The drinks were actually pretty good. The bartender seemed offstandish but not unprofessional until he saw my girlfriend and her friend went to the restroom at the same time. At that point he darted off to the restrooms trying to barg in accusing them of doing drugs. We have never been so insulted in a bar restaurant setting before. when i confronted him about it he said people only go to the restroom together for 2 reasons to do drugs and to have sex. Really you never went out with a woman and her friends? What kind of people hang out here? There are a lot nicer bars with nicer staff to spend your hard earned money at AVOID at all cost. read more

Nice bar,not really divey anymore,unless you sit in one of the broken booths. Otherwise, decent drinks, not cheap but quality. Comfortable patio & billiards/shuffle board. read more

I went in because I love the sign but wasn't sure what to expect on the inside besides predicting it would be dark. First, it's huge! Pool table and shuffle board, tin ceilings and it is dark - like a bar like this should be. I was DD for the night and the bartender, Austin, was friendly and made me the best mocktail I've ever had in my life. I can't wait to go back to share this cool neighborhood spot with friends and grab a real drink! And they are open till 2am every night and serve food till 11 I think from a BBQ joint in the back...and it smelled delish! I read some of the other reviews - can't speak for the bathrooms because I didn't go. read more

The Aristocrat Lounge - The front of the Aristocrat - Dive Bars Near Me - Austin, Texas

See all

Seriously, some of these bartenders here are complete assholes. It puts a bad taste in your mouth before you even get to taste your drink. It's been mentioned in about half of the reviews posted here, why has this not been addressed? Just go to Pourhouse or Lala's instead. Both are less than 60 seconds away. read more

You can change owners and change names and start serving liquor, but some parts of Poodle Dog still remain. And by that I mean: if you have to pee, just hold it and go at home. Because yikes. read more

I agree with skull B. Spot on! I also went and the mix drink I ordered had ginger in it...it was yuck!!! And over priced.

The Aristocrat is what I would call a "faux dive bar" but I mean that in a good way. Apparently, the ownership changed and some money was put into the place to update it a bit. Nonetheless, they were obviously wanting to keep the dive bar vibe....the outcome was successful. A nice and roomy place by dive bar standards, a good feel, decent quality pool tables (I prefer green felt over red, but if that's all you have to bitch about, you're hurting), and a nice shuffleboard. The drink prices were very reasonable. Even though it was a busy night, the bartenders were ready at the draw...never had to wait long. read more

This is like one of those hipster bars where you pay for the novelty of the bartender being mean to you. Kudos, if that's what you're into. Other than that I like the vibe. read more

Great place. The bartender was efficient with the crowd and made great drinks, Happy Hour goes til 8 pm, Three Little Pigs food truck is phenomenal. read more

Thursday nights this spot is a nice hangout. Dj chicken george on the 1s and 2s. Furniture needs some attention but the drinks are decent and hey have 2 pool tables. Great for groups and dimly lit so everyone looks great. Lol. Parking sucks tho. That my reason for no 5th star read more

I went for the specials they were doing on Trumps Inauguration Day, and arrived five minutes after their opening to a wait in line for half an hour just to order a drink! They must not have expected the crowd they were going to get because they only had a few bartenders on and the wait was long- all night long! My drink was okay, the environment was okay; don't think I'll be back. Not because there was anything wrong with it, but nothing memorable. Kudos to them though for having this event and donating 100% of the profits to charity. read more

So I have only been to this bar once before and thought it was ok enough to try out again. The first guy that helped us was a white male with a beard and was very arrogant, condasending and pretentious. Right away made my gf and I unwelcomed. So when I decided to finally buy drinks A black guy helped me and I ordered a Jack and coke with a splash pinapple. Pretty fucking simple. The dude forgets the pinapple so i said hey man is there any pinapple.. he says i might have forgotten so he remakes the drinks. Well I get the drinks back and it looks like it's all just pinapple.. sure enough leave it to beaver to forget the coke now... really.. I was with 4 people and we all were very disappointed with service here and have no problem ever stepping foot in that dam place again. Horrible customer service or any service for that matter( Juke box) hardly any selections. Don't waste your time unless these idiots are not working,it might be better but with 3 stars I see why now.. read more

