Dirty little punk rock bar. Great jukebox. When the legendary cactus club of san jose closed in the early 2000's, all the regulars migrated to the Caravan. Bartenders have a ton of attitude, but in an entertaining way. Modest draft beer selection, but honest cocktail prices. They have a Patron machine and a Jager machine. One pool table, which they cover up during live music. There is no stage, and bands have to run their own sound, but the room is so tiny, it makes for an intimate venue. Al in all, an honest dive bar, full of character, and a place local legend. read more

1 star only because I can't leave 0. I was kicked out because they didn't feel that I dressed appropriately for a transgender. I was in line for the woman's bathroom because the ONLY all-gender bathroom had a line 5 guys deep and they told me I wasn't transgendered because I wasn't dressed like a woman. I would NEVER recommend this place and I encourage people to NEVER go there. read more

Fun punk/metal dive bar. One of the go to joints for a night of cheap beer and fun music! They have great local and touring bands multiple nights a week. People seem bummed about the no moshing policy, but the place holds 60 people tops and they have 2 pool tables. Not their fault they don't want to get sued! Been here a slew of times, always had a blast. Will I be back? You know it! Thanks Caravan Lounge! read more

What a wonderful, welcoming place! The drinks are cheap, the bartenders are lovely, and the atmosphere is accepting and relaxed (oh, and their playlists rock). I lost a ring on the floor and all the patrons and staff went out of their way to help me find it, flashlights and all! The ring was my grandmother's, so it had sentimental value, and I'm so glad I was at a bar like this where everyone was so kind and invested in helping me get it back. Would definitely visit again! Seems like a cool place for cool people, and a great local place to support. read more

You can see just about any style band at this venue. Pretty loyal crowd who love to be entertained, & usually is no cover to get in. You're treated like family when you come in and usually will make a friend while there. It doesn't get any better than that . We're in a weird time period In the Silicon Valley right now that many businesses are opening up catering to the newer wave of residence and this bar is one of the last of its kind out here. Not everyone wants hip and trendy tasting rooms or places that are brotastic and made to appeal to the taste of people in the same industry as each other. The Caravan is made for the rest of us but those other people are always welcome to come join the fun. They'd probably love it too. read more

The drinks are reasonably priced. That is always appreciated. But I felt so out of place here. For starters, I did not wear a flannel shirt. I also did not have any tattoos. Oh yeah, and I am not ugly. This place is really ugly. I think I may have been the prettiest girl there that night. Unfortunately, I am not a girl. read more

Loved the camel on the wall, and the guy with decent ink at the bar. I don't think the pool table was meant for sitting, but we used it for that. No one was playing, and my bum needed a place to rest. Jukebox was going to play a familiar song at 12AM, but was stopped by the local band playing some tunes. Good place for some jeans, chucks, an old faded t-shirt, and a nice drink with some Jack Daniel's in it.... I missed if they have a dart board, but that would be a great addition, if there isn't one already. read more

A proper dive bar. Divey but clean with friendly doormen and friendly bartender. Generous pours at a reasonable price. Couldn't really ask for more! read more

Caravan Lounge - Dive Bars Near Me - San Jose, California

The dive bar score card for Caravan: Old and questionable decor: Check! Pool table and Juke Box: Check! Super cheap drinks: Check! Cigarette smelling air, furniture, walls, and people: Check! Sketchy patrons: Check! Caravan scores well on the dive bar points. We got 4 drinks for $14 which always makes me happy. Would I go there by myself? Hell no--it's all a bit sketchy. But if you're with a group of friends that don't mind a little sketchiness, Caravan is the place for you! read more

