Best Bars in Fort Lauderdale: 16 Places, Neighborhood by Neighborhood
Fort Lauderdale's bar scene splits by neighborhood: the beach has the institutions, Himmarshee has the late-night lounges, Flagler Village and Progresso Village have the breweries, garden bars and arcade bars, and Wilton Manors has the Drive. We run a taproom in Progresso Village, so this list is written by people who drink in this city and includes our competitors, ranked by what each one does best rather than by a score. Everything on it was open as of September 2026. Hours in this town change often; the times here are the published ones, so check before a special trip.
Rhythm + Vine — Flagler Village (garden bar)
Rhythm + Vine, at 401 NE 5th Terrace, has been Flagler Village's backyard since 2013: an outdoor garden bar with vintage furniture under the trees, an Airstream trailer bar, rotating food trucks and DJs on weekends. It is open Wednesday through Sunday, from late afternoon until well past midnight, and it is the answer to "where do we go after dinner" in the neighborhood.
Glitch Bar & Arcade — Flagler Village (arcade bar)
Glitch, at 905 NE 5th Ave, is a bar full of retro and independent arcade cabinets and pinball, with 24 draft lines and a game-pass wristband so you are not feeding quarters. It is open daily, until 2 or 3 AM. Bring a group; it is the best bar in the city for people who do not want to sit still.
Laser Wolf — Progresso Village (craft beer bar)
Laser Wolf, at 901 Progresso Dr in a triangular building beside the railroad tracks, is the craft beer bar's craft beer bar: family-owned since 2011, a dozen rotating drafts and a deep list of bottles and cans, no kitchen, no pretension. It opens in the evening on weekdays and mid-afternoon on weekends. It is a five-minute walk from our taproom and we send people there constantly.
Invasive Species Brewing — Flagler Village (brewery)
Invasive Species, at 726 NE 2nd Ave, is the brewery that doubles as a bar: 24 taps of house beer that lean toward IPAs and sours, spirits from its own still, a taxidermy-covered taproom, a covered dog-friendly patio and a food truck out front. It opens in the evening on weekdays and early afternoon on weekends and runs late. The best brewery in the city for a Saturday night rather than a Saturday afternoon.
Uncommon Path Brewing — Progresso Village (brewery with a kitchen)
That's us, at 710 NW 5th Ave, Suite 1071, in the Thrive Art District. House-brewed beer, a full bar with wine and cocktails, wood-fired pizza from an on-site kitchen, indoor and open-air seating, a dog-friendly patio, free parking, and a weekly rhythm: happy hour Monday through Thursday, official Jeopardy! Bar League trivia on Tuesdays at 7 PM, live music on Fridays. Open daily from noon. What we are not is a late-night bar; we close at 8 PM on Sunday, 10 PM Monday through Thursday, and 11 PM on Friday and Saturday.
Sistrunk Marketplace & Brewery — Progresso Village (food hall bar)
Sistrunk Marketplace, at 115 NW 6th St, is a 23,000-square-foot food hall with its own brewery and distillery, a central bar, an axe-throwing lane and live music several nights a week. It is the place for a group that cannot agree on dinner, and it is a ten-minute walk from Laser Wolf and our taproom, which makes a Progresso Village crawl of three stops. Closed early in the week; check the day.
The Wilder — Broward Boulevard (cocktail lounge)
The Wilder, at 701 E Broward Blvd on the border of downtown and Flagler Village, is a 21-and-up cocktail lounge with a garden room, a serious cocktail list, burlesque nights and a Tuesday-through-Saturday happy hour from 5 to 7 PM. Closed Mondays; Sundays it is a daytime bar. It is the dress-up bar on this list.
Stache Drinking Den — Himmarshee (1920s lounge)
Stache, at 109 SW 2nd Ave in the Himmarshee entertainment district, is a two-level 1920s-styled lounge with three bars, live bands, DJs, burlesque and cabaret nights, and one of the better whiskey lists in South Florida. It is a late bar, open Thursday through Saturday nights, and some nights are ticketed. It is where downtown goes after midnight.
Original Fat Cat's — Himmarshee (live music dive)
Original Fat Cat's, at 320 Himmarshee St, is the live-music dive at the head of the SW 2nd Street strip, with bands most nights, cheap drinks and Panthers games on the screens. Nothing about it is polished, which is the point. Pizza Craft is next door if you need to eat.
Tap 42 — South Andrews (gastropub)
Tap 42 Craft Kitchen & Bar, at 1411 S Andrews Ave in the SoLo district south of downtown, has 50 taps and 42 bourbons, a courtyard, a rooftop, a full kitchen and the busiest brunch in the city on weekends. It is open daily from late morning until 10 PM or midnight. The bar for a group that wants a full meal and a big drinks list under one roof.
The Riverside Market — Riverside Park (beer store bar)
The Riverside Market, at 608 SW 12th Ave, is a neighborhood market with more than five hundred beers in the coolers, a small tap list, sandwiches and pizza, and picnic tables outside where dogs are welcome. You pick your bottle from the cooler and drink it there. It has made national best-beer-bar lists and it opens early and closes late.
