One of the truest DIVE bars I've ever been to. Always such a fun (and sometimes not fun) array of people. Love the MPLS history of this place and that everyone in the neighborhood has at least one silly Schooner's story. Cheap drinks, interesting convo, patio, pool, darts. What more could you need :) read more

Schooner Tavern - Pool! - Music Venues Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

Comfy down to earth neighborhood dive bar. Friendly people. Live music 3 nights a week. Never a cover. No food other than bar pizza. Good drinks and drink prices. Happy hour every day and all day Sundays. Music is mostly blues, rock and some country. This place has been around for a long time as is. read more

Love this spot. Live music 3 nights a week. A blues jam on Sundays. Bingo, pulltabs, and meat raffle. They have 2 (!!!) outside seating areas. Seasoned bartenders, that take no guff. It's cheap, comfy, divey, and they have darts and pool. Touchtunes rounds it out nicely. Can't go wrong in this lil South side gem. read more

Schooner Tavern - Claws and drinking weed. Yuss! - Music Venues Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

I enjoy coming to The Schooner to play Bingo and a few games of Pool I also love their Pizza and a great drink Peach Schnapps, Sprite, Orange Juice and a slash of Grenadine.... Yummy read more

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Have had very nice visits to your place. 1st of all the young lady working behind the bar (I think her name was Kayla) was very friendly and attentive, to all those around the bar. I was very impressed that she knew the proper way of pouring a pint of Guinness. So many places and people do not know how. I have been there a few times when she has worked. Someone such as this will keep me coming back whenever I am in the area. If other employees are just half as nice as she is, people will never stop coming down for a drink. I thank you for such a nice place to visit. read more

Good old music with a little grit and a lot of heart. Salt of the Earth!!! Great variety of enduring local performers. If you are seeking fancy, this is not the place. If you are seeking true soul, you will enjoy this venue. read more

Schooner Tavern - Crooked Dice performing...oh, so good! - Music Venues Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

Great time for all the night we went! Open mic night. No food though. Bartender was great

Amazing! Experience. Fun little neighborhood spot! Definitely worth a visit. I went to play darts with friends and had a great time.

I used to work a block away from this bar and initially I was so creeped out by it that I never went in or even walk by it. Ever. The windows were dirty and it smelled terrible! Drunk people would hand around outside and smoke. BUT something happened. The windows were washed! They must've had new owners! I couldn't believe the difference. I actually went inside and was very impressed. The live music drew a lot of people none of whom were there to get drunk. No one was standing in front smoking. I plan on going more often. Check out the bands. It's such an improvement read more

I hung out at the Schooner Tavern during my Brown Institute days, 1986-1987. Pat Connor, a local attorney, and his mother Vienna Niemi owned it at the time. Vienna "Vie" had taken over the business back in 1961 when her husband died. Vie and I became fast friends when I used to stop in for a pitcher of beer and do some studying. She was very proud of her new Honda Accord that her son had bought her with custom plates "Vienna." She even gave me a ride home when I had a little too much to drink one afternoon after classes. I rode the 21A back to the bar the next day to retrieve my Volkswagen Van. I was there the night the bar was held up and a customer was shot and killed. I was also there and contributed to the benefit that was held for him there. They were a tight knit crowd that I managed to get in with. Al and Janelle were the bartenders I remember and there was a holy host of regular characters who hung out there. I miss those days very much. Charlie Brown Lakeland, MN read more

It's divey, but not too divey. It's just a basic, old, no frills bar in a neighborhood where everything else is trying to get fancy. It's a welcome hold over from another time. It's good for a quiet drink and sometimes offers some interesting people watching. The place is cleaner than you might think. The Schooner has a pretty bad reputation due to some really bad stuff that happened there in the not too distant past, but it's cleaned up its act somewhat recently and is nothing to be afraid of. read more

While I enjoy going to low-key bars, Schooner is just a real shi*t hole. And not in a good way. I tried to ignore the strange horse barn smell upon walking in - after all, the building is a hundred years old or something. In the end though, I couldn't stop, however, from really hating this place. I was Designated Driver that night, so I asked my boyfriend to get a club soda when he went up to the bar. He was charged a buck for the soda, and when my boyfriend told him it was for me because I was driving that night, the bartender responded, "We don't have a fucking Designated Driver program here, son." It's understandable that bars are interested in making money, even if it's just another dollar. But in our particular group, three of four were already drinking. And most of the people seemed to be from the neighborhood, so they aren't losing anything through supporting DD's because most people were walking to the bar. I thought the bartender was just being a dick with his attitude. The clincher for me was when we were smoking outside after playing a game of pool and talking up the victory that me and a friend just had. Some guy who had also come outside, and was sitting a ways from us. He ended up shouting at us with some level of hostility in his voice, about talking to his face if we wanted to say something. WTF? I really wanted to like this bar. But everything was conspiring to make me hate it, so one for you, Schooner Tavern. read more

I love a good dive bar, but The Schooner is terrible. Some friends and I (40+, polite, calm and mostly sober) stopped there while on the Longfellow tour on the Pedal Pub this past weekend. It took the bartender a while to acknowledge us, despite the fact that the bar was mostly empty. When I asked him if he knew how to make a specific shot (which contained 2 types of liquor and nothing else), his response was, "No, and I'm not going to learn." He then explained to me that drink wasn't in his system, so trying to figure out what to charge me for it would cause him "all sorts of problems." Oh, and that this was a saloon, so I should figure they have beers and mixed drinks and that sort of thing. I walked away from the bar and him, and he proceeded to be rude to the next member of our party. Needless to say, we got back on our Pedal Pub and pedaled hard and fast away from there, and to another nearby dive bar with friendly staff who wanted to earn their tips. read more

