The Dive

Dangerous is the bar that includes the term ‘dive bar’ in its name, too many such businesses using the term as an inauthentic theme rather than a well-earned moniker. The Dive Bar in Philadelphia’s Bella Vista neighborhood avoids that trap, cultivating an authentic atmosphere across a trio of floors that fits in well with the rest of the city’s low-frills, straightforward dive bar inventory.

Opened in 2005, The Dive Bar (typically referred as simply ‘The Dive’) is young by Philadelphia standards despite its well-worn appearance. After working in the Philadelphia bar scene for a number of years, bartender Jonn Klein purchased the space that would become The Dive Bar, a bar named Low Bar at that time, from a military lawyer called overseas for service.

In 2010, Klein expanded his empire with the opening of Watkins Drinkery, another multi-floor, straightforward South Philly bar. A third Klein-led bar, Wander Inn, opened in 2018 but closed two years later. Klein expressed an interest in leaving the industry in 2024, putting both Watkins Drinkery and The Dive Bar up for sale. Though Watkins Drinkery did indeed sell, there is no confirmation that The Dive Bar changed hands and it remains open.

Related to the bar’s potential sale, The Dive Bar is one of the last smoking-permitted dive bars in Philadelphia, a fraternity made even smaller by the proposed sale of fellow smoking-friendly dive, McGlinchey’s (though an initial sale eventually fell through). The eventual sale of the bar, should it come to fruition, would trigger the end of smoking as The Dive Bar would lose its inherited approval. To accommodate patrons of all smoking persuasions, the first-floor main bar area is smoke free as smoking is restricted to the ‘lounge’ on the bar’s second floor.

From the outside, The Dive Bar certainly looks the part as the structure resembles a typical Philly residential apartment building. The only exterior adornments here are the small green awning jutting out above the front door and The Dive Bar’s swinging sign that depicts a domestic-looking beer can flanked by two very dive bar-friendly phases, “Take The Plunge” and the bar’s official-sounding motto, “The Bar You Never Heard Of.”

The first floor is snug, the very narrow footprint of the bar filled up almost entirely by the bar counter itself. During peak hours, navigating through the sea of people smashed into this first floor is an artform, but this main area provides the purest dive bar experience of any of The Dive Bar’s three floors. The beer selection has always been strong here, attributed to Klein’s bartending background, with craft beer routinely available on tap alongside the usual dive bar suspects.

The staircase to the bar’s second floor feels like ascending to dive bar heaven. The steps slightly twist, they feel very steep and they’re bordered on either side by graffiti-laden walls. Take a trip from those who have tumbled before and be double sure of each step on the way down, particularly after an evening of smoking, drinking or both.

The second and third floors offer refuge from a potentially crowded first floor with slightly more spacious surroundings. Interestingly, the vibe across all three floors has a tendency to vary from room to room, a signal that the only sane option is to probably sample a beer or two on each level before settling into an evening at The Dive Bar. Be warned that the dedicated bars on all three levels are all cash only.