The best part about The Commie, aside from being one of the city's best dive bars, is Michael Louis…read moreJohnson, the musical barkeep. This man is a treasure--a multitalented musician who plays in many bands including The Lemon Bucket Orkestra. In season, you can catch Michael playing trumpet and singing with a jazz band on the back patio on Saturday evenings (5-8pm). The patio, accessible via an alleyway off Rolyat Street, feels like one of this neighbourhood's best kept secrets. Such a fun, chill vibe back there. Perhaps these Saturday shows will eventually move back inside, where they were held in the beforetimes, when the band sat cheek by jowl with customers in one of the city's most "intimate" performance venues. But whether Michael is performing behind the bar or on the back patio, the man is a marvel of multitasking. He'll perform part of a tune, set the trumpet down as the band plays on, take people's orders, prepare and serve drinks, and then pick up the trumpet and continue the song. So freaking cool. He also hosts a unique music listening event on Monday nights called Decide on the B-Side...don't forget to bring your favourite vinyl. As for the drinks, nothing fancy here, just a decent beer list and hard booze, mostly. But as described above, this bar is so much more. It's chock full of fun and character.

The owner was horribly mean to my friend. Do not go here if you aren't in the mood to be yelled at…read moreand physically intimidated by the crotchety old owner who polices everything that is said in the bar. Especially if you are a woman. Not a safe environment. Thought this place was meant to be open-minded and welcoming but apparently not.

Ya gotta love Lola! It's a neighbourhood spot that looks…read moresketch enough from the outside that you won't find flakes or tourists inside that's for sure! But once inside it's cozy and warm just like going to mom's place with a friendly bartender to serve you. They advertise some drinks in the window but probably best to avoid and stick to beer. Cheap beer too! The added dimension to Lola is the back room with a weird layout, long and narrow with a makeshift looking stage along the long side rather than at the end. But here's the thing, it's a punk venue and one of the last of its kind, as far as the original Toronto-style plain and simple no-judgement spots. You never know who you could see here but it's always worth a shot to peek inside. Long live Lola and down with corporate rock and keep annoying the religious right! : )

Who knew a dive bar would serve sandwiches, let alone a peameal sandwich! We had never tried one so…read morewhen we saw a sign outside the bar we had to come in and try. We were able to customize toppings, and it came out fairly quickly. The sandwich was what you expect- basically a ham sandwich. Nothing special but glad we tried! Very nice and friendly bartender.

Overall good, but the beer was just okay and the second server wasnt as hospitable. The atmosphere…read morewas fun with hanging lights and tones of decorations including Canadian tire money on the walls. We asked about it since we were out or town and the nice bartender told us all about it and how they accept it. Later I called back and when I asked if its possible to buy somw from them the guy laughed and hung up.

In a very well-demanded area, this bar might lead the pack: the interior is cozy and intimate,…read morewhile the back patio is gorgeous! I tried an Australian Crabbie's ginger beer for the novelty (sweet and barely feels alcoholic, which is dangerous!) and will try other drinks when I come back!

Your typical dive bar. The bartender seemed to be more interested in serving his buddies/regulars…read morethan a solo new patron like me. The drink menu is also not very impressive.

Yesterday evening, 7 friends and I stopped in here for a nightcap after visiting another venue…read morenearby. We were seated on their makeshift patio and enjoyed being able to people watch on both sides of us. Several of us - including myself - ordered their Time Bomb: Watermelon Lemonade beer to drink and I found it quite refreshing and good. We had good service and an enjoyable time. Inside is fairly small.

Love Ted's! Been coming here for years. Love a bar with a pinball table and chill bartenders who…read moreare all really easy to chat with. However, watch out for the dude who lives in one of the apartments near there. White, 5'4ish, bald, insecure a-hole. Locked my bike to the outside of a stairwell in the back alley to go have a drink on the patio and he showed up to the patio about a half later and demanded that "whoever locked their bike" there move it. The bike was in no way impeding access to the stairs, as it was locked to the outside, but being the non confrontational person I am, moved it and asked if he was happy about it (because the threatened damage to my bike if I didn't). He then replied with a threat to kill me, so fun times..... Just a heads up to any women who decide to go to Ted's, this person is clearly unhinged and makes me a bit nervous to return.