A unique relic that was likely cool 40 years ago, should have closed 20, and now is awesome living history. A friend wanted to find a dive bar to go to. We were in the area and decided to go here. The building looks like they missed tearing it down to build a strip mall in the 90's. We go in and order then see the "Cash Only" signs. After ATM run. We sat at the bar while a band tuned up and the bartender watched an alien history channel show on the TV. The pool tables had players who brought their own sticks. The free self serve popcorn was fresh. The tap beer reminded me of stealing a sip from my dad as a kid. Then the band start playing classic blues while a single old lady was dancing like no one was watching. We could not have asked for more. read more

There's something special about the old, unchanged dive bars. The lingering smell of cigarettes, despite the smoking ban. The presence of real, working pay phones, the crazy chick at the bar who yells at nothing. Granted, at almost any of them in the Twin Cities once you pass the hipster witching hour of 9:30, the place changes over to clusters of wide-eyed Manic Pixie Dream Girls in knotted scarves and bearded boys in black framed glasses wearing knit caps from various third-world cultures who've come to sing throwback country songs on karaoke night (special props to "Jake" from last night He had a great voice.) But in the early evening, you can get a fairly cheap glass of beer, play a little bingo or shake-a-day and hover precariously in the cold and suspect bathroom. The Schooner is the kind of place where Gertie remembers the drink order of every person in the place and the regulars punch each other in the arm as they grab their regular seat. If you have writer's block and need some character studies to jump-start your Next Great American Novel, you'd probably do well to plant yourself here for a few days, order a few cans of what everyone else is drinking and eavesdrop on some stories. read more

This place is great, and horrid. When it's nearly empty it can be a fun place to hang and shoot some pool. When busier it can be cool with live music and people-watching, plus they have a nice big patio out back. The building itself is very old and the place has a lot of character and whatnot. I guess I would agree with some other reviews, though, it can be a place where before you know it, you're swept up into some scuffle or something, or have some crazy drunk mofo messin' with you. The bartenders have been alternately cool and rude, it really depends on what day it is, what time it is, and perhaps their moods, etc. The place draws a wide range of people, so the diversity is definitely cool. I don't know, perhaps it was built on a Native American burial mound or something, there's some weird voodoo goin' round at this joint. The fact that the only current photo on Yelp shows the building as it was like 70 years ago is perfect. read more

It's a drinking man's bar for sure but It's underneath a by-the-week, bathroom-down-the-hall boarding house, whaddya expect? It's mostly bar flys & is safe enough to stop in from time to time, but probably just bit too rough to be my everyday bar. I almost pissed myself reading Melissa's review because it sums up to Schooner to a "T". The last time there was a big young Indian buck with gang/prison tats all over pulling up his shirt showing them off to people at the bar (I don't think they wanted to see them, they just didn't wanna offend the guy off, who was in a fine mood) & recounting his prison fights. He was jovial enough though & eventually bored of them & looked at me instead "Oh look at you. Damn, you look all clean man!", I replied loudly "All scrubbed up bro, I look good right?", he laughed & started talking to someone else. The bartenders have to be on guard a little bit I think & definitely have a "No crap" from anyone attitude. Maybe some suburban slackers might find it a bit too rough-around-the-edges? Town Talk is 1/2 a block up the street if things don't feel right though. read more

Boyfriend takes me on a Friday night to see Javier & The Innocents. Armed security, dance floor, popcorn and a whole lotta entertainment.

I have seen some interesting people and scenes in here, but it's not a museum. It's a bar with pool tables, live music most nights, and free popcorn. Don't sit at the table near the mens room and don't ask the bartender to do anything fancy. read more

The two of us stopped by for the first time from the "burbs" to watch some Live Music which was great. The Band was complimented by a local air guitarrist insistant on helping play each song . It's a damn shame that the "Bad Pennies" won't be playing there on Sundays anymore. Room enough to take a spin on the dance floor. We played some pool and a couple tried to hussle us for drinks and Cash but when I ended up running the table they dissappeared. A regular watched the whole thing go down and bought us each a drink for putting them in thier place. The waitress gave us a head's up about the two, and the locals were protective and welcoming. Yes, there were some shady characters, but they were more interesting than shady. Live and let live and just relax. We opted out from just having frozen pizza from the bar. The waitress suggested the Asian restauarnt next door. After we ordered the food they were happy to walk it over to us at the bar. Had a wonderful time with the regulars who made us feel welcome, but also let us have our own time if when we wanted it. We would go back, plus we own that pool table and we are still owed a drink from the pool hustlers. Good to break away from the trendy cookie cutter bars and get down and dirty. Yay! I'm a fan! read more

Love this place the bartender Justin is hospitable and quick to respond to customers. A great bar for a local flavor.

This is one of the best bar's in South Minneapolis; people are friendly; great patio in back. Go back again; and again!

There's nothing cute or ironic about this place. Our Pedal Pub stopped on here on a tour and we left shortly because the bartender was so rude. They apparently don't care about you unless you're one of their chronic alcoholics. Hopefully it'll burn down soon. read more

i went here and put a dollar in the jukebox. some guy shouted "YO PLAY SOME R KELLY, DOGG!" i played Jay Z and he goes "AWWW YEAH!!" there's popcorn too. read more

Went for the music and became of fan of this local, historic bar. I love that they are committed to live music (with a stage, even!)......they served a decent mixed drink and had craft brew on tap. Pool tables, pull tabs, and a diverse crowd! What's not to like? read more

This is an amazing venue. Blues music all the time gotta love it! So happy to have found this place. I will keep coming back again and again. Best nights are Thursday and Sunday, imo. read more