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McGlinchey's Bar & Grill
Categories: Dive Bars, Restaurants [Edit]
Neighborhoods: Rittenhouse Square, Avenue of the Arts South259 S 15th St
Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 735-1259
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good for:
- Late Night
- Music:
- Juke Box
- Best Nights:
- Mon, Tue, Wed
- Happy Hour:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Yes
- Coat Check:
- No
72 reviews for McGlinchey's Bar & Grill
Review Highlights
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If it weren't for the smoke, I'd give this bar five stars. I love the circle bar in the middle and the atmosphere in general. Unlike some other reviewers, the bouncer and our waitress were actually very pleasant to us and never did I feel like a pariah. In fact, our waitress THANKED us for our patience. I didn't even realize we had been waiting long for anything. Testimony to my state of mind and sobriety, perhaps, but there it is.
I'm from out of town and might be giving off the wide-eyed enthusiasm of a newbie. That can change things. So read this review with a grain of salt, locals. It's not that legit.
The only thing I really didn't like was the burning of the eyes and the smell of my clothes upon leaving the bar. This after a night of relatively smoke-free drinking (my local guide told me it can be much, much worse). So, if you are at all sensitive to smoke, I would suggest staying away. There are other nearby divey bars that won't make your eyes water.
I already covered the crust, the rust, the occasional bouts of surliness, and the tepid stench radiating from their bathroom. and I could always do without the smoke and just hot dogs. But regardless there's just something about McGlinchey's character that always has me coming back for more. So although I fully acknowledge the extra long laundry list of flaws that will have you needing a cold shower immediately afterwards, I also can't help but give it a five for many reasons.
Bottom line is that McGlinchey's is cheap and easy, just like Aaron's Sister* (Someone had to turn the tables away from Jim's sister for a moment). and that fact can make it an epic spot for people watching, especially when there's a game on. It easily has the most eclectic crowd I've ever experienced no matter what the occasion. and side luxuries like one of the best Jukeboxes in Philly, table top Mrs. Pacman, and the cheapest price in town for giant bottles of Rogue can help make the crustiness a little more tolerable. And although it can often be hard to make out on the chalk boards, the beer selection they have is pretty phenomenal.
So while Jamie C. review of the Glinch is one very true extreme, there's another side to it. Both extremes may collide frequently throughout the evening, but if anything it add onto the all around story. And what I said about the servers previously still holds true.
*After actually meeting Aaron's sister I can attest to her being amazing (and somehow they're related. I kid, I kid.). And that's why the review mention is only in good fun.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/12/2007
It doesn't honor the smoking ban which may be horrible depending on your opinion. The servers may be… Read more »
If more places started serving hot dogs, I'd be a happy camper.
Stopped by McGlinchey's to try their hot dogs, as promised. A bartender directed us to sit and someone would help us. We sat, we made conversation, and we interacted with a fun group drinking across from us. A staffer told us she made "a mean hot dog" which made me happy to order two. It was my birthday, so I also got a shot of vodka ($2.85!) which hit me fast. Damn fast - by then, lunch was a distant memory.
Fast forward a few commercial breaks, to us with our hot dogs. Mine was magnificent: sauerkraut, relish, onions, ketchup, mustard, all balanced in a bun, for a mere 75 cents. I scarfed it down, then debated a second shot of vodka. My friend enjoyed her dog.
Instead of an olive branch, McGlinchey's offered a hot dog. They're as unapolegetically divey as ever, and you can still smoke there, but the more you go here, the more it'll rub off on you. Swing by for cheap drinks and even cheaper eats.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/4/2007
I got carded before I walked into McGlinchey's. Comically, the bouncer actually called to me as I… Read more »
This place is a Tom Wait's song. "And you can't find your waitress with a Geiger counter / And she hates you and your friends and you just can't get served without her / And the box-office is drooling, and the bar stools are on fire..."
I'm not even kidding. The waitresses hate you, the drinks are dirt cheap (and might have dirt in them), the bathrooms look like twenty skater kids were handed sharpee's and a sheet of acid and told to go nuts, the hot dogs percolate in a bin of filthy water that looks like it was imported from the Hudson river, and the jukebox is full of excellent music to sing to when you want to punch somebody in the face.
If this is your idea of a good time, you will love it.
Visiting from NYC, my boyfriend & best friend and I were looking for a bar you could still smoke in. Specifically a divey bar you could smoke in.
Thanks, Yelp!
It was all of these things, and had really cheep booze also! We didn't stay all night, but the time we spent there was very well spent. Our waitress was very pleasant and attentive. The older gentleman behind the bar kept making us jump (and laugh) every time it sounded like he flung a glass - it sounded like a lot of glasses were broken in the time we were there.
It's divey and dirty and I did not visit the restroom (luckily, from what I read!) but it was exactly what we needed.
Yes, I understand that there are plenty of fake plastic smiles at bars around the city that you can be shake gladhands with. Yes, I understand that part of the smoky charm of McGlinchey's is the take-no-prisoners attitude of the waitstaff and the ridiculous prices engineered exclusively to annoy you. Yes, having a menu of basically just hot dogs is kinda funny, and they're not even that bad. But the thing is, I don't like going to bars and being treated like an inconvenience at best and like a downright horrible human at worst. There's a fine line between being real and being a jerk, and the line isn't just blurred here, the line has been told to f@#! off. There are plenty of great dive bars in Philadelphia. McGlinchey's isn't one