The best dive bar in Austin! It reminds me of my home town small down bar! No windows. Pool tables. People from everywhere. Rule... don't be a dick! That's all! We are family here! Food truck: Tommy Want Wiggy read more

See all

me and a group of five guys decided to check this bar out last Saturday around 12:00 or 12:30 a.m.. it is a tiny little dive bar with two pool tables and exactly what you would expect by the definition of dive bar! The bartenders were fast with service and drinks were very reasonable! we ordered five well whiskey shots and a round of beers for everyone that was nearby and the bartenders had no complaints and didn't even bad an eye! out of 10 out of 10 service from them read more

My friend and I wanted to meet up somewhere in this area, and the reviews for this place were good, so we decided to give it a try. It's a cool little dive bar with friendly service, friendly guests, and just a good vibe. They also have a jukebox that uses an app, and we gave that a try, too. Lots of fun song options. We really enjoyed hanging out here and will definitely be back. read more

Sxsw at its finest.. the venue for this great.. total dive bar and it's great.. service is always awesom read more

The 04 Lounge - Dive Bars Near Me - Austin, Texas

This is such a great place to go in the middle of the day to play pool. This is definitely more of a local spot. Everybody is so laid-back and there to have a good time. Act right and you'll be treated right. It's a typical dive bar. Dark and a little rundown, but in the best way. You'll know what I'm talking about when you go to the bathroom. Definitely do the street parking. That's way easier. And you're near a lot of really good places. You can definitely bar hop from here. read more

We love a local, neighborhood dive bar! Nothing fancy, but if you want a place to just chill out and enjoy a drink, this place can hit the spot. They had a decent selection of bourbons and beers that ranged from cheap to pricey. I was also informed that their Jell-O shots were quite tasty! Even though they don't offer food, they did offer to share their homemade Super Bowl snacks they had brought in, and to me that says a lot about who goes here and who works here. read more

4.50$ for a miller at 830 on Tuesday . Saw another review saying 1$ after 8. Nope. Just fyi. Cool bar but expensive for a "dive" bar.

Do not go here!! The door guy was so rude you literally walk in and he made me and my friend feel so unwelcome to be there

This place is a dump and I love it. $1 Millers after 8 on Tuesday, $1 pool games, and the place goes completely silent if someone isn't paying for a song on the jukebox. read more

We had a horrible experience at 04. We walked in and immediately got treated horribly. Emily, the bartender serving us, gave us so much attitude and made us want to leave the bar before even getting a drink. We walked in with a group and she told us she was "losing her patience" because we didn't know what we wanted right away. The whole group I was with are austinites and I'm sad to say that this bar with a lot of history has horrible customer service. I will never go back and definitely never recommend this place to anyone I know. read more

Met my boyfriend here. We're expecting a baby in April. Nuff said about that. Oh, you want to know about the bar? Geriatric crowd, cheap drinks, overwhelming urine and vomit smell, smoker crowd on the outdoor patio, kinda dog friendly. It's a dive. Do it. read more

Ok so ... I love dirty dive bars... and honestly this bar may be the ultimate in dirty dive bars! As I walked in I noticed an odd smell which I decided to ignore. I walked up to the bar and ordered 2 drinks and smiled when I noticed my beer was 1.50. I wasn't adjusted to the smell yet so I decided to go sit on the patio. I happened to see a friend on the Patio so I sat down an began drinking. I was approached by several very sketchy characters throughout the night and as I listened to the music I noticed their seemed to be no link between the songs.. I heard everything from UGK to Johnny Cash to Def Leopard.. I had read some reviews and went to investigate the Juke Box thats when I noticed it was just a huge internet connected touch screen that could basically play any song.. Its probably a good idea to get here early and perform a take over of the juke box! This bar is like a cultural melting pot.. You see every class and race of people mingling together enjoying the cheap drinks. After a little while I had adjusted to the bars odd smell and the odd variety of music and then I began to see the true beauty of this place.. Its like reading a Bukowski novel.... its often crass and hard to appreciated but a beautiful work of art underneath the surface. Erase all of your expectations and go to 04 Lounge for a cheap beer.. it will make you a better person. read more

