From cocktail bars where iconic drinks were invented, to speakeasies and pubs that survived the Prohibition era of the 1920s, the USA has some historic drinking dens with fascinating tales to tell – usually over a stiff whiskey or two. Here are the best bars around the country for libations that come with a past. It’s best to check state travel advisories and individual bar websites before planning a visit.
The Old ’76 House claims to be America’s oldest tavern, built in 1668. It's not just known for being really old, as the bar also played a role in the Revolutionary War. It became a safe place for respite from battle and even doubled as a prison for the war’s most notorious spy, Major John Andre. George Washington dined here and countless others sought comfort in the traditional meals and selection of ales. Today, it’s known for regular live music from blues to rock, wine dinners and a Sunday brunch worth getting out of bed for.
Writer Jack London frequented Heinold’s First and Last Chance Saloon, a popular drinking den by the waterfront in Oakland’s Jack London Square. Following in the White Fang and Call of the Wild author’s footsteps is a huge draw, but that isn’t the only history soaked into the walls of this rustic, memorabilia-stuffed spot. The bar survived the 1906 earthquake that hit San Francisco and its surrounds, and the floor remains slanted as a result of the disaster. Interestingly, the pandemic caused the first mandatory closure of Heinold’s since the earthquake.
Founded in the 1840s by German farmers, the tiny town of Luckenbach was purchased in the 1970s by John ‘Hondo’ Crouch and friends, whose sole aim was to make it a hub of country music. They got their wish, with Willie Nelson and Lyle Lovett among regular performers. The charmingly ramshackle area, whose original buildings include a general store in addition to the saloon, hosts almost constant live music and line-dancing, which visitors can enjoy with a drink inside or under the shade of oak trees.
Ball & Chain was among the first night spots to open on Calle Ocho, now considered the heart of Little Havana. It opened as a saloon in 1935 and was a musical hotpot by the 1950s. Artists such as Billie Holiday, Count Basie and Chet Baker would often stay at nearby Tower Apartments, also owned by the club’s proprietor Henry Schechtman. It closed in 1958 and became the Copa Lounge Tavern, and then the Futurama Furniture Store, before being restored to its roots with salsa, jazz and mambo shows, sometimes performed on the outdoor pineapple stage.
Red Onion Saloon is now a bar, restaurant – and brothel museum. The inn opened at the end of the 19th century (1897) as a brothel for gold miners, with a rather creepy twist of using dolls to represent its working women. The dolls were placed on the bar and positioned to indicate whether or not they were available. Today, the ghost of former brothel madam Lydia is said to hang around the halls, the scent of her perfume wafting in the air, while an upstairs museum has original artefacts and clothing. While you’re keeping an eye out for Lydia, you can tuck into pizzas, nachos, chilli and salads.
Old Talbott Tavern was established in 1779 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, nearly two centuries later. Legend has it that infamous outlaw Jesse James left bullet holes in one of the upstairs rooms after hallucinating that birds painted on the wall were moving. Travellers used to arrive on horseback or in buggies, but today, arrive by car and stop by for a meal of steak or Southern fried chicken and a night in one of its lodgings. Firing into the wall is discouraged.
Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone has been on the best New Orleans bar lists for a very long time. The hotel was purchased in 1886 by Antonio Monteleone, a Sicilian nobleman. He passed the business onto his family after he died, and it’s still in the family today, five generations later. The bar is arguably the star attraction though. It’s a beautiful rotating carousel, which still spins today, more than 70 years after it was installed in 1949. Over the years, the bar has been a refuge for some of the greatest literary minds, counting Truman Capote, F Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway among patrons. It’s also where the Vieux Carré cocktail was invented by head bartender, Walter Bergeron, sometime in the late 1930s.
The Horse You Came In On Saloon, usually shortened to The Horse, was established in 1775 and has been a local institution ever since. Legend has it that Edgar Allan Poe had his last drink here before his mysterious death in October 1849. A sign on the wooden door states that this was ‘Poe’s Last Stop’. As well as being the oldest saloon in Baltimore, it’s the only bar in Maryland that existed before, during and after Prohibition.
The Woodstock Inn in Vermont can be traced back to 1793, when Captain Israel Richardson built one of the first lodgings, Richardson’s Tavern. It changed ownership in the decades after and was eventually renamed The Eagle Hotel. Jump forward to the late 19th century when a new Woodstock Inn was constructed on the site of the original. Then in 1967, Laurance Rockefeller bought the inn, tore it down, and rebuilt an entirely new property. Today, it’s a luxury resort with five elegant restaurants and a wood-panelled bar, called Richardson’s Tavern, after the original inn, where visitors can enjoy its many cosy nooks, fireplaces and comfort food.