During a little break from the awesome Jazz festival in downtown San Jose, some friends and I stopped in the Caravan Lounge. It's a lot smaller than I had imagined. The people were mostly older, not sure if that was due to the festival. I ordered a Pyramid Hefenweisen on tap, but it tasted aweful, so I gave that away and ordered a Blue Moon in a bottle. We also had 2 kamikazes at $4 each which were pretty good! The bartendresses were nice, but not overly nice and each was at least over 40 years old. Inside it smelt like bar rought. They had a free pool table and a few old chairs and tables on the side. This is a dive...for sure. Looks like they have live music. I didn't see that, but that would be fun! My recommendation: The cuban bar down the street has awesome mojitos! read more

I am more of a hole in the wall kinda girl. However the same 3 reasons why I like hole in the wall/dive bar locations were the same 3 reasons why I disliked this place. 1. The pungent smell of cigarettes: The smell of cigarettes inside a dive bar reminds me of where Im at and where I have been and perhaps sometimes where I DON'T want to be. I dont mind smelling cigarette fumes come INTO a bar however when the indoor smells exactly like vegas I dont think this is my kinda place. 2. Cheap beer: I do enjoy cheap domestic beer and I also do enjoy pricey imported beers, this location had neither.. No PBR and NO quality imported beers on tap. 3. The regulars: I ALWAYS always always enjoy the company of bar regulars, however these ones were neither social, nor friendly. Maybe they were intimidated or maybe they were just that big of alcoholics that they had nothing OTHER on their mind, than beer. Some of my best experiences come from dive bars, in this case it was just a place to take up time. I do not see myself ever coming here by choice however it got the job done which is why I gave it a 2 star rating and not one. If we could do a 2.5 I would . But 2 it is. read more

This is a gem in the rough--literally. It is located in the most random area but this dive bar is definitely worth a visit if you like rock music. If the Jukebox is not playing, there's a live band. LIVE MUSIC is always good. The people are friendly and colorful! read more

Remember that scene in Forrest Gump? "Seat's taken." I know how Forrest feels. This place hates me, but it's funny to me. I've only been here once and I didn't feel welcome. Every time I walk by I feel everyone stare. Thanks for noticing! This guy got it right: "A dive bar without PBR? Really? Not even that I'm that big of a PBR fan, but c'mon Caravan, know your target audience a little bit. I'd expect an "ultra-lounge" not to have a certain cheap beer, but an average, blue collar bar? No sir. That just about sums it up for me. As opposed to the big brother Cinebar, this is the little brother trying to be hip and hang with the cool kids, but just not getting it." read more

Mandatory Monday Night Karaoke... it did in fact seem mandatory to know the KJ, or regularly attend the bar, if you wanted to sing. I was there for 3 hours and sang two songs... that had an hour and 20 minute wait between them. I've been to plenty of busy karaoke bars (in SF) where the same happens, but this place is not in SF and it was not that busy. Nearly everyone else in "the rotation" sang 3 or 4 songs, including a girl who showed up over an hour after I did. I didn't finally get pissed off until I went up to the KJ to check when my last song would be coming up (it was 1am) and I looked at the bottom of the list that was sticking out from under his laptop, my name was not on it. He slid out the rest of the paper from under the laptop and there was my name... at the top of the list... it had been skipped by at least 6 people. Awesome, right?! Overall, the caravan is a decent dive bar. Most of the people are fun, the drinks are affordable and well poured, and it's a chill place. But, Monday night karaoke... never again! Karaoke is supposed to be fun and inclusive. If you want to have a karaoke night where only your friends can sing, host that shit at your house. read more

My Grandfather used to wait here until we picked him up. I used to wait outside here in my youth for someone to pick me up. For the first time in my life I was taken past here for a drink and upon arriving at the door I was asked for ID. I showed my ID and was asked to take it out. I told him it was stuck in there and offered my Passport and told that was not acceptable. Fair play to my friend who grabbed me and said no way were we going to custom a bar that did not accept a federal form of ID. Where do these young hipster upstarts think they are? Sorry, I will never step foot in this shithole, poseur bar ever no matter the history. Pure Shite. 27/01/2013 read more

