The Sip 'n Dip is a true Montana institution and a definite destination for anyone who wants a unique night out experience. It's like stepping back in time when you enter the place. It has the full on tiki bar vibe and an old school organist playing tunes in the back. The real draw here is the sexy mermaids though. Taking a cue from Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida, there's a huge pool behind the bar where the lovely ladies decked out in mermaid gear happily swim by and put on shows for the patrons. They are very friendly too, blowing kisses, waving, writing you messages on the glass, etc. There's a drink here called the Fishbowl as well that will knock you on your ass! Be sure to share it with your friends and try not to attempt it alone. The drinks are a bit pricey, but hey, it's worth it for the ambiance. Anyone travelling through the area needs to stop and experience it at least once. One of the most truly unique bars I have ever been to!
Review Source:What can I say that hasn't already been said? Â As a recent visitor to Great Falls, Sip 'n Dip certainly is a must-see attraction whether or not you want to be in a lounge and surrounded by people of all walks of life. Â It can be a busy place, so don't be surprised if you can't find a seat when you walk in the door. Â It only took about 15 min before a few people cleared out and made room for others.
It's a friendly environment and the signature drink is worth a try. Â The decor is stimulating even if you sit where you can't see the mermaids. Â Luckily, my spouse and I ended up sitting at the bar and were able to watch the main attraction. Â The elderly lady who entertains on the weekends really doesn't sing very well, if you ask me. Â I'm sure she was better in her younger years. Â Nonetheless, it adds something to the experience that makes it worth talking about. Â
We checked out the patio before leaving and they've done a good job with it, considering it's located beside the upper parking lot and truly cannot compete with the indoor lounge. Â It makes for decent overflow seating and a good place to catch some fresh air. Â
By the way, if you look under the age of 30, you'll be asked for I.D. and will be given a wristband to wear. Â I felt a little silly with it, but I'm 36 and took it as a compliment!
This place was way better than I expected. Â I came because it's one of those place you absolutely MUST visit when you're in town, but I ended up coming back because it was just a really good time.
The bartenders are friendly, and even as many tourists pass through that place, they managed to remember my "regular" drink order from one night to the next. Â The mermaids are really funny and playful.
I expected it to be a cabaret-style gratuitous girls-in-bikinis kind of thing that borders on the lewd, but instead the mermaids weren't selling sex, but they were having a good time mimicking people in the bar and feigning curiosity at our dry-land ways. Â They really sold the experience, and made for a fun few nights while I was in town.
When you go to Great Falls, you have to visit this place. I can honestly say this is one of the most interesting bars that I have ever seen. You have mermaids that swim around in a pool that is located behind the bar (YES, MERMAIDS), you have a 80+ year old woman playing a piano (bless her heart) and you have a bar that is ABSOLUTELY packed wall to wall. You have bachelor parties, bachelorette parties, people hanging out, drunk college students, all of which probably constitutes the most diverse bar I have ever been to in my life. If I were to go back to Great Falls, I would definitely go back, just to see if I get that same experience. As odd as the experience was, I have to admit, it was kinda fun.
Excellent idea to the person who thought of this place - ingenious!
Awesome. Even though the pool was under renovation, so no mermaids, Â it was a great place to hang out. This is a tiki bar that understands what it is and does not try to trick it up. Good drinks, fun decor, and Piano Pat playing and singing. This is a don't miss if you are passing through.
Review Source:This bar is the jewel of Great Falls! We came here for the history and left with some of the best memories ever. What a great time! Quite an array of people here, everyone from farm hands to bachelorette parties to tourists to college students to locals to military. Old and young. Pat, the organ player was fun, she took almost all of our requests. Drinks were great...how can you NOT have a tropical drink here...we had piña coladas and margaritas. I don't think our tab was very much at all. Great atmosphere. I still had a great time and give this place 5 stars, DISPITE the  lack of mermaids (pool was being fixed), and the rude, rude, rude female bartender. Customer service is absolutely NOT her forté.
Review Source:Depending on the night you go, I feel like this bar could be anywhere from a 2 to a 5 star experience. Â
On a random workday a co-worker and I ended up here after hearing about mermaids. Â When we went in 1 person was there, the bartender (@ 9pm), she said that the next night would be better as the mermaids were on. Â Mermaids? Â In Montana?