I almost ALWAYS knock something over at Ted's (a candle, a lit candle, a beer, your beer, my beer,…read morea chair etc...) and no one seems to care... 4 stars; I love this place (but it's filthy so I can't bring myself to give it 5 even though I want to). ________________________________ On the Spiderman Pinball Machine... One time, Mike S and I made elaborate plans for an amazing trip to Little Italy. We planned to eat Wings at Duff's, then go to Soundscapes then go to Ted's and play pinball. We were so excited about pinball, we (and by "we" I probably mean "I") told the waitress about all of our plans and invited her. She seemed interested. We walked across the street to Ted's while discussing the beer options and deciding to get Tankhouse; we were the only people in the building other than the guy who works there and he looked up and greeted us (angrily) with: "we're out of Tankhouse and pinball is broken." It was still a great night. ________________________________ On the beer prices... Once they had Duggan's no.9 on tap. It's a much higher alcohol % than most draught beers and when you buy it in bottles it's really expensive (by volume) because they're small bottles. We got a pitcher and the bartender charged us $19 for it, then told us that it should be $21 and she wouldn't charge us the difference this time. I was like, uhh, thanks, our transaction is already closed, but... Then we got pints of Duggans after we drank the pitcher. We drank too many Duggan's. I think we ate wings at Duff's that night too, and I might have lost my headphones. They were shure se210s - if you find them at Ted's, PM me, I want them back. Anyways, beer isn't really that cheap here - it's $17 for a regular pitcher and $6 or $7 for a pint. It's actually much too expensive for how shitty the place is. (I don't really care though.) ________________________________ Would you ever eat food here? Did you know they have/serve food? It's kind of random. Once, Adeel O. and I were here after work while he was trying to get away from his Mom who was visiting from Pakistan and I was having a beer before a date at Negroni. He wanted to eat so he asked Ted's if they have food. The girl said yes but she wasn't sure what they had because her co-worker hadn't gotten back from the grocery store with the evening's offerings yet. She returned and made him an assorted sub on a hoagie. You can bring in pizza and burritos from next door. ________________________________ On table service... They sometimes/usually have table service! Someone comes by and actually takes your order and brings you a beer! I love this aspect of Teds. I think they probably do this because a. they don't have enough glasses and b. it moves WAY more beer. ________________________________ On the restrooms... The restrooms here are disgusting, but they are not as bad as Toronado(http://www.yelp.com/biz/toronado-san-francisco). The women's room always has one stall out of order (occasionally the broken one rotates) and the men's room reeks out into the hallway (oh and there is no door). I'm just kind of used to it and I don't think the ladies room is as bad as the other reviews here lead you to believe. Or I have been desensitized because of recent trips to even divier beer bars. There is almost always soap and paper towels. ________________________________ There is a pool table here... There is a pool table here that I love. You can only play it between 7 and 10 for the most part because the bar fills up between 10 and 11 pretty much every night. Playing pool is VERY frustrating because 2 of the 4 walls are too close to the table for you use the cue parallel to the table and the other two of four sides are too close to tables that have lit candles delicately balanced in empty wine bottles on them. I frequently knock over at least one lit candle during a game. Pool is $2 and there is no loonie machine, you have to get change from the bar but they're always happy to hook you up. The pool table itself is in good condition and they have recently gotten new cues and replaced some of the balls. ________________________________ Overall, I love Ted's... - The bartender gave me 2 free beers on my birthday last week - I once got into a conversation about First Nation's resource rights (which made me late for the movie Gasland) - I think pinball is fixed (but some of the lights still don't light up on the front)

Labyrinth Lounge reminded me my days at a student. As student looking for cheap drinks and food and…read moreof course loud music... Not a bad place for a drink or 2... relax and lay back... dark..really dark....zzzzzzzzzzzz Food was the usual pub selections. Thanks for fellow yelpers for letting me taste some of the food they ordered: cheese, onion rings, fries. The cooking oil they used were fresh so the food was not greasy... BTW, I do need my cough syrup after my few hours of yelling at people at Labyrinth... it helped me open up my voice!

Bartender was friendly. Beyond DEAD on a beautiful day…read more.. Horrible patio, lazy mgmt to not take advantage of the great location.

All you really want at a speakeasy is some nice vibes and strong enough gogo juice, thankfully this…read moreestablishment had both.

Why would any grown adult go to a bar to be treated like a 19 year old trying to go into a bar to…read moredrink cheap beer? Terrible service. Awful bouncer at the door. As a retired club manager of a successful business I can honestly recommend to spend your money elsewhere.

The Embassy reminds me of my favorite cap. Not too beat up, holds up a fresh look and fits just…read moreright. This joint has a vibe of lounge, but also as approachable as a friendly dive. Good atmosphere & good music. I dig the decor. Be sure to bring a marker to leave your mark in the hallway to the bathroom.

just updating: this place now accepts cards! otherwise it still rocks the same it always has.read more