I went there to meet an 'internet friend', IRL. I was early. This was my first experience in a California bar. I was in culture shock with the new-at-the-time smoking ban. Some of the patrons appeared to have been in the same barstools since the bar opened. 5 stars for popping my CA non-smoking bar cherry. read more

Sleezy, dark, dirty little hole-in-the-wall. Boys can use the girls bathroom and girls can use the boys. Cheap drinks and SJSU crowd. That about sums it all up. read more

I agree with the other Yelper that PBR would be a nice addition to this spot. I mean, a fine establishment deserves a quality beer such as PBR tall can, right? This place is awesome. I find myself in San Jose at least twice a month and I always make time for the Caravan. Dive bar. Awesome bartender named Meredith. Cool door guy who rips at pool. Jukebox that will make your booty swing and bring out your inner butt-rocker. Love it. I love a good dive. This is one of those places. read more

Hit this place for the first time last night to watch my boyfriend's friend's band play. Live music was good but LOUD--not for the weak of heart at all, but that's not the crowd this place attracts, really, so it works. Expect to see at least half of the patrons wearing old leather vests and beat up Doc Martens--but have no fear; the crowd is surprisingly mellow for a subculture that's notoriously rowdy. Drinks are cheap, but cash only--they have an ATM, but of course, there's a service charge. We got whiskey sours last night for $4 a pop. I'm not going to say they were especially strong, but they were strong enough that $4 was a pretty fair price. A little disappointed that for one reason or another I couldn't get a strawberry kamikaze (couldn't hear what the bartender said--I don't know if they were out of strawberry vodka or just never have it) but it wasn't really a big deal. The women's bathroom is one stall, and about the size of my (non-walk-in) closet, so be prepared to wait in line--but I was at least pleasantly surprised with the cleanliness of the place, so that's nice. Like someone else has already mentioned--seat covers! Eff yes! All in all, I'll probably be back. read more

As far as dive bars go, I would go here over the Brit any day. I would go here over several places I went in downtown San Jose actually! Had more of a "biker bar" feel. We walked in and ordered 2 shots of tequila and were in and out quickly. Our bartender was very sweet and if we had had more time we might have hung out longer. Only thing is they are cash only! There is an ATM there if you need! read more

Oh My Lord, I miss this place. When it comes to San Jose, I miss my friends, the orange sauce from La Victoria (review forthcoming) and this place. This is one of the best dive bars with the nicest people working. I think it was the year 2000 when I discovered it. A lot of my friends at the time either weren't old enough to go to bars or just were not into bars. I had a friend sort of take an inventory on the "cool bars" in downtown San Jose and we went on a little pub crawl. I don't know how many of these places are still in existence. I think the first stop was a linen table cloth type watering hole. Yech! The next spot was the Flying Pig which was not bad but not what I was looking for. It seemed to be one of those bars where there would be bikini girls handing out free shwag or a local radio DJ spinning your favorite 80s music. We might have also gone to Mission Ale House that night and I have never enjoyed that place. We finally found ourselves at the Shark and Rose which had the least amount of pretentious people and the nicest employees. I started talking to the regulars. "You know, this place is great and the best find tonight but I have to be honest, I am looking for a dive. I want a place that has sleazy characters. I want people to give me a mean sneer and tell me that they don't take kindly to strangers like I'm in a Western" Everyone responded at once, "OH! YOU WANT THE CARAVAN!!!" So I walked to Caravan and was immediately greeted with "Pasties and a G string" by Tom Waits on the jukebox. There were four hobos from the Greyhound station taking inventory of their lives over some Miller High Life. There were signs warning trouble makers of 86ing on the walls. The bartender gave me free shots of Wild Turkey just for tipping well. When I went outside for a smoke, I heard the raunchiest jokes in existence and when I came back inside, my friend was making out with a guy she just met. I quickly made this place my watering hole. The bartenders and patrons were always fantastic to me. I was even kicked out once and when I came back, the bartenders just shook their heads and laughed at me as they poured my a stiff vodka tonic. This place is also one of the few bars with booze to go. It makes it a whole lot easier to start an after party at your house when you don't have to make that mad dash to a liquor store or 7-11 before the clock strikes 2am. The Cinebar is great and so is the Blank Club but this place remains my favorite in San Jose. read more

