Brewers Bar

A great gay bar with nice staff and great events. The drinks are excellent, and the place itself is very charming. There is a large patio outside for smoking and vaping, which adds to the greatness of the place!Overall, I'd recommend coming here not only for drinks, but also the events they hold.

Walked in on a Monday around 6:30pm and was delighted to find out that drag bingo was starting at 7pm. Complimentary snacks were served, $10 for 10 games, with prizes for the winners of each round. There were some local queens in the crowd, but overall, the vibe was pretty tame. I ordered a gin and tonic, served in a solo cup. The inside of the bar is very clean, well decorated and lit. The outside patio area has old Pittsburgh charm. I will be back for some drag shows!

Cool spot - very lay back and inexpensive neighborhood/ gay bar. Seems pretty chill- nice people. I needed a beer and this place showed up. Patio outside- Yuengling on tap for $3.50 not bad. Eddy is the Barkeep - chill guy.

I enjoy Brewer's weekday happy hours. The bartenders are friendly, and depending on whose shift you go here on you may get a plate of pretzels and chips served complementary along with your beverage. The beverages, by the way, are incredibly cheap during happy hour: I've paid less here for a cosmo or a Long Island than I have anywhere else in the city. The venue itself is noteworthy: it has an intriguing history as a place that used to provide shelter for people suffering from AIDS several decades ago who had nowhere else to go. I have no idea if this place still functions as a hotel or an apartment complex in any way in its present form. The current owners inherited it from its prior owners and it's nice to see them keeping it going. Right now the current mottos are "A Bar For Everyone" and "Pittsburgh's Oldest Safe Space", both of which present a comforting and inclusive message. There are a couple of things that need to be noted here: one is that aside from holidays, the decor is fairly bare bones, in a way that doesn't give off much of a sense of place. Another is that Brewer's, at least early into the evening, is usually fairly empty, which might not be helped by its out-of-the-way location that is not exactly close to any bustling activity in the neighboring business districts. If you want to bar hop, though, it is fairly close to Church of Brew Works and it should be easy to manage both in one night. It is also on a bus route, making it possible to make it one stop on a tour of different venues. Additionally, depending on what you're looking for, a bar that is an empty house during the hours typical of an active dive bar might be a decent place to seek solace and a few drinks away from home and in a quiet venue, assuming you don't mind everything being served in a plastic cup - there is absolutely no glassware in sight, which just accentuates the casual, minimalistic environment. I wandered in here not knowing what to expect at first and will be honest that my first thought was "not impressed". On subsequent visits, I was able to check myself for snobbery and high expectations and to appreciate what this humble, historically important dive bar/hotel had to offer both in the past and in the present - and hopefully in the future as well.

So my thoughts on this little dive:I like it, I tell you. It's primarily a gay establishment but of course everyone is welcomed with open arms.Regulars treat newbies and people popping in now and again like family. Perhaps dysfunctional and drunk family but family all the same.Drinks are cheap. Crowd is fun. Bartenders are spot on.I'd give it four stars but then it wouldn't be a dive.

Amazing service and the bar has awesome selection of liquor. They had crown peach! Also they have a nice open window for comfortable summer hanging out. They also have a nice little back patio to sit out at. We will definitely be back:) also the drink prices are soooooo reasonable!!! We couldn't believe how cheap the tab was.

This place is dive to the max. In all the years I have been in the city I have never visited this establishment until recently. I have heard about this place from many friends and always shrugged it off as a place I would only go to if someone I was with wanted to head here for a drink. Well after close to twenty of being in and around the city I came here with a friend. I can safely say that I was not missing much by not visiting here and probably could do without visiting again. Parking is a bit sketchy, the lot that is used is kind of shared with the Family Dollar that recently opened. The part of the lot closest to the building is dark and on a hill, pretty treacherous to navigate after having a few or in bad weather. The location of this place basically prohibits parking on the street. Where Liberty Ave meets Ligonier St and Herron Ave, there is virtually no on street parking. To enter the bar you have to walk up a few steps to the door, so not handicap accessible. Inside it is a bit dark and narrow. The bar starts at the door and extends to what I assume is a dance floor area. I was told at one point they did have a DJ and there is a DJ booth further back, but it hasn't been in use for some time now. The bar is simple, not glitzy or glam like at all. Stools line the bar and there are some that line the table long wall opposite the bar. Enough room in between those two for standing room. The staff were polite, greeted us as we sat at the bar. The night when we were here it was not crowded at all, in fact I could count the number of people here on my two hands. The drink prices for this little dive were a bit in the deep end, at least for mixed drinks. Especially for the amount you got.It is quite interesting that this is really a hotel. But when people speak of this place, everyone automatically think of it as a gay bar. Seeing how I came here for the bar experience I cannot speak of the hotel. Which, if the rooms are anything like the bar, I'm going to guess that they aren't that spectacular. In all honesty, this place should really be listed as a bar.

I went here with my girlfriend for our first drag show, and we had a blast! Patrons were friendly, bartenders were generous, and they put on a great show! We'll definitely be back.

We went for the first time last night for the drag show and we were very surprised by the bar. Based on previous reviews we were not expecting what we got. Very clean updated space. The owner was very nice and accommodating. The staff was great. The Queens were beautiful and the show was great. We will definitely be going back. The tab prices guarantee that!

Ignored at the bar for 10 minutes with my roommate. Called "girl" twice within that time span. I'm a grown man with a beard, thanks. Short dudes (and trans ones) exist.