his adorable little dog running around. O. M. F. G. Have I mentioned shuffleboard is my absolute favorite thing to do? THEY HAVE TOURNAMENTS ON THURSDAYS. Did I also mention that bartender Janet is my new BFF? I plan to come back here every night for the rest of forever. cash only. sorry not sorry. SIPPIN' ON GIN AND JUICE, LAAAIIIIDD BAAACCKKKK read more

yassssssss just yassssssss! is right!!! yassssssssss! Don't judge the outside before you walk inside and experience it for your self kind of place. Janet! and i was just made to be friends! She was so nice and gave us excellent info about different specials for each day, time, and how to get in during the late night. She was trying so hard to find something to remember about us. Ok now lets get to the drinks. I Saw one of my yelp buddy recommendations and it was perfect for a hot day. I had ordered the big boy can 24oz for only $3.25. My wifey got the grey goose and soda for only $7, but the cup was filled with mostly grey goose! Now we have found our place to come for drinks, after our spa days. Some helpful tips janet mentioned were - During week days on late nights they lock the back and front doors, because their is weird, creepy, scary, people in the front at night. But they don't bother you, so you will be safe, don't worry, plus its light up in the front entrance. She mentioned call ahead of time and let her know your coming in so she will unlock it for you. - Janet invited us to come in any day and feel free just call her so we can get in. - Thursdays they have free pizzas - free shuffle board as long as you leave your id, they do have tournaments too but forgot which days. Oh and nick kicked beyonces butt! lol - they close at 9pm on sundays - open til 2am on fri and sat, forgot the time about weekdays. Overall we enjoyed ourselves and used the juke box to spice up the place with our ridiculous music choice. lol. The music for the juke box cost a minimum of $1 and earns you 3 credits, some 2 and some 1 credit, depending on the popularity of the song. The restrooms were kind of old, but what do you expect from a dive bar, plus its been there for ages so you know this is a hole in the wall type of place. They do have billiards so thats a plus. Thanks for reading and have a yelptastic day! read more

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When my friend recommended we meet up yesterday after work at the Pocket Club, I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive, but since I love a good dive bar... We had a great time! Good, strong drinks, attentive bartenders and friendly folks. They also have a pool table and a pretty good jukebox selection. Definitely will be back... read more

Most people believe that a chess board seeks a bartender about a cowboy, but they need to remember how almost a particle accelerator goes to sleep. A frustrating paycheck assimilates the steam engine. Some pork chop over a grand piano pees on an inferiority complex living with the garbage can. A knowingly dirt-encrusted photon falls in love with the fruit cake. An umbrella brainwashes another parking lot. Some pork chop for the mortician, some globule, and the fractured industrial complex are what made America great! ..................Yep, that's exactly what my brain produced after walking outta this place. Cheap and overly strong mutha-effin' drinks. read more

This place is a dive bar but we love it! Good people and cheap drinks. Janet the bartender is awesome! This place have a pool table and shuffle board. Come here if you want to have a great time and get smashed on some drinks. read more

I like dives but this place blows. They need to get a new bartender, one with less attitude. The haggard hippie lady is not customer friendly and makes weak drinks. Also If they took plastic they could probably sell more drinks. No one likes using that shady ATM. Who doesn't take plastic in this day and age. We'll stick with the Chambers Room and the Buddha read more

So Service is 5 stars.....Janet 5 stars...Ambience 3 stars...Hood 3.... So I give this little dive joint a solid 4 stars. If shuffle board and cheap beers is your thing.....I will see you there! This was a fun cheap experience! Worth every penny I bribed my lil brother to designate my happy ass home! Janet was so warm and made this first timers night! The shuffle board is well worn in, the pool table well played and the beer cold! I saw the cocktails being served up cold n stiff...just sayn....A little something for everyone here :) Juke box has a good mix to keep the energy up and apparently ping pong tournaments can be expected to break out at any given time during the week... Parking feels a little sketchy...but appears to be safe enough! Back door is locked after 8 pm FYI....... read more

Pocket Club - Looking for my Barfly badge! - Dive Bars Near Me - Sacramento, California

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Great service, great drinks. Already warmed up heading to this place. Wish we started there. Pool, darts, shuffle board. Friendly patrons, excellent bartender. My first time here. I'll make this a stop when I'm in town again, for sure. read more

This is one of my favorite dive bars in town. The drinks are cheap, they have free shuffleboard and pool, a jukebox, and quite a few characters. Always a fun time. They happy hour is even cheaper! read more

