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Montreal's Best Dive Bars for Karaoke, Jukeboxes, and Cheap Beers

For when low-priced beers and shots matter more than a charming, Instagrammable atmosphere

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Montreal has made a point of continually improving on its bar scene in the last decade with options that range from sleek new microbreweries to effortlessly chic wine bars. This map is not for those people. This map is for those who want dive bars in Montreal full of cheap beers, cheap shots, and sometimes questionable architectural integrity.

These are the city’s best rough and tumble dive bars. “Best”, when applied here, is a tricky metric: the moment a dive bar tries to meet some semi-objective criteria of “good”—perhaps through renovations or stocking craft beers—it ceases to be a dive. So perhaps don’t read this map as a list of high-quality establishments, but rather, a guide to neighbourhood spots with relaxed vibes and exceedingly affordable drinks, at which you, your date, and your friends can reliably have a good time — no matter who you are and how you’re dressed.

The COVID-19 pandemic, however, hasn’t been kind to the city’s drinking estbalishment that have made a point of selling drinks on the cheap: Taverne Jarry, Snack ‘n’ Blues, and the tall cool quilles of La Petite Idée Fixe are no more and have been replaced with new notable spots for grabbing suds on the cheap.

For updated information about the coronavirus situation and related regulations, please visit the official sites of the Quebec government and Montreal’s public health authority (Santé Montréal).

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Eater maps are curated by editors and aim to reflect a diversity of neighborhoods, cuisines, and prices. Learn more about our editorial process.

Sel et Poivre

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Karaoke and dive bars go together like milk and cookies, and Sel et Poivre is one of the premier venues in town for it. It’s been around for over 40 years, and has made a point of offering bottom-barrel prices no matter what decade it’s pulling pints in.

Brasserie des Patriotes

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A dive bar and casse-croûte rolled into one, this East End spot periodically hosts rather franco karaoke and comedy nights. Some say the fish ‘n’ chips are worth the trip.

Bar Jono

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Very francophone east Plateau bar Jono does cheap pitchers, cheap shots and will always screen Habs games, winning or losing. Great neighbourhood spots for both a game of pool and a round of pinball—if the machine works.

Brasserie Beaubien

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Also occupying a place in the north end music scene, Brasserie has an odd mix of older clients coming to play the VLT machines, and Mile End-Little Italy musicians and their entourages playing shows. Intriguingly, their accoutrements, from smoke machines to latex masks rarely bother the regulars. Also of note: high end beer at low prices, by dive standards.

Bar La Remise

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Right near various rapidly gentrifying parts of the Plateau is La Remise, an old favourite hockey bar.

Taverne Pam Pam

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Parc Extension is relatively light on bars, so if you're in the neighbourhood, this is one of your only choices, period. The jukebox is loud, the beer is cheap, and the crowd a tiny bit rough.

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Les Verres Stérilisés

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Named for a past owner’s glass washer (at the time, a high-tech innovation for a bar worthy of advertising in neon), with its large steins and relatively non-grimy interior, Les Verres Stérilisés is actually quite charming. Plus, when the place’s main selling point is clean glassware, you can be sure there won’t be an inch of pretentiousness to be found here.

This Plateau bar of legend makes a point of serving cheap beer and shots on the regular alongside regular live music programming most nights of the week. Don’t be surprised to see locals cram into its tight confines, even when people try to play a game of pool in the back, or when someone feeds their dog a beer.

Bar Bifteck

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A much-loved dive on a stretch that's now infested with overpriced nightclubs, Bifteck draws crowds for Habs games, pool, and free, extra-salty popcorn (presumably to prompt you to drink more).

Bar Macao

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Blending into Chinatown’s lineup of unassuming addresses on its section of Saint-Laurent Boulevard, all you need to do is walk up a set of exterior stairs to get into this cavernous dive bars that’s filled with VLTs (video lottery terminals) and deals on cheap beers and mixed drinks.

Grumpy's Bar

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Cozy, homey Grumpy's is a mainstay for slightly older Concordia students who can't tolerate the drunken noise of the campus bar. Between its jazz nights and decent beer selection, it toes the line between "dive bar" and just "bar".