Our curiosity was piqued and returned the next night. Â We were rewarded with a random cross section of the city with college kids to 60 year olds. Â Behind the bar they had a rotation of two different girls swimming as mermaids. Â All together highly amusing. Â The bartenders are quick, funny and nice, but when there's actually people in the place it feels like a sardine can.
i LOVED everything about this bar. it had a great vibe, from the retro tiki decor to the completely varying clientele both times i went.  all types, all ages, not pretentious or tired at all.  i got to see Piano Pat both times i went, and her songs always kept me in a good mood.  im sure if you hear too much of her it might get tiring (she's been playing there 5 nights/week since 1963), as i saw some old timer locals comment and leave as soon as she came on, but i found her friendly and her music perfect.  a tiki bar with Piano Pat on one side, and mermaids swimming behind the bar on the other? dont miss this place if youre within a hundred miles.  it's worth it even for one drink.... especially if Pat is playing.  she starts at 9:30.  check out my video:  <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dma1BTYILhzA&s=33ec698bf251c174495df5d1d4ed6f1cbf8a41d3cbe639287e3329d538a98a11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/w…</a>
Review Source:What a cool bar, Tiki style, old school lounge. Â The tables have some late 50's early 60's styling as does everything about the decor, ...classic. Â Not too loud and a great place to sit, have a conversation and get to know someone without having to yell in their face over loud music. Â I didn't get to see Piano Pat, but from what everyone says, she has a good following. Â The mermaids were cool, but I didn't really pay much attention to them. Â We also missed food as the kitchen had closed but the folks next to us had a platter of fried bar fair that looked and smelled great, especially as something to soak up the alcohol and take the edge off. Â Drinks were pretty cheap compared to where I am from and I figured a round of 4 costing me less than one in Vegas was a pretty good deal.
Review Source:We drove to Great Falls for a couple nights, and the Sip-N-Dip Lounge was number 1 on our To-Do List. We went at around 11:30pm on a Saturday night, and the place was packed. It's really small, though, so by packed, I mean there were probably 50 people or so in there.
We're all tattooed and wallet chained and denim, so when we walked in, the whole place went a little silent, and we got a couple of looks and remarks, but nothing that made me uncomfortable - in general it was a good vibe in there.
We couldn't find a seat to watch the mermaids, but we did find a couple of chairs down a little hallway.
I got a giant fishbowl drink which cost $20, and we had to leave our ID with the bartender to ensure we brought the bowl back.
Towards the end of the night, we got up and moved to a booth that had become empty, but by then the mermaids had stopped swimming, i think they swim Friday / Saturday, from 9pm - 12am or something like that. When we walked in, I caught a glimpse of one of the 'maids swimming past - she was wearing goggles and a nose clip, and her mermaid tail had a drawstring waist. (I'm guessing she's not a REAL mermaid! Shhh!)
I will definitely go back to the Sip-N-Dip, but next time I'll go earlier so i can get a seat at the bar. Also - we missed Piano Pat's show, but we did get to watch her sit and read an entire newspaper!
My favorite bar in all of Montana! The mermaid blew me a kiss. I LOVE Piano Pat. I love Great Falls for having THIS PLACE.
I am in love with this bar so much! This bar is so unexpected being in a motor lodge and in the middle of no-where says the girl from Las Vegas :) I ordered 2 gin and tonics and a soda water with a splash of cranberry. It came out to less than $5 for the round. WHAT? Why am I not living in Great Falls, MT? And the mermaid? And Piano Pat?
Piano Pat has been playing the keyboards here for a long long time. And in that time she's probably smoked 2 packs of cigarettes a day. "Sweet Caroline" (bah bah bah....) sounded strangely like all the Christmas carols she sang that night too. Smokey and gravelly.
If you're visiting Great Falls and you miss this bar, you've missed 1/2 of what Great Falls has to offer. The other 1/2 is the outdoors.
Mermaids while it blizzards outside?? Â Yes please!! Â
Killer ribs, fall right off the bone. Â
Siana is the dopest bartender ever, ask for a bloody mary. Â
They have Olympia! Â
The place looks like it should have been in Swingers. Â
Yeah, lots of old drunks telling some go'damn funny/strange stories. Â
And then there are the mermaids...oh boy, the mermaids. Â I fell in love in the middle of cold-hearted Montana.
Even with mermaids this place is average. Which is saying a lot considering who doesn't love a mermaid?.... The drinks are average, the patrons less than average and I don't know why but it feels like a sauna. But hey, if you like watching old people who think their-you-know-what-doesn't-stink getting tanked, this might be the bar for you.
Review Source:I love tiki bars, and thought this would be fun to visit when driving through Montana. Â I saw no mermaids in action, and there was no organ playing. Â Just about 20 men in their fifties, none speaking to each other, quietly nursing beers. Â The decorations were certainly festive, and maybe it picks up later in the night or on weekends, but I felt embarrassed stumbling into what felt like a local dive. Â After a minute or two, I headed out the door.
Review Source:Pretty much the coolest bar in America... I'll agree with GQ or whomever on that point.
Mother lives in Great Falls and I insisted she take me here. She tells me locals have more or less labeled this place a dive. Couldn't be farther from it.
Best part is that you have go upstairs in the motor lodge to get here... it's not real obvious what's awaiting you inside. Drinks are very reasonably priced as well. Must see if you're in Great Falls.