This place is pretty low key. They have pool and shuffle board. Oh, and a jukebox. A good place to go for a drink or two. Janet is pretty awesome. I'm not sure which nights she bartends, but she is super sweet and remembers her customers, even if you aren't regulars. read more

Pocket Club - Dive Bars Near Me - Sacramento, California

This place sucks. I think the lady is racist, because I walked in and she immediately asks "WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?" Um, it's a BAR, I can use the bathroom and get a water and freaking relax, can't I? It was 10:30 at night and she was SO rude and acted like I was there to cause trouble, which just isn't how I roll. I love dive bars and finding places to chill. I'm going to stick to the Walnut Room or Brownie's. I had a beer and she practically kicked me out, even though it wasn't busy. read more

When I was a student at SCC in my early 20's, I always walked by the Pocket Club for over 6 years. I was apprehensive to go in because it was so small and dark. However, when my older sister denise invited me in the Pocket Club to relieve my apprehensiveness, she showed me a world in my neighborhood Hollywood Park I have never seen before. The setting was a world of face-to-face close friendship, endless of mutual laughter, a safe haven for being yourself and getting away, and above all entertainment. The Pocket Club is now my favorite bar in Sacramento. read more

This place was horrible I went there last night with my sister and our friend and there was nothing but guys there. We were there only females besides the rude ass old lady bartender. While me and my sister were looking through the jukebox to find a song the bartender walks up to us and says I don't wanna hear no n word music. After that I let the dumb bitch know I wasn't ok with that statement and we left. read more

Horrible service. Very biased bartenders. No phones allowed or else family owners will yell at you.

Dive bars of the world unite!! When I think of dive bars this is what comes to mind. This place is a total hole in the wall watering hole with a pool table and shuffleboard. What more could ya ask for... read more

The whole experience of The Pocket Club was good. The service is very good. The bartender is very nice. Shuffle board there is fun. The board is slanted, but after you knock back a few beers, I'm sure that will not be a problem. Last note, the people who are regulars there are surprisingly nice! read more

No draft beers but plenty of other stuff to drink. Just a low-key dive bar almost within stumbling distance from my mom's house when I visit her in Sac. Definitely better than Swiss Buda (where I swear their well brandy is really Drano). I haven't stopped coming back here since the first time when an elderly gentleman handed me a bunch of quarters without saying anything. Me: "Hey, I'm not a cheap hooker!" Him: "No, it's free pool today." Pocket will always be one of my favorite places in Sac. read more

Nice local bar with strong drinks for a decent price. What more can you ask for. Dont come here for eye candy, or if you do, at least have a few drinks first! read more

Cool BAR. Old school reminds me of " Swiss Buda" GREAt prices, laid back bar. ASK for " COLE"

Do not let the outside look of this place fool you! I was actually scared of walking into this bar at first, since I had no idea what to expect. Little did I know the drinks here are insanely cheap and super delicious as well! Only thing is that this place is cash only, so make sure to carry cash or use their atm machine read more

Good luck finding it, but enjoy your stay. A good dive is a good dive damn it.

This place reminds me of Cheers the tv show. Where everyone knows your name. This place has shuffle board, pool, jukebox, & some video games. The bartender Janet makes great drinks and is friendly just like the people there. If your looking for a comfortable place to kick back have a good time this is the place . read more

My bro and I went there couple nights ago. Had a good time, met some new people, can't beat a quarter to play pool..1 pool table, $2.75 a beer, smoking out front. Little dive bar, but to play pool and have a beer. I'll be back. read more

The pocket is a cool neighborhood dive bar . One pool table , free pool on Sunday's, shuffle board tournaments every other Thursday. The pool table converts to ping pong , for tournaments every Monday night. Tournaments start at 7pm read more

Janet!! is the Queen, best spot to chill,drink, pool, music, theres all this fancy bar, but for me its like your mom, auntie, serving you beer! bear that people here know by family and where you are. not just by name. read more

I've been going there for years. They keep the same bartenders and they are great. Where else can you shoot pool for 25 cents M-Sat and free on Sundays. read more

Susie, Ko, Janet & now Loretta! great folks& shuffleboard games every 2 Thursday :-). fun, fu, fun place!

I adore this place, because it is a dive bar in EVERY sense of the term. It's even difficult to find the door, so you feel kind of like you're five years old again, being let in to a hidden treehouse. Check out the cracked-out bartender lady, play some tunes on the jukebox, make fun of the hillbillies, and challenge your friends to a game of shuffleboard. Oh, and as someone already mentioned, be sure to check out the funny PBR glasses. read more