Good enough if you live on Burnet and need a hang out with friends. Plenty of space to chill or play pool, shuffle board, darts, and skee ball (when the machine is not broken). Craft drinks are just ok for their price. read more

YAAAAAAAAS!!! I love dark corners, especially when there are comfy booths in them & juke boxes nearby. I love crawling into the dark corner booth at the Aristocrat, sippin on a dark & stormy and catching up with my friends. The staff is friendly and the drinks are cold. WHY AREN'T YOU THERE RIGHT NOW?!? read more

Why did they bother? They should have kept it as The Poodle Dog. At least you knew what you were getting -- a beer joint. It's still a dark beer joint, now with pricier drinks. Odd layout. Super dark. Don't order a dirty martini -- ours were so dirty we couldn't drink them. A few cheap chandeliers don't equate to "swank" or class. read more

I don't understand any of the bad reviews. Their wells are good. Fairly priced. Nice ambiance and great patio. Cute bartenders and never overly crowded. My favorite go-to bar. read more

Its funny to see the same problem I see with the bar, The bar has great food choices, nice atmosphere, my problems is also with the rude bartenders, who say they own the bar, which I do not believe is the case. If you own the bar you don't treat your custumers that way. they act like its a problem for them to make you a drink. What is crazy is both of them have the same attitude! The bad kind. Waiting 15 minutes to get a drink, I am always a good tipper too! but tips for me are to be earned not a given, Then they say things that are insulting to me and my friends! the men bartenders are aweful, the lady seems nice, their only saving grace. read more

If you want a real dive, overpriced drinks($10 well whiskey sour), assorted patrons, and a generally unfriendly staff then check this place out. read more

So glad I found this spot, great music and Pool tables! Just recently moved here from SF and I think I found my spot for pool and drinks. I might even go back tonight. read more

This place is my jam! The selection, the music, the cocktails, everything. Chris the bartender is fantastic. The food trailer is super tasty. And they raised money for the ACLU! Can't say enough about this awesome neighborhood bar. read more

Drinks were reasonable prices. Atmosphere was cool. I liked all the game options. I am taking off a few stars for the bathroom. I am ok with a divey bathroom but the toilet needs to flush. read more

Overall it seemed ok, for being a hipsterized dive bar and lounge. The staff and people there were good, and my margarita was $7, which was ok, but not a superb deal. I think this place would be awesome with a group of friends, or on the right night when they're busy. I'm glad we stopped and we had a fun time. read more

Its good. Dark lounge feel that we liked a lot. Pool tables and games. Sound system pretty decent.

Decent dive-type bar with lots of room, a couple of pool tables, some space outdoors that I didn't check out, a small lineup of beer on tap but a full bar as well. I also like it because I can walk there. read more

I'll go ahead and get this place five stars, cuz it's cool and all sorts of ways. But, I have to mention that the bartender was very rude to me and wouldn't tell me where Austin K. was at the time. He was very evasive and for some reason, wanted to protect Austin's privacy. read more

Great spot to grab a cocktail and catch up with your buddies! The super dim lighting, pool tables & shuffle board keeps it at the dive bar status, but the new chandeliers and Marilyn Monroe pictures and cozy booths have upgraded it to classy dive status! Miguel made me a couple amazing cocktails from their cocktail menu and they were spectacular! read more

Cool bar with really great cocktails and fun games. However, the bathroom is DISGUSTING

Kind of new to Austin, as are maybe a million others. Found this place to be a must stop for Burnet. Garth took good care of us, and we chatted with a local for a good while. We will be back. read more