When The Berghoff opened in 1898, a beer cost a nickel (five cents) and came with a free sandwich. The prices have gone up a little since then, but it’s worth paying the extra to soak up the old-fashioned charm of this elegant, timeless bar. A menu of German-inspired dishes reflects the origins of the restaurant’s founder, Herman Berghoff, with choices such as bratwurst, sauerbraten (pot roast), potato pancakes and apple strudel served alongside German beers. The food menu expanded during Prohibition, and after it was lifted, 14 years later, Berghoff procured Chicago’s first ever liquor licence, a tradition which continues at the venue to this day.
It’s the building, rather than the bar itself, that qualifies as historic here. Jessop’s Tavern opened in 1996 but the building was built in 1674 as the home of barrel-maker Abraham Jessop. The colonial theme manifests itself in period-style furniture and dishes such as the ‘pilgrim’s feast’: roast turkey with cornbread stuffing, mashed potatoes and drop biscuits. There are also more than 350 Belgian beers available, as these were one of the most imported drinks during the Colonial era.
Legendary frontiersmen Wyatt and Virgil Earp and Doc Holliday are among those to have indulged in a few drinks at The Palace Restaurant and Saloon, which opened in 1877 and claims to be the oldest bar in the state. Today, The Palace is situated across the street from its original site, which was nearly completely destroyed in a fire in 1900. Customers managed to save the ornately carved bar, which remains on display at the new location. To help rebuild, the owner, Bob Brow formed a partnership with the owners of the former Cabinet Saloon, which was also destroyed in the fire, and by 1901, The Palace Hotel and Bar, complete with Chinese restaurant and barber shop was open and serving customers.
This beautiful old New England inn dates back to 1776, when the historic seaport village of Essex was an important place for shipbuilding. Griswold Inn was the site of 19th-century protests organised by the Temperance Movement, while during the Prohibition era the inn was known as a reliable place to get hold of spirits. Today customers can drink and eat in the historic dining rooms, the wine bar or the tap room, and there are 34 rooms available for overnight stays.
Claiming (along with others) to be America’s oldest tavern, and apparently the 10th oldest in the world, The White Horse Tavern has quite a few tales to tell. It first opened as an inn in 1673 and was reportedly run by a pirate, the founder’s son, in the 18th century – it’s said his spirit still haunts the tavern today. The building also offered accommodation for troops during the Revolutionary War. Today, it serves dishes like clam chowder and lobster bisque, and has an extensive wine list.
Beautiful village inn The Red Fox was established in 1728 and has seen some pretty impressive people pass through its doors. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis frequently stayed here during fox hunting holidays and her husband, President John F Kennedy, once used the inn to hold a press conference. Elizabeth Taylor and US Senator John Warner spent plenty of time at the inn during their relationship as well. All this history is apparent throughout the building, but there's now a more modern focus on refined, seasonal food.
Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar is a rambling, 18th-century shack on Bourbon Street that would make a fabulous setting for a horror movie. It does have a notorious past: the pub, built between 1722-32, was owned by pirate, spy and folk hero Jean Lafitte, who called it a blacksmith’s shop to throw authorities off the scent. It’s now a must-see spot for visitors to the city and a popular stop on organised ghost and drinking tours.
Named as a nod to Boston's former town crier and first owner Jimmy Wilson (he was town crier for 50 years!), Bell in Hand Tavern has been going since 1795 and claims to be the oldest of its kind in the US. The tavern was also famous for its ale which was so thick it was served in two mugs – one for the ale and one for the froth. Customers now can expect a less contentious pour and some delicious pub fare with a focus on seafood and sharing plates.
The oldest continuously-run business in the state of Ohio, the Golden Lamb has hosted not one, but a dozen US presidents since first opening as a tavern in 1803. It's not just presidents on its roster of famous guests though, with the likes of Neil Armstrong, Charles Dickens, Harriet Beecher Stowe and Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) also coming through the doors over the years. It was built to provide a resting place for travellers on their way from Cincinnati to the old National Road (now US-40) and offered simple rooms and stiff drinks – hospitality that hasn’t changed all that much in its more than 200 year history.
The Driskill Hotel dates back to 1886 and houses this old-world Texan bar, with low lighting, well-worn leather sofas and cowhide bar stools. Originally built by cattle baron Jesse Driskill, it was a favourite of politicians and remains one of downtown Austin’s go-to spots for whiskey cocktails and plates of smoked wings, ribs and cornbread.
Pretty much anyone who’s anyone in the jazz world has played on the stage at this legendary Greenwich Village institution, with John Coltrane’s 1961 gig among the most famous. Village Vanguard opened in 1935 as an arts venue showcasing folk music, poetry and comedy and became better known for jazz from the late 1950s. There's so much musical history in this place, including a ceiling light which Charles Mingus smashed with his bass after getting angry at a crowd member, which still remains broken to this day.
Locals love The Saloon, a North Beach institution and San Francisco’s oldest bar, established in 1861. It still looks pretty much as it did back then, having survived the deadly earthquake of 1906 and subsequent fires. These days it’s a small live music venue with a reputation for showcasing blues musicians. It’s cash only and drinks only (there’s no food served here), though drinks are relatively cheap and the atmosphere is reliably fun.
Those who step through the rather grand entrance to Old Ebbitt Grill will be following in the footsteps of several presidents including Theodore Roosevelt, who apparently drank at the stand-around bar, and William McKinley, who lived in the boarding house. DC’s oldest bar, founded in 1856, might have moved locations a few times over the decades, but has amassed an impressive collection of memorabilia, including historic beer steins, animal heads (apparently thanks to Teddy Roosevelt) and wooden bears allegedly imported by Alexander Hamilton for his private bar. Today, Old Ebbitt Grill serves up some delicious cocktails and food alongside all this history, and is known for its oysters and Southern-style cuisine like chicken and waffles and shrimp and grits.
One of the most historic spots in Georgia, The Pirates’ House opened as an inn for sailors in 1753 and also happened to attract a few passing pirates. It was built on Trustees’ Garden, the first agricultural experimental garden in the US used to determine which crops were best suited to the region. These days there's considerably less risk you might have one too many rums and wake up on board a ship that's already out to sea, as often happened in the inn's early days. It still welcomes visitors from around the world for a rather more sophisticated Southern dining experience, and is a favourite with families thanks to its crowd-pleasing menu and pirate-themed decor.
Fraunces Tavern, opened in 1762 (then called the Queen's Head Tavern after England's Queen Charlotte), might just be the most historic drinking spot in New York City. This is where George Washington hosted a lavish farewell dinner for his troops in 1783, and where other founding fathers frequented too. There’s now an onsite museum, an upstairs piano bar, a choice of more than 450 whiskies and a food menu with dishes such as slow-roasted chicken pot pie, apparently Washington’s favourite.
Opened as the Stagecoach Inn in 1790, Ye Olde Tavern has undergone many transformations over the centuries, but its current name dates back to a relatively recent 1975. Much of the building's original charm remains, with delightfully slanting doorways and wonky floors, while dinner is served as a ‘colonial candlelit experience’ and includes traditional dishes like lobster bisque and pot roast.
The antique bar area at The Village Tavern pays testament to this family-owned restaurant’s history. Opened in 1847, it showcases an impressive 35 foot (10.7m) mahogany bar which survived Chicago’s McCormick Place Fire in 1967. The sense of history is complemented by a cosy pub atmosphere and comfort food.
McGillin's Olde Ale House claims to be the oldest continuously operating pub in Philadelphia, having survived the Prohibition era. It opened in 1860, the year Abraham Lincoln was elected as president and before Philadelphia City Hall was built. Irish immigrants Catherine and William McGillin first opened the tavern and raised their 13 children upstairs. This large historic building is beautiful inside and out, with huge decorative windows, an array of flags, stained glass and wooden beams. The pub is known for its large beer selection, which includes many local ales.
When George Vanderbilt designed his sprawling Asheville estate in 1889, he wanted to open an inn overlooking the splendour of the grounds. It never happened in his lifetime and it wasn't until 2001 when The Inn On Biltmore Estate opened. Designed in the same style as the main house, it includes luxurious rooms, a restaurant and the elegant Library Lounge bar, where guests can order cocktails and wine from the estate’s winery.
Inside the Golden Gate Hotel & Casino, which opened in 1906 as Hotel Nevada, the original casino bar was renamed Bar Prohibition! in 2013 as a celebration of 80 years since the alcohol ban was repealed. The Golden Gate is the oldest continuously operating hotel in Las Vegas. The bar, once a Rat Pack haunt, still serves its iconic 50 cent shrimp cocktail, which was invented here – a tulip sundae glass with chilled shrimp, topped with cocktail sauce and a lemon wedge. The price was raised for the first time in 1991, to 99 cents, but costs a few dollars more than that today.
Opened in 1825 as a Noon Day Stage Coach Stop, The Log Inn is now Indiana’s oldest restaurant and maintains a cosy inn feel with traditional decor and a homely menu of dishes like grilled catfish and roasted ham. Its biggest claim to fame is that Abraham Lincoln stopped here in 1844 as he travelled through the Midwest during a presidential campaign for Henry Clay.
An Irish pub in the heart of East Village, McSorley's Old Ale House has been serving beer since 1854 and proudly shows off its history in the old photos and historic documents that adorn the walls. Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and President Grant reportedly dropped in for a drink and poet E E Cummings wrote Sitting in McSorley’s about the bar.