Emma's the best bartender she cut my tab in half and will prob get fired for it we love her

my favorite bar of all time!! so many great people working behind the bar, the new management is amazing and prioritizes customer satisfaction, and playing in their beach volleyball league has been SO much fun!! always a good vibe when i go & i have such a great time!! also sidenote for the girls... the bathroom mirror is my favorite in birmingham for mirror pics !! read more

I stopped by SideBar on a whim because I was looking for a casual place where I didn't have to dress up. The outdoor seating was nice, with both covered and uncovered options, although the lighting outside could have been a little better. I was sitting on the patio because I had food from the taco truck. They checked IDs at the door, which wasn't an issue. At 34, I actually didn't feel much older than most of the crowd, which was a pleasant surprise. The drink selection seemed a bit limited. I wanted to try the frozen espresso that was advertised on the menu board, but they told me they didn't have it that night. That seemed a little odd, especially for a Friday night when you'd expect popular menu items to be available. Inside, the venue was spacious and featured a live band, which added to the atmosphere. It wasn't overly crowded, and I appreciated that. They also have outdoor beach volleyball courts. I didn't make it out to the courts, but I could see people gathered around watching the games. One thing I found a little unusual was that I was told I had to eat my food on the patio. It wasn't a problem, but it seemed odd since I didn't notice them serving food inside. I'm guessing it's probably a cleanliness or policy issue. Overall, I'd definitely come back, especially for a super casual night. The relaxed atmosphere, live music, and outdoor space made it an enjoyable place to hang out. read more

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Sidebar is always a fun place to go in Lakeview. They have beach volleyball outside. My friends and I last came here on St. Patrick's Day when most places were closed for the night already. They had drink specials and good live music too! read more

SideBar - Pink lemonade - Bars Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

Fun spot! Great watering hole pre- and post-COVID. Friendly bartenders and an easy place to come back!

Love the atmosphere! New owners took over 2 years ago and me and my friends are there 3-4 nights a week out of the week now. Drinks specials at always good and the staff is so nice read more

SideBar - Bars Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

I liked playing beach volleyball. It was a lot of fun when me and my friends went. I dont know about service because I never get anything. Idek if they have food. read more

Place actually sucks. Bartenders pay you no attention. They all hang out some where they're not supposed to be. It almost like you have to demand for a drink it's ridiculous. When they do finally make a drink it always sucks. I don't recommend this place. Just head over to Billy's tavern. read more

If you're looking for a fun and youthful spot to hang out in Bham, this is it. Fun and energetic atmosphere. They require ID and charged for entry after a certain hour so be sure to have identification and cash on you to avoid using the ATM. The drinks were okay and the $10 bucket was a DEAL! Shoutout to the DJ who had a variety of music playing and had everyone dancing! Definitely planning to come here again when in town. read more

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Went there for a private party so I can't say what a regular night would be like. However staff was friendly , there's an outdoor beach volleyball area, what appeared to be a dance floor, several TVs, pool table. All the seating appeared to be bar stools or elevated bench seats. Don't know about food, cover charge, minimum, etc. read more

Best time in Alabama, awesome bartenders and atmosphere , had had an absolute blast here

Come here and you will not regret it. Hays brown was our bartender. Awesome service. Great drinks, good beers they were ice cold couldn't ask for a better time 10 out of 10 review. Be sure to ask for a purple hays read more

Loud music, good drinks, plenty people. What's not to love? The bathrooms were actually nice and clean and did not smell of old vomit and regret. This place gets two thumbs way way up. read more

SideBar - a blue drink in a plastic cup with a straw - Bars Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

Best place in town to grab a drink and have a good time! Great specials, friendly bartenders, good music. I always enjoy my time here.

Lynn was the best bartender I've ever had! Great service! Great environment! Good music, good vibes! You should come see them!

the vibes are great. the drinks are good. service is quick and reliable. always good people to play pool. volleyball is great too.