Tarpon River Brewing — Tarpon River (brewpub)
Tarpon River Brewing, at 280 SW 6th St in a converted 1929 horse barn just south of downtown, pours 16 or more house beers and has a real kitchen and dog-friendly outdoor tables. It is the downtown brewery to pick for dinner and a few pints rather than a late night.
Elbo Room — Fort Lauderdale Beach (the institution)
The Elbo Room, at 241 S Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd on the corner of Las Olas and A1A, has been open since 1938, appeared in the 1960 spring-break film Where the Boys Are, and has live music daily on two floors with the ocean across the street. It is 21 and up and open from late morning until 2 or 3 AM. Every visitor should go once; every local has been more than once.
Rock Bar — Fort Lauderdale Beach (beach bar)
Rock Bar, at 219 S Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd, is the beach bar a block south of the Elbo Room: open-air, across from the sand, a two-for-one happy hour, hookah and a crowd that goes until the small hours. It opens in the morning and closes around 4 AM. Not subtle, and the best of the strip's pure beach bars.
Kim's Alley Bar — Victoria Park (dive)
Kim's Alley Bar, at 1920 E Sunrise Blvd in the Gateway shopping plaza, has been a dive since 1948, with pool, darts, ping-pong and, as one of the last bars in the state that allows it, indoor smoking. It is a Fort Lauderdale time capsule. Big Louie's pizza is a few doors down.
Wilton Drive — Wilton Manors (the strip)
Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors, ten minutes north of downtown, is a walkable strip of bars and restaurants and the heart of South Florida's LGBTQ nightlife, with Rosie's Bar & Grill's patio, Georgie's Alibi, Hunters and a dozen others offering drag, karaoke, trivia and live music most nights. Saturday is the busiest. It is the only bar district in the county where you can park once and walk to fifteen bars.
Picking a night
Beach afternoon into evening: Elbo Room then Rock Bar. Downtown late: Stache and Fat Cat's on Himmarshee. Flagler Village crawl: Heritage or Mister O1 for pizza, Invasive Species, Glitch, Rhythm + Vine. Progresso Village crawl: Sistrunk Marketplace, Laser Wolf, Uncommon Path. Craft beer nerd: Riverside Market, Laser Wolf, and our Fort Lauderdale breweries guide. Big group with dinner: Tap 42 or Sistrunk Marketplace. Date: The Wilder, then a walk on the Riverwalk. Cheapest fun night out: free trivia at our taproom on a Tuesday during happy hour.
What are the best bars in Fort Lauderdale?
By neighborhood: Rhythm + Vine, Glitch Bar and Invasive Species Brewing in Flagler Village; Laser Wolf, Sistrunk Marketplace and Uncommon Path Brewing in Progresso Village; Stache and Original Fat Cat's in Himmarshee; the Elbo Room and Rock Bar on the beach; Tap 42 on South Andrews; The Riverside Market for craft beer; and Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors.
What is the oldest bar in Fort Lauderdale?
The Elbo Room at Las Olas and A1A has been open since 1938. Kim's Alley Bar on East Sunrise Boulevard dates to 1948.
Where is the nightlife in Fort Lauderdale?
The Himmarshee district downtown (SW 2nd Street) for late-night lounges and live music, Fort Lauderdale Beach along A1A for beach bars, Flagler Village for garden bars, arcade bars and breweries, and Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors for a walkable strip.
What are the best craft beer bars in Fort Lauderdale?
Laser Wolf in Progresso Village, The Riverside Market in Riverside Park, Tap 42 on South Andrews, and the breweries themselves: Uncommon Path, Invasive Species, Orchestrated Minds, Tarpon River, Gulf Stream and LauderAle.
Which Fort Lauderdale bars have trivia?
Uncommon Path Brewing runs official Jeopardy! Bar League trivia every Tuesday at 7 PM, free to play. Several bars on Wilton Drive run trivia nights as well; check their weekly schedules.
What time do bars close in Fort Lauderdale?
Most bars in the city can serve until 2 AM on weeknights, and many downtown and beach bars run until 3 or 4 AM on Friday and Saturday. Breweries and taprooms typically close earlier; Uncommon Path Brewing closes at 8 PM on Sunday, 10 PM Monday through Thursday, and 11 PM on Friday and Saturday.
Uncommon Path Brewing — 710 NW 5th Ave, Suite 1071, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311.
- Address
- 710 NW 5th Ave, Suite 1071, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311 (Progresso / Flagler Village (Thrive Art District))
- Hours
- Mon–Thu 12 PM–10 PM, Fri–Sat 12 PM–11 PM, Sun 12 PM–8 PM (America/New_York)
- Phone
- (954) 765-6016
- Price range
- $$
- Parking
- Free street parking on NW 5th Ave and the surrounding Progresso Village blocks
- Seating
- Indoor taproom plus open-air patio seating
- Dogs
- Dog-friendly patio
- Families
- Family welcome — kids can order from the food menu
- Food
- Wood-fired kitchen on site: pizza, wings, salads, handhelds and shareable plates
- Live music
- Live local music every Friday night
- Trivia
- Jeopardy! Bar League every Tuesday at 7 PM, hosted by Geeks Who Drink — free to play
Call Uncommon Path Brewing at (954) 765-6016 or email events@uncommonpathbrewing.com.