The 04 Lounge is a pretentious little piece of real estate on deep South Congress where...okay, okay, I'm just kidding. It's a dive, it's hardly pretentious, and it's a cool little cerulean bathed dive at that. The 04 is hardly full of itself, and the chill, weathered faces you may encounter hunkered down at the pool tables or buried in a wall-side booth confirm the same. It's cash only, and they're almost apologetic about it, and why in this day and age cash only still happens is beyond me, but there it is, and fortunately I caught them on a night when I had a semi-mobster roll working. That almost never happens. As has been noted, the jukebox is another fine Austin spinner, and most folks I found here to be as chill as they might have been on a local patio with the sun ebbing into the hills. That is, if those hills were a neon blue, if the clouds were corner pockets, and if approaching evening was that next Lone Star behind the counter. read more

The 04 Lounge - little boy with a heart on his chest - Dive Bars Near Me - Austin, Texas

True story... we saw the sign and pulled in to check it out. We had just left the beer barn with cold beverages in hand and decided to just chuck them and go on in. Parking out front was a little confusing, but the owner who was outside leaving, steered us in and made sure to let us know we fine parking in the spot we were in and to have a great time. This friendlyness continued once we entered the bar. One item we forgot was, we had just left the Capital Area Food Bank Voluteer Yelp gig and were sporting bright red I Yelp shirts... both of us... The bartender greeted us with a big smile and declared, I love me Yelp Peeps.. really! Seriously? Yes, he was actually and a really personable and fun barkeep. Actually, everyone in the darn place was pretty fun and animated. Lot's of laughter and people striking up conversations.. all seem to be regulars and wanted us to be as well. How friggin cool is that? After awhile, I was still so self concious regarding my shirt so I asked to buy one of their lounge shirts. He came with two and gave one to Suzie... again, very nice gesture. All in all, we really liked this place. A very friendly divey bar is just the ticket at times. Gald we happened to pop in. read more

A long time ago The Rockbusters recorded their "Will Kill Cops For Food" cassette with the cool sound guy from The Backroom at a tiny studio in a practice room facility in this same spot on a holiday night when studio time was dirt cheap. Got it done in a few hours as the finances dictated. When it was all liltingly crooned and done we walked out the door, went across the side street and walked right into Dee & Jim's. Coldest beer in Texas. Free Christmas venison chili in the crock pot. That place Dee & Jim's back then is this place now. Not much has changed. Real south Congress before uptight upright folks moved in. Just say no peckerheads make me gag. I'm hungry for some tasty 04 Lounge and the classy folks who run it and all those that sail with her. read more

This place is a F'n dump. Love it! If you're looking for a nice place, don't come here. Want an old school Austin dump where locals go, bring it on. Cold beer and heavy shots. Don't complain about the cleanliness. You can clean your own house. Only real downside- internet jukebox-barf. read more

I grew up on Wilson Street '04 through and through. My grandparents still own the house there right meow. I wanted to bring my out of town friend to a place that felt like home so I tried out this bar that's on my "hood". The bartender was rude as hell for one and I wanted to use the bathroom and couldn't find it, when I did I wished I hadn't. It was gross. I didn't even use it. Took some cute pictures tho. Thanks for that. read more

This bar isn't for you. It's for homie and old Austin. It you don't feel comfortable it's because you don't belong and can't figure out how to act like a local. Sit down shut up and order fast. Figure out what you want and say it fast. read more

You have to pay $1 fee for cards no matter what. First time there and nobody told me that, but they did ask for me to pay for my one drink tab before the bartender changed shifts. For two beers I had to pay for the actual beers, tips, and separate $1 card fees for each beer. I understand they do that so they don't have to keep a card minimum but it's much more annoying than a minimum. I played a George Jones song that also cost me a full $1 for one song. Looks like a dive bar, acts like something a lot worse. I don't like to be nickel and dimed and that's how it felt here. read more