We were there to see Dough Stanhope on 3.7.22 and the women working the morning and Kat at night where the shit! We had a lovely time. Cute dog Barnabas (bar dog Andrew's pup) awesome! Love that place.I'm from SJ and can't always say I love a venue but I and my friends def loved it! We will be back forsure! read more

Definitely one of the better bars I've been to that regularly has bands play. There's no designated stage area, but the bands just set up at one end of the bar. It's spacious and what I like most about it is you can sit at the bar and enjoy the show rather than leave the room to either grab a drink or watch the band. You can do both! The bar tender that was working the night I went to see my friend's band was pretty cool, too. He was pouring generously and struck up a conversation with every single one of us sitting at the bar. This also happened to be the night that the last first season opener of Breaking Bad premiered and once I noticed it playing on one of the t.v's, I frantically asked the bar tender to change it. He fully understood and happily changed the channel. That, to me, is a great bar tender! The only thing I would change is the fact that PBR cost $4. That's a little steep for a cheap beer. Perhaps it was because there was no cover charge. I'm used to paying around $1-$2 for PBR, but it won't keep me from returning next time there's a show! Just no moshing and the bar is cash only. read more

Good dive. Depending on who's playing that night, the bar can get pretty crowded, especially since it's a pretty small bar. They don't take card, but they do have an ATM inside right before the crusty bathrooms read more

My kind of joint! Punk/Metal Dive Bar! Loud music, cool Bartenders, and decent prices! If you haven't grown up in the scene, then you ain't bout that Life! ----------- \m/ ----------- One minus Star for NO Moshing or anything remotely close to that. Or you'll get removed... read more

Ahhhh... The Caravan. Strange dusty bottles shaped like children's toys, maybe a nativity scene in the far corner below the TV, alcohol they stopped making ten years ago.... Are you talking about the Caravan? Yes. This place gets the overflow of people from the Blank that don't want to pay to see local bands and just want a few cheap drinks. How can you go wrong with tall cans of PBR and a cigarette vending machine? When the music starts they bust out a piece of plywood, throw it over the pool table, and let you sit wherever you want. The only downside to this place is their lack of PA. Thus i gave them 3 stars rather than the deserved 4. The bathroom is the size of a phone booth, but what do expect from a dive bar that a dozen patrons call home? They say that the security here is really harsh and i don't doubt it, but its a bar. No ID no entrance. I understand. read more

dive bar so small that the pool table takes up about a third of the place and the *stage* is just a space that happens to not have any chairs. no attitude, less consciously hip than the nearby blank club, just seemingly random cliques of sociopaths, ne'er do wells, lushes and losers. read more

I've been here a few times usually because someone we know was playing in their band... the music gets really loud in here since it's so small.. and it's always entertaining... The bathrooms are horrific so avoid those if at all possible... The bar's cool, the bartender is attentive.. especially to girls and the band that's playing... the juke box is always going... the pool table is always being played.. and I've never been here when there wasn't a crowd... Once I watched a bum somehow make his way in and start throwing people's empty glasses at the bar... it was quite entertaining... then the security took him out... BUM FIGHTS! ahahahaha! They get an extra star just for that ; ) read more

A dive bar without PBR? Really? Not even that I'm that big of a PBR fan, but c'mon Caravan, know your target audience a little bit. I'd expect an "ultra-lounge" not to have a certain cheap beer, but an average, blue collar bar? No sir. That just about sums it up for me. As opposed to the big brother Cinebar, this is the little brother trying to be hip and hang with the cool kids, but just not getting it. read more