The Sip-n-Dip is a new tradition for me. I grew up in Great Falls and only make it back once or twice a year. The past two times I have met up with an old friend from high school at the Sip. His friend is a bartender there, which helps :) Piano Pat is very entertaining, the atmosphere is unique, and where else can you watch mermaids (or anyone else) swimming while you're sitting at the bar?
Great Falls is a very humble, blue-collar, unextraordinary town in general, and for that reason I would consider the Sip-n-Dip to be a true treasure. Thanks to GQ magazine for putting Great Falls on the map.
This bar has some good character, but I'm not sure why everyone feels the need to give it 5 stars. If you've ever been out of the state of Montana you would consider this place a dive bar. Here however, it's your run of the mill smokey, dingy, dirty bar. I will say that the swimming mermaids is genius and gives the place a good atmosphere (especially when it's -20 outside). Piano Pat is hilarious for about 5 minutes, but after that it just becomes a twangy noise in the background that just wont go away. The average age of people in this place seems to hover around 40 and goes up to 99 (piano pat?). So if that's your thing, rock on cowboy...
Review Source:This place is absolutely outrageous. Â
When you walk into the establishment you feel as if you are in the movie Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Â It is like stepping back in time and you should probably be on drugs to fully appreciate this place. Â
The atmosphere is crazy. Â Tiki themed bar with decorations from what looks like the 60's or 70's will keep you thinking "what in the hell is going on here?!?". Â The window looking into the pool is just about one of the neatest things I have ever seen at a bar in my life. Â Pat, the 70 year old entertainment rocks the hell out and adds even more character to this place. Â The drinks are strong and inexpensive and the bartenders are friendly and efficient. Â As Linda J. said, there are all walks of life here so it is a bar for everyone. Â
One of my favorite bars, too bad it is over 2,000 miles away.
 If you are in Great Falls for some reason, you will be doing yourself a disservice if you don't stop in and check this place out.
I praise the fates that brought me to the Sip N Dip and the O'Haire Motor Inn. Â There is a sign by the door that says Welcome to Paradise, and I don't think that is an overstatement. Â The people-watching is superior (lots of bachelorette parties, drunken blue-collar guys, and people of all ages and walks of life). Â I saw a Shriner wearing his fez stand behind Pat as she sang a tune about the down and out. Pat's renditions of songs like Margaritaville, me and Bobbie McGee, and Ring of Fire are, well, indescribable. Watching the mermaids swim behind the bar never grows old. Â
There is some kind of perfect balance when it comes to having all the elements (entertainment, decor, people) in place for a perfect bar experience. Â I think of all the bars I have ever been to, the Sip N Dip has achieved the greatest mastery of that balance.
Worth a trip to Great Falls.
The most memorable and non-memorable bar I have ever been.....which is saying alot. My friend took me to the Sip and Dip in Great Falls during a visit and I was blown away. The place is a smoky old Tiki lounge situated in the OHaire Motor Inn. There is a pool with a huge Glass window behind the bar where women dressed as mermaids swim around. Just to make sure everyone understands, you sit at the bar and look at a giant window that looks into a pool with women dressed as mermaids. Alright lets move on. Â A woman named Pat [not a mermaid] with 'poof ball' white hair plays such hits as "Take me out to the Ballgame" on an Organ situated in the middle of the bar. I ordered a "Fish Bowl" which was about a gallon of booze that looked like Windex and tasted like a sugar plantation. Then I started talking to some girls on a basketball team.....[scene missing].......tripped.....[scene missing].......what do you mean I cant pee here?.............[scene missing]......something about hunters rights and why Montana should subsidize moose hunting. At no point did I get laid. Go to the Sip N Dip before you die.
Review Source:Tiki Lounge themed bar from the Old Days
The bar is on the second floor of a 3 story old school motor hotel. Â The third story has a pool, so you are looking out the back of the bar into the bottom of the pool.
There is a separate "island" where an elaborate organ setup is usually operated by Pat, who will take your requests, provided that they were written/recorded prior to 1979. Â She tends to know/love show tunes, old jazz standards, etc. Â
Rated as the #1 Bar on Earth by GQ Magazine in 2003. Â I can't remember the last time I read GQ Magazine, but if they paid some futz to go around the country looking for great bars and he picked this one, Â it must be pretty good. Â Great Falls is a LONG way from anything you've probably ever heard of.
Darryl Hannah was filming a movie near Great Falls, and ended up in this bar after the shoot.  Somehow her mermaid costume ended up there as well.  The next thing you know, yep, Darryl is in the mermaid outfit in the pool while the patrons of the bar drink their Harvey Wallbangers and Budweisers  and look on. Â
Personally, I have spent time in the bar, and I have also spent time in the pool. Â 5 out of 6 people surveyed preferred that I stay in the bar. Â
I posted most of the pictures for the business, and I can't say that I know anyone in the pictures except Pat, the organist. Â
My personal favorites for requests include: Â Just a Gigolo, King of the Road, Hot Time in the Old Town, and Misty.
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