$1 PBR's on Mondays after 8. Really I could end this review right there. This is the diviest dive that ever dived. Don't let the bright blue exterior full you, the inside is dark and musty, just like a truth South Austin bar. There are a few barstools along the crowded bar and scattered tables that blend into the walls. They even have an outside patio that sits far enough away from the street that the noise doesn't bleed over too much. The bartenders are charming and welcome you to the joint while listening to old school Willie and Waylon. If casual conversations are your thing, they'll oblige. It's a friendly place. Strong pours and cheap beers tied together with a divey atmosphere. read more

What a great dive bar. Had great time closing this place down. I don't smoke. But I remember when when people did in a bar. This place would have had a cloud of smoke roll out when you went in if it was back when you could. read more

Cheap and well made drinks, decent jukebox, a bartender as sweet as pie, & it's not over crowded. These are things I like about the 04 Lounge. However - I feel the need to warn the women of Austin, TX: There is something about this place that attracts some very strange and unfortunate men. I'm not saying this because of two or three weirdo's approached me and my friends, no, I'm talking about every man I met while I was there. My eyes were tired from rolling & my friends and I finally got sick of hiding out in the bathroom to avoid these overly confident members of the opposite sex. I'm not trying to be a bitch, it just really blew my mind. Will I try the 04 again? Yeah, but I'm just not going to make eye contact. I'll chat with the awesome bartender & keep my head down. Please note that I am in no way full of myself or do I think that all men are some how interested in me.... maybe I can just chalk my experience up to "there's something in the water" at 04 read more

TOO dive for my tastes. Call me neurotic, but I was nervous sitting down for fear of getting stains on my clothes. Didn't even try to use the bathroom, didn't want to know. Besides this I didn't like the layout of the place or any of the furnishings. Not looking for anything fancy, but I wasn't too crazy about sitting in a chair made for elementary school children. Didn't really make me want to stay for another round. Also kinda felt like it was trying to not try. If that makes any sense. read more

To the crazy, illiterate person who posted the nonsensical rants on 7/14, your posts made laugh hysterically. There's a remedial spelling course at acc that I think you should take. Let me guess. The door guy kicked you out for being a douche and your only recourse was to go home and cry to your computer. Thank you for never coming back to the 04. read more

This isn't the place for you if you: *are in a greek organization *drive a hummer/BMW *wear a shiny silk, unbuttoned shirt or sport a "popped collar" There, much better. Seriously, this place is not bad at all. As the previous reviewers have mentioned; cheap drinks, good jukebox (eeh I wouldn't completely agree on this juke, it is expensive to fill), horrific women's bathroom, no credit cards accepted but ATM on site, nice bar staff, and smoking inside (ugh.) 04 Lounge has the makings to be a successful, dirty dive bar in my neighborhood. Glad I found this place. read more

Wow! I don't know even where to start with this place. After moving to Austin, I noticed this quaint little joint across from my apartment building on South Congress... that being the 04 Lounge. Even before visiting it, I was titillated and intrigued by this place. Now, I don't consider myself a dive bar aficionado but I revel in the dive bar mystic and am always up for spelunking into that dark cavernous territory which is the dive bar genre. I stepped in here on Wednesday night with some friends on our way home. Once you open the door, it's not the atmosphere that you notice but the stench that is utterly indescribable. Moving pass that and the pool tables, this place is quaint with a complete mismatch of tables, chairs and booth seating. This place is well staffed, three bartenders working when we walked in. The beers are cold and cheap. And I give them props for having Portland's own Full Sail beer on tap. We moseyed out to the patio and was accosted by another stench that can only be described as garlic butter covered dog shit... maybe it was the fact that were close to the dumpster, not sure. Thankfully, there was a bit of breeze. This place definitely has a cast of characters akin to the cantina on Tatooine in Star Wars. There's a guy with a parrot on his shoulder, a couple of bro ho's wearing short-shorts as well as a handful of hipsters and a couple of local yahoos. This place HAS to be experienced first hand to really understand what I'm attempting to describe. I'm glad that it's so close to home, not sure if I have the nerve to become a regular... we'll see. read more