Fantastic service and the drinks are top notch. I would highly recommend side bar to any party goers or bar hoppers

This is a fantastic place. It has a lot of outside space. Games like pool, jenga, darts, and for the more energetic beach volleyball (minus the ocean). They have a reasonable selection of draft beer and any mixed drink you could want. They do not serve food. If you plan to go on a weeknight (Mon-Thurs) the inside bray be closed and the outside bar has a limited selection of beer. But it is quiet and relaxing. If you go on Friday or Saturday it's a different world. At 7 it is quiet and peaceful but by 9 the scene changes. The Yuppies start showing up in droves and it becomes a friendly rowdy crowd (which I enjoy). By 11 it is packed. I love this place except for one thing. Cigarette smoking is permitted in the outside area so it can get quite smokey if there is no wind. It is almost a flashback to the Southside of the mid 80's read more

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I went to school in Birmingham and went out very often. Long story short... there has always been something to complain about after a night out here. The bartenders were always assholes. Recently the bouncers have been absolute dick heads. (And not just once but almost every time, and i went here a lot). My friends and I paid them to have our private party there, we spent tons of money on an open bar and food yet they treated us like shit. If you're going to this area I recommend Moes and Innisfree DO NOT GO HERE you will have a bad time. read more

Is there an anti-star so my bf and I go to grab a drink DJ is playing generic stolen house mix of popular songs. So I ordered a Tito's with orange and cranberry but it seemed very weak so my bf went back to get the same drink turns out the bartender gave us Tito's with water and cranberry (who orders such a monstrosity)!!! We asked for the drinks to be replaced and they literally acted a damn fool and did the the most instead of simply replacing or taking the drinks off our tab!! read more

If you have never been to Sidebar, you should at least check it out. Located in the Lakeview district, they have an outdoor sand volleyball area, Jenga and darts. They are called Sidebar because there is an actual bar on the side of the building which is open most of the time. There is also an inside bar but everytime I have been there, except once, it was closed. The have a pretty good craft beer selection and the prices are typical. There is an outdoor patio with a fan in the front but alot of people smoke there, so if you don't smoke be aware. People of all ages come to this bar, but FYI late at night, there is a younger crowd. read more

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This is your run of the mill dim lit place. It had more than enough bartenders for a Friday evening, actually they had so many that some of them were standing around. For a place that I hear is not that old, I would have thought that there would be more of a crowd. They do not serve food to my knowledge. So bring the spouse or a group of friends and take a load off. They do offer a warming area if you choose to be outside in the winter time. read more

SideBar - Fireball shot in a medical cup. - Bars Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

On June 17, 2023 between 8:30/8:45 pm, 11 of my guests and myself were enjoying celebrating my birthday on a Birmingham Pedal Tour ride. Side Bar was our 2nd stop. Unfortunately, we were greeted by 2 young white males who stated that they don't participate with Birmingham Pedal Tours and that they wouldn't make enough money from us. Our stay would've been around 20 minutes. I would think 12 people who bought anywhere from 1-2 drinks each would've been a nice amount of money for 20 minutes top. Every woman on the bike ride was Black. It was immediately recognized as discrimination! In order for my guests to continue to have a good night, I chose to deal with this matter later. It was a hard pill to swallow and move on to the next place without voicing my absolute disgust! I would never recommend this place to anyone of Brown or Black color as long as those 2 young men are there and whomever told them or was in agreeance with what they did! The young man who was the driver of our bike also noticed it. It was very obvious that this was a usual stop for this vendor, or he wouldn't have just stopped there. I DEFINITELY WOULDN'T RECOMMEND THIS PLACE TO ANYONE WHO DOESN'T HAVE THE SAME IGNORANT MINDSET AS THESE EMPLOYEES OF " THE SIDE BAR"! read more

Hey "y'all" LOL, still getting used to the south and all its charms! I thought The Side Bar would be a basic southern bar, but its quirky atmosphere revealed itself to me on a serene and uneventful Wednesday night. I was surprised to see the sand this far inland HA!! I played with some balls with my new friends and thoroughly enjoyed serving the balls to the players who were uneasy on playing with me. When approaching the SIDE bar, they were quick on the miller lites and fulfilled my requests for something spicier... YUMMY TEQUILA!! My only complaint was there wasn't enough outdoor AC to cool me off while I was getting after these balls on this fluctuating court. PHEW, i worked up a SWEAT! Overall, i was satisfied with the ball games and beverages supplied by my new friends at the Side Bar. read more

Great place to get ruffled. BEWARE! Just couldn't tell if the staff was in on it. I will be forever weary about going to this place.