The Under-class try way too fucking hard to be pathetic...its just....normal. What a fail, but the rest... from the sticky floor to the slippery walls makes up for it. Cheapish drinks and a tiny pool table....good way to start a night, but if it ends here - wear a condom. P.S....live music rocks, here! read more

San Jose drinking at its best. Best time to go is when they have shows. Bathroom sucks and the floors are always wet, either somebody has a dick glued on backwards or the can is leaking out. Other then that cool place fun shit. read more

Caravan Lounge - Dive Bars Near Me - San Jose, California

This place used to be my to-go spot. They used to always have great metal and punk shows, but as of lately the quality of the shows have gone down and the prices of the drinks have increased, but the quality of this place has decresed. Maybe I'll try back in a few months to see if things have changed for the better read more

The caravan has always done one thing well and that is being a dive bar you can come into, play some music on the juke box, play a game of pool or just sit at the counter and lose yourself into a pint of your favorite spirits. The reason you come here is to drink, and they have always been the place to do this at. While you may not always find the most top shelf liquor here, you can be sure you'll find my friends Jack and coke with old time favorites Hot Damn and Malibu. read more

I came here once but only had my temporary ID, the guy at the door would not let me in but was rude about it. That isn't really a bad thing though seeing as how every other experience here was great. I like how there isn't a cover when bands perform, they typically have a WONDERFUL line up and the other customers are really nice and friendly. We have made new friends on multiple occasions at this place! I like the way the tables are set up and the whole atmosphere of the place is very cozy and warm. Their tall cans of PBR are $3-4 and the bartenders are friendly, so tipping is easy and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg to drink here. We came here for the first time one night after a terrible experience at nearby Johnny V's, and come to the conclusion that The Caravan is definitely a much much better, more quality place. Totally a place to come back to!! :) read more

I like Caravan as an occasional weekend bar, something to throw into the mix when I need to go somewhere familiar but that I don't head to every week. I'm cheap so I stick to the $3 bud light, but if you're a liquor lover the drinks are more like large shots with spash of soda or mixer. I love the mix of people that go there. On nights when the pool table is open it's a fun place to play a game. The bar is nice and big. Cons: 1. It's a dive bar, and has that dive smell. 2. The music can be way, way, way too loud; I've even overheard other people saying they don't go there just because of how loud it can get. 3. The pool table is too close to one of the walls. read more

This place is awesome..Been coming here almost a year now and it's my new home now. The bouncers and the bartenders are hella cool and provide great customer service..Bev the owner is a f'n riot and made me feel at home my first time there. Alot of times they have some kind of event going on there..Check this place out , you won't be disappointed.. read more

If you are looking for an intimate drink this is NOT the place for you. Come here for heavy-handed pours, journey and tupac on the jukebox, and the great mix of people. Great dive bar! ps- Friday and Saturday nights have live music. It gets REALLLLLLLLLLY LOUD. read more

Your typical neighborhood dive. I have the pleasure of working across the street from this dive, and I thoroughly enjoy looking down through the window watching all of the regulars taking their cigarette breaks at 8:30 in the morning. I once ventured inside to borrow some matches for a co worker and was amused to see "Lori is a whore" tagged up on a board when you first walk in. If tagged profanities and old beer smell doesn't reek of quality dive - then I don't know what does! The bartenders are friendly here! read more

Dive bar with live music. That in itself describes most of the experience. However, I really dig the entrance to this place. There are two parking garages nearby, and there isn't a huge crowd so it's a good place to chill. Even more attractive is the fact that the drinks are pretty cheap here and there's no cover. The bartender was also very friendly. Not gonna say it's the best dive bar I've ever been to...but it's probably pretty close considering I don't even know what a "best dive bar" would even look like. Would definitely come back. read more

Sort of a dive bar (in a positive way)...relatively down-to-earth crowd. The bartender acted as if my friend and I weren't there with our money out and ready to go, even though there were hardly any people in the bar. I suppose I should been impressed that he did tricks with the bottle opener before opening our beers? I might go here again if there is a band playing I want to see. read more