I go here when I want to go where nobody knows my name. Its my anti-Cheers. They have beer, good pours, cheap prices, pool tables, old timers, bad smell, worse smelling toilets, lots of tattoos, a jukebox, a patio area which smells bad too. You fill find an oddball crowd here. You know the kind of young women who have a Japanese symbol for beauty, but really means spicy tuna roll, tattooed on their forearm. The kind of young men who haven't showered in a while, and their hair and beard haven't felt a sharp edge in a while too. Ok the young women haven't showered in a while to, but its their choice. Either ways, its a good place to occassionally hangout. read more

This is the best dive bar in 78704. Trust me, if you don't like dive bars you really won't like this bar. It will scare the shit out of you. It's a no frills, discreet window-less building setback from South Congress that is easy to never notice while driving by. The beer selection is good while the liquor selection focuses more on the essentials. Service is great and you'll likely run into people that still frequent the bar from the Dee & Jim's era. The internet jukebox can be annoying at times but it's easy to meet new people and strike up a conversation once you figure out who's who. Theres always something special going on and they really like to take care of their regulars when they throw parties. Bars like this are a dying breed- frat boy meat markets and uppity cocktail lounges with live cover bands are in demand. Young adults have come to expect matching furniture and Peach Schnapps Shooter specials. They'll have to tear the 04 down before that ever happens... One day I'll be telling the new generation about bars like this and this one is sure to make that list. read more

We love dive bars but this missed the mark. We left with stinkfaces, because it smelled like a urinal cake but also because local beer was shockingly expensive. They were nice, but we had an unpleasant experience. Go to Crow Bar down the street. read more

The beer was cheap, the service was prompt, and the bathroom was way cleaner than I had expected it to be (as in, perfectly fine, a little abused looking, but nothing terrifying). The chairs out back made me feel like a kindergardener (I'm not sure if that's good or bad) and the patio was incredibly uneven, making using a table or a chair much more difficult than it ought to be. Here's something, though: great jukebox, but how about you refrain from playing songs that glorify (sexual) violence against women? Does that make me uptight? Maybe. Don't care. It's offensive. read more

If, like me, you're into dives, then this is the place for you -- especially if you live on the south side. If you also insist that said dives be authentic, rather than places made to *seem* like dives solely for the benefit of ironic hipster types, well then double word score for you! The 04 delivers. It's a little grimy, with just a bit less seating than it seems to need. But you've got pool tables, a decent jukebox, and bartenders that seem to favor a stiff pour. It's also worth noting that this is a bottle bar, so no taps and no pitchers. They manage to have a decent selection despite this. But not having taps/pitchers is one of the most serious transgressions possible according to my Dive Bar Rulebook. Also, be aware that there's a minimum for cards, but it's like $10, so it's probably not a problem unless you want to make an appearance for something and get out quickly. Honestly, if there were a few more places to sit, I'd give it four stars, but of the many times I've been here, I've only been able to sit down once. I like to stay and have a drink, you know? I'd also bump up the rating if the jukebox were a little better. I appreciate the metal selection, but overall, it's pretty middling. More chairs + music + taps, and this would be a five-star dive for sure. But don't let the rating fool you; I come here all the time, I just try to be as objective as possible. Convenience and laid-back atmosphere are enough to get me to frequent a three-star joint. So, take that as you will. read more

I recently realized that I had never wrote a review for the 04 lounge. Now granted I am not the end all be all of reviewers for this site but I generally do not miss a chance to review a place I frequent as much as I do the 04. That being said I have 2 rules for this review that I will strive to follow: I WILL NOT CALL IT A DIVE... IF YOU HAVEN'T"T GOTTEN THE POINT THAT THIS PLACE IS A DIVE BAR PLEASE MOVE ALONG. Secondly, I will try to tell the truth and make it sound as good as possible. Everything about this place is ugly except the bartenders. (TRUTH). This is not a place you go if you want to see pretty people, pretty art, pretty drinks. The smoking area is a soupy, muddy mess. The bathrooms are shoe boxes with 2 toilets (men's room). The bar area is always crowded. Parking isn't bad since you can park behind Napa as well. That being said I love to finish my night at the 04. The people working and the fellow patrons are a friendly bunch who want nothing more than a cold beer or a shot of whiskey and I can relate to that. Also the jukebox isn't bad...The prices are reasonable and its like 2 blocks from my house (my bias). If you like a place to have a cold beer with no other pretenses then I recommend swinging by the 04, if you require some kind of garnish on your drink then I'd avoid the 04 because to them Ice is your garnish. read more