Bar Le Bièvre

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A dive bar is always enhanced by a highway-adjacent location, which is the case here: right next to the Decarie Expressway. Le Bièvre (sometimes known as Bar Rouge) had a makeover a couple of years back, but we won’t hold it against the place.

La Chic Régal

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Pretty much right above Charlevoix metro, Chic Régal is some 90 years old, decorated with Habs memorabilia, and often has karaoke.

The Wheel Club

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A longtime reliable location for live music in NDG, the Wheel Club is a favourite of locals and travelling musicians alike, especially on Mondays when their regular Hillbilly Night shows features country music standards no furthers than the 1960s. They now allow food orders from nearby Ai Dumplings, but that’s all that’s really changed since the COVID-19 pandemic—beers and shots remain cheap.

Sel et Poivre

Karaoke and dive bars go together like milk and cookies, and Sel et Poivre is one of the premier venues in town for it. It’s been around for over 40 years, and has made a point of offering bottom-barrel prices no matter what decade it’s pulling pints in.

Brasserie des Patriotes

A dive bar and casse-croûte rolled into one, this East End spot periodically hosts rather franco karaoke and comedy nights. Some say the fish ‘n’ chips are worth the trip.

Bar Jono

Very francophone east Plateau bar Jono does cheap pitchers, cheap shots and will always screen Habs games, winning or losing. Great neighbourhood spots for both a game of pool and a round of pinball—if the machine works.

Brasserie Beaubien

Also occupying a place in the north end music scene, Brasserie has an odd mix of older clients coming to play the VLT machines, and Mile End-Little Italy musicians and their entourages playing shows. Intriguingly, their accoutrements, from smoke machines to latex masks rarely bother the regulars. Also of note: high end beer at low prices, by dive standards.

Bar La Remise

Right near various rapidly gentrifying parts of the Plateau is La Remise, an old favourite hockey bar.

Taverne Pam Pam

Parc Extension is relatively light on bars, so if you're in the neighbourhood, this is one of your only choices, period. The jukebox is loud, the beer is cheap, and the crowd a tiny bit rough.

Google Maps

Les Verres Stérilisés

Named for a past owner’s glass washer (at the time, a high-tech innovation for a bar worthy of advertising in neon), with its large steins and relatively non-grimy interior, Les Verres Stérilisés is actually quite charming. Plus, when the place’s main selling point is clean glassware, you can be sure there won’t be an inch of pretentiousness to be found here.

Barfly

This Plateau bar of legend makes a point of serving cheap beer and shots on the regular alongside regular live music programming most nights of the week. Don’t be surprised to see locals cram into its tight confines, even when people try to play a game of pool in the back, or when someone feeds their dog a beer.

Bar Bifteck

A much-loved dive on a stretch that's now infested with overpriced nightclubs, Bifteck draws crowds for Habs games, pool, and free, extra-salty popcorn (presumably to prompt you to drink more).

Bar Macao

Blending into Chinatown’s lineup of unassuming addresses on its section of Saint-Laurent Boulevard, all you need to do is walk up a set of exterior stairs to get into this cavernous dive bars that’s filled with VLTs (video lottery terminals) and deals on cheap beers and mixed drinks.

Grumpy's Bar

Cozy, homey Grumpy's is a mainstay for slightly older Concordia students who can't tolerate the drunken noise of the campus bar. Between its jazz nights and decent beer selection, it toes the line between "dive bar" and just "bar".

Bar Le Bièvre

A dive bar is always enhanced by a highway-adjacent location, which is the case here: right next to the Decarie Expressway. Le Bièvre (sometimes known as Bar Rouge) had a makeover a couple of years back, but we won’t hold it against the place.

La Chic Régal

Pretty much right above Charlevoix metro, Chic Régal is some 90 years old, decorated with Habs memorabilia, and often has karaoke.

The Wheel Club

A longtime reliable location for live music in NDG, the Wheel Club is a favourite of locals and travelling musicians alike, especially on Mondays when their regular Hillbilly Night shows features country music standards no furthers than the 1960s. They now allow food orders from nearby Ai Dumplings, but that’s all that’s really changed since the COVID-19 pandemic—beers and shots remain cheap.