15 Sonoma Dive Bars You Need to Know

Forget your troubles, drink well tequila and maybe get a bit of advice from a guy with two teeth and a mile-wide smile.


Sonoma County “dive bars” (meant in the friendliest of contexts) are the places we go for a solid gin and tonic served up without the distraction of atmosphere. They’re no-frills, no-judgment spots to forget your troubles, drink well tequila and maybe get a bit of advice from a guy with two teeth and a smile a mile wide.

Here’s what we’ve learned from our years of tippling at under-the-radar spots without cover charges and with extra-cranky bartenders: Anyone’s welcome as long as you don’t act like a jerk. And tip responsibly.

Click through the above gallery for some of our favorite Sonoma County dive bars at varying ends of the pool — some you gotta dive a lot deeper to find while others are easy to spot.

John Beck, Kathleen Hill, David Templeton and Mary Joe Winter contributed to this article.