I have been coming to the Poodle Dog before I moved into the Brentwood neighborhood. This has been going on over 20 years. With that said, I wouldnt say that the Poodle was my favorite hang out but it was better than half the bars in town. I enjoyed every moment I was there. It had a very eclectic feel, rustic and a genuine historic quality. They almost made it to 50 years, it was sad to see them go. Now a new bar opens in its place. Its definitely no Poodle Dog. I have to say that I like the upgrade. I cant say Im going to miss "all" of the clientele that used to roam the Poodle inside and out but the change is inviting. For most who have never been to Poodle Dog this is by far a much needed upgrade. Its still dark, no windows, the bathrooms are still the same but Im sure that may change. It feels like a good neighborhood bar. I do agree the cocktail menu makes it seem a bit fancy but we'll see how that turns out. I can still get a decent priced Lone Star, now lets see if I can get them to work on the Jameson shot prices, ha! The overall vibe is still inviting. Still has pool tables, shuffle board and now skeeball. Looking forward to what they do with the music. I will miss the Poodle Dog Lounge, I have many memories there. I am looking forward to some new ones. The place looks great and I know these guys are working hard to make changes as they continue to grow. I will definitely be coming back. And for all the 1 stars and haters, your right its not the same Poodle Dog, its not filled with toothless women & prostitutes. Its a new bar with some much needed change. Shout to the bartenders! read more

First, the things l like: Good atmosphere with some nice dark booths, great shuffleboard, and decent pool tables. The crowd is an interesting mix, so it can be fun to people-watch. The jukebox selection and sound works well. The things I don't like: Given the condition of the inside in general, the bathrooms and outdoor area need serious attention because they look like they belong to another place. But that doesn't bother me as much as the bartenders. My wife and I have always felt like Aristocrat bartenders were indifferent to whether customers drank there or somewhere else, but a recent 'incident' prompted us to end our relationship with what was one of our hangouts. The bearded bartender with the cap (complained about in other reviews) met us with the aforementioned attitude we've come to expect. I'll spare the blow by blow, but after some confusion over how many drinks we could order, my last attempt at confirming the TABC rules he lined out (btw I was absolutely sober) was met with "how many times do I have to tell you...?" Well, once, clearly. My wife and I looked at eachother and agreed on the spot that we were having our last drinks here. Get this guy an attitude adjustment or the boot and we may come back. Until then, the Local Post down the street, while lacking some "character," has really nice restrooms, a better outdoor area, and very friendly bartenders. read more

While the drinks are tasty, the service is atrocious. I was trying to order a drink for my boyfriend who was sitting with some friends at a table, the bartender asked me to point out who the extra drink was for. It was weird, but fine. I pointed him out and the bartender told me that "the guy in the red shirt told me he didn't want another drink". I didn't even know how to respond, so finally I said, "well, he does now". They did end up giving me 2 drinks, one for myself and 1 for him, but not without persuasion (it's a bar, we clearly want a drink!). Later, in the middle of my drink order (this time ordering 3 drinks, all for friends, which is apparently frowned upon here), the bartender poured one of 3 drinks and walked away without giving me the others! Also, this was not the same bartender, they were all this rude! It was one of the worst service experiences I've had in a long time. I will not be returning solely because of the truly horrible service. read more

There's something for everyone here. Good beer selection (ranging from Miller Lite to yummy fancy local beers), always a fun frozen cocktail, a great liquor selection (including lots of mezcal), and some super legit cocktails like the Mission Statement (basically a fig old-fashioned, yum!). There's a nice-sized patio area, pool tables, a long bar and also cozy booths if you want something more intimate. And the owners, management and bartenders are all good decent people. I recommend this place to people a lot. read more

Austin is dead! Long live Austin! This if the former Poodle Dog and sadly, I never made it there during its life. Well, I finally checked this place out and boy it's an interesting place! If you're my friend, you know that I love dark, dank, divey bars. This place definitely fits that bill. I was actually upset that there was one window that had bright sunlight beading inside. This place smells like a 30+ year old ashtray. You just can't get that smell out after so long. The crowd is as mixed a bag as you'd expect this close to north Austin. The jukebox is digital, gag, so there was a lot of WTF moments in music for me. They have pool tables, shuffleboard and some video games. I love that they have a whole menu of craft cocktails and house made infused spirits. I also love that during HH they're $2 off. The cocktails are very, very good as well. My only gripe? They have one bartender working and making those craft drinks and well, lines can be longer and wait times even longer. I'd definitely go back though! In a heartbeat! read more