On our most recent visit to the Boston area, we stopped in to Sullivan's after dinner down the road. Â We were the only people in the place, but that's ok because it was still kind of early on a Wednesday and it was a little rainy out. Â My husband ordered a beer on tap and I ordered a Cape Cod because I like girly drinks. Â The keg had just been hooked up or something (so said the bartender) but it tasted and smelled terrible. Â I could taste neither vodka nor cranberry juice in my Cape Cod. Â It just tasted like a liquid.
However, I still give the place 3 stars because the ambiance was cool, it seems like locals dig it based on reviews, the bartender was nice and chatty, and it could have been an off evening.
Stumbled across this place on a Tuesday night. It was really dead inside but we decided to go in anyway. Right off the bat we got greeted by the very friendly bartender who was an older gentleman. I ordered a vodka soda and my boyfriend got a jack and coke. Both were very strong, $15 all together which isn't bad for the area. The place is definitely a divey pub but it's clean inside. The whole time we were there the bartender was chatting with us. Super friendly and great atmosphere if you just wanna chill and have a few. Only downfall was the parking. It's in a neighborhood so it's pretty hard to find a spot even on a Tuesday night.
Review Source:This was probably the worst stop on a pub crawl I did last weekend and the bartender was probably the rudest I've ever encountered... ever. Â He told my friend he wasn't allowed to sit in a seat even though there was no one sitting there... we checked with the people next to that seat. Â I guess maybe he didn't want us taking up the space in front of the game machine thingy (and it was a stupid game machine thingy anyway.. no naked "what's different" searches!), but we were just leaning in to order drinks, not meaning to sit. Â And that's how he greeted us, no "Hi" just "you can't sit there." Â My friend had to sheepishly ask "...so can I order a drink?..."
Then the bartender couldn't get one of the taps to work. Â It just kept pouring foam, Â which I understand is probably not his fault, but instead of checking if my friend wanted a different beer instead, he ignored him for 15 minutes while fiddling with it. Â
We headed to the jukebox and fed it a few dollars but the music stopped about 10 mins later even though it never played our songs. Â Our other friends were able to feed more money after that and their songs played right away. Â We went to the bartender to ask for money back (I mean, come on, 5 bucks if 5 bucks...) but he told us "oh well, you have to try again"
Basically, there are enough better bars in the area that I really don't think you should bother with this one. Â Only positive is that it's spacious. Â Although that was partly cause it was dead except for our crawl.
Solid no frills pub. Â I wish that there were more like this, but unfortunately everything else in Boston has turned into that generic pre-fab Irish Bar or some lame night club.
I live in the neighborhood so happy it is there. Reasonably priced beers, good company, and a jukebox! Â Yes, you heard that right a jukebox! Â Nuff said. Â Awesome right?
Sullivan's please don't change! Â The fate of Boston's "dive" bars depends on you.
The movie The Town was written about this place. Â Its about as Boston as it gets kids. Â Wicked. Â We walked in on a Saturday afternoon and the bar area was pretty full. Â As we entered everyone (seriously everyone) turned to look at us. Â Hmm??! Â So we grab the only 2 remaining seats and order some beers. Â The lovely lady bartender asks us " Tourists?" Â We were happy to report that we too lived in Boston and were in Charlestown for a homebuying class. Â Then, everything changes. Â The bartender tells us about the neighborhood, where her friends have purchased a house, and some great neighborhoods in Dorchester. Â Even the bar patron next to us chimed in with some advice. Â Before I knew it, hours had passed, and many beers had been consumed. Â I officially wished I lived in Charlestown after this adventure!
Review Source:Sullivan's needs a saloon-style swinging door. On the off chance anybody is actually drinking at this Charlestown "never knew!" pub on a Tuesday night, the gramophone will scratch and the locals will turn and watch you like a hawk as you mosey over to your seat.
Once you pass the character litmus test, the rest of your time will be in solid company. Quaff a few well pulled $5 Guineii or refresh with a well for around $6. Then toss your singles towards the digijuke and start your own dance party. The 'tender has seen/heard it all, and trust me, he doesn't care.
He does care about paper and cotton, though - $$ cash only! $$ An ATM is onsite for when you drink to forget.
Visited on an outing that included Old Ironsides and the Bunker Hill Monument on advice from the peeps that Yelped it as being $. Well at 4:00 on a Friday afternoon, I did not expect to pay $4.50 for a pint of beer! The bartender told us they don't do happy hours and there are no specials (traveling on a budget mind you), so we left for a cheaper venue. Granted Charlestown is a very nice place, with very nice people, and Sully's is a very nice bar, but this review warrants more than one dollar sign! It's pricy!
Review Source:Um, why has it taken me over a year to come here? Â I don't know, but when the girls and I were turned away from the WT, we decided to try out Sully's.
It was a Wednesday night (most of us had Thursday off), and the bar was busy, but not full. Â We easily snagged a table and ordered up a round of Sam. Â It turned out to be a very relaxing place to drink and talk. Â As we were celebrating Katie B.'s birthday, we ended up ordering a couple rounds of shots too (sadly the bartender was unfamiliar with the Birthday Cake shot, so we went with Soco + Lime and Tequila). Â
Overall, good alternative to the WT. Â We'll be back.
i have been hearing about the legend of sully's for a while, and now that i'm moving to charlestown, i had to finally check it out for myself. Â
we wandered in on a monday night around 7pm and there were four men there already, who introduced themselves as townies. Â we were greeted with a blast of bell biv devoe and the proclamation that sully's was "kickin' it old school tonight!!!". Â bring it! Â townie #1 kept the hits coming, with tony tone toni, color me badd, etc all night long. Â as an added bonus, we broke out the classic kid n' play dance where you grab each others ankles and twirl. Â
drinks were good and fairly cheap, though i was expecting dirt cheap. Â dive bar atmosphere with friendly owner-bartender. Â my only complaint was that there is no dart board...hopefully when i become a regular, i will get some buy-in.
Solid local watering hole with cheap drinks, TV, trivia one night a week, and a lot of Townie charm. Â You will usually find Jackie behind the bar, if not you'll find Paul - both of them are stand up guys that pour a nice Guiness.
Not sure if they still have food, as every time I am there the kitchen is closed. Â Then again, I am a booze bag and it is usually late - so who knows what goes on there at 6 p.m.
Good neighborhood place I can easily stagger home from. Â Cant give a better recommendation than that.