Want a place to just unwind after work or a great place to hang with friends on the weekend then Side Bar is the real deal. Not to mention they have an outdoor beach volleyball court for those who like a good game with their Tall Boy Miller Lite. Side Bar happy hour is one the best in town with something different everyday and a great selection of draft beers including a few local craft brews. The staff is great and can make any type of drink you want. Beautiful patio when the weather is perfect you can get a game of corn-hole, darts and giant jenga. read more

Great place to hang out with friends and enjoy a variety of music. They offer outside seating as well.

Fraudulently charged my card as well as all of my friends cards' 15 days after I had been there. Won't answer their phone. The fraudulent charge showed up as "Sidebar" but the original charge from the date I was actually there showed up as "Cafe DuPont." Super sketchy that they posted the charges under 2 different names. After multiple attempts to contact them, my friends and I can't get anyone on the phone. Needless to say, we won't be returning. Sad because I liked this bar. read more

I have been to this bar multiple times and it's typically fun but sometimes more of an older crowd. HOWEVER the last time I was there I owed 42$ because I bought drinks and left my tan open overnight so was charged automatic gratuity, but then when I checked my bank account they had charged me 90$!!!!! The bartender definitely gave herself some extra tips or used my card for other purchases. ALWAYS CLOSE OUT HERE. read more

I go for trivia and they have great specials. Huge patio is nice for a group of friends. Bartender needs to smile and be more personable. read more

SideBar - Very nice decor - Bars Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

I have mixed feelings about this place. I do like the atmosphere inside and love the large, partially covered patio outside. The trivia night was definitely a lot of fun. However, the drinks are overpriced for what you get. Each time we see the bill here, we are amazed at how much more it is than we thought it should be. read more

SideBar - Some good dancing can happen during trivia night!! - Bars Near Me - Birmingham, Alabama

Pretty nice place, definitely a dive-vibe. It's in a great location though! Good place for a happy hour drink before walking somewhere else for dinner. Also a good place to host a post-work event for a small crowd. Not too crowded around 6pm on a work day. I was there on a Tuesday and I was surprised there weren't more people. Parking is really difficult so give yourself extra time to circle around and search for a spot! read more

Props on the new beach volleyball setup (aka Sandbar)! I believe EVERY city needs these. This will catapault Sidebar into a new category, seeing as how it wasn't known for a certain attribute before (to my knowledge). I will definitely be frequenting Sandbar for sure, probably more for pickup games or the occasional tournament read more

Cute set up. Drinks are on the higher end and there is usually a cover. Too busy during high time or holidays

The worst bar in Birmingham. Do not go. The staff is so terribly rude. I wouldn't recommend to anyone

A friend of mine was treated very unfairly at this bar. After waiting in line to order drinks, the bar tender was extremely rude and unpleasant. Our drinks were very watered down, and my friend politely asked the bar tender if she could remake his drink because it tasted as if the soda had gone flat. She retorted that "if you don't like how I make my drinks leave" as she threw his money back at him. He then requested to speak with a manager, instead of being allowed to speak with a manager he was escorted out of the bar by security. The only explanation given for him being forced to leave the bar was that it was a "private establishment". Our entire group was thoroughly embarrassed and confused about the situation. As medical students, we often go out in large groups after exams or to get a break from studying. Needless to say, we will never again bring our business to Sidebar again and will spread the word about the rude, unprofessional, and terrible service. read more

Legitimately awful. This bar is among the most unpleasant, unfortunate bars I've ever had the misfortune of walking in to. From start to finish this place was disappointing. They chose to charge $10 for the "privilege" of coming inside what turned out to be the labor mediocre bar in the city of Birmingham (which is really saying something). There are many, many places that are much better in this town. Avoid Sidebar. read more

Your bartenders have no idea how to work a bar. I stood at the bar for 40 minutes before getting a drink. With the size of the crowd, I would have expected a ten minute wait, but nothing more. They completely ignored the entire middle section of the bar. Cool atmosphere but poor service. read more

Bar area is nice and big. The lighting is cool. The happy hour bartender is good. I really like the patio it's a great space for a beer.

They always play good music to drink and dance. There is definitely more room to dance (and breathe) than Innisfree. Every time I have went there wasn't a huge line for the bathroom either. Two bars to get drinks, one in the dance cave and one long one in the bar area. There is also a pool table, darts, and an outside patio where there is a corn hole set. read more