This is pretty much the only bar I go to in Austin. That probably says more about me than it does about the 04: it's close to my house, they serve cheap, strong drinks and everybody I know likes to come here. Whether or not you like this place will depend on several factors: * do dirty bars bother you? * do you want to go somewhere you can dance? * do you want a place where you can hook up with strangers looking to hook up with strangers? * do you prefer cocktails to beer and basic bourbon-and-coke mixed drink? * do you want a guaranteed place to sit and have your drink? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you might want to consider another location. If these things aren't important to you, come on in. read more

Jennifer is amazing and made me feel so warm, welcome and safe. She makes a safe space for women and has immaculate attention to detail. Thank you, you're an angel. I will definitely be back while you're working! read more

The #1 reason I miss living in the 04 area of Austin! I love this bar! Great service, cheap booze, and always a good conversation to be had with people from ALL walks of life. A real neighborhood bar in Austin. It really reminds me of all the bars I grew up in up in the northeast part of America, very Brooklyn/Providence/Boston type bar filled with working class and wannabe poor artist. The owners are great people as well. Great Job! P.S. A wine list!?! REALLY??? AAAAAHHH HA HA HA HA HA HA read more

A new bar to the scene, but relatively close to where I live, so I give it a thumps-up. Defeintely a DIVE...last time I was there I was sitting next to a bunch of drunk people that were trying to figure out how to get their friend out of jail, meanwhile avoid ending up in jail at the same time. Classy! Nothing fancy here, just cold beer and pool tables. This place probably wouldn't be nearly as neighborhood-y if it was anywhere closer to downtown. However, being a block from Expose has it charms. read more

The word DIVE is not over used in this situation. Often in Austin people refer to bars as Dive when they don't really deserve it. Formally where Dee & Jims once reigned (I never went in there even though I lived in the neighborhood for years - but everyone that has mentioned this place has referenced it in lieu of giving me directions), The 04 Lounge is dark and cool in this ungodly heat of summer. With 25 cent discounts on all drinks paid for in cash and jello shots strong enough to melt your face off, I'm sure its doing its location justice. 2 pool tables Jukebox Small outside area full of sand, so if you are wearing fancy shoes ladies, be careful. read more

I live in Austin. Austin is safe. But for some reason, I was afraid to go in this place, it looks that divey! Of course, when I stopped in one night, I kicked myself for depriving myself of such wonderful pleasure. This is Austin. Austin is eclectic and wonderful and so are the people in this bar! Drinks are cheap and super strong. Discount if you pay cash. Pool tables and board games. Outdoor patio. Big screens that aren't too distracting. People from all over. The best thing? THE JUKEBOX. Damn, it's like everyone in the bar was on the same page, the music flowed so nicely. Everyone was dancing! It was incredible. This place is boss. And stumbling distance from my house? Oh yeah. read more

If a biker dude and a hipster man could have a baby (Junior, anyone?), the 04 lounge would be it. Its dirty, its clientele is a mix of people in Led Zep shirts, some tight pants, and a few of the biker crowd. I like that the place isn't trying too hard to be super south Austin hippy-trendy and just sticks the basics, (alcohol, pool, music). read more

By far the most excellent dive bar in Austin. If you don't like dive bars, go somewhere else. This place is where it's at. I have yet to meet a truly impolite person here. Hundreds of people, no exaggeration. Lots of regulars. Been there many times. Bartenders are great. Prices are more than reasonable. In all honesty, I have never had a bad time at 04, and I'd be surprised if I ever do. If you try to have a shitty time at this place, your wheels will be spinning. read more