That place have an outdoor porch that's fenced in with tables? I think I've been there; once. Lawyer lunch turned into, uh, way past dinner bell. . . But any place with a happy hour that ENDS before noon! That rocks.

The Old Tavern totally gets my vote for best dive bar o' Sac. The Torch Club, pre 15th Street location, would have gotten an honorable mention but it went all hipster. :(

For gay dive bars, the Mercantile gets an honarary mention.

Dive bar
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dive_bar

A dive bar, or simply a dive, is a drinking establishment (or sometimes a restaurant) with a dated or run-down appearance and atmosphere. In a dive bar, the drinks tend to be cheap and of low quality, but frequently are of a high alcohol content.

The term was possibly coined in the 19th century, when often these types of establishments were located below street level, and one was able to dive into it for a quick drink.

People tend to frequent dives for the sole purpose of drinking (or sometimes eating) inexpensively, and sometimes there are frequent patrons who appreciate the laid-back atmosphere. Dive bars often have outdoor commercial signage that appears dated.
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Come on dude...the sturg (as a bar not a restaurant) has a run down apearence, cheap drinks (also easy to get free ones), strong drinks, it's actually below street level, and the 'dive' term is in reference to water. Fitting a dive bar in *so* many ways.

Have you ever been there late way after the food is closed...the crowd is a hilarious divey mix.

Try going late when there's no more food, the families are gone, there's no politicians in sight, and tell me it doesn't stink of fishy riverside dive. It's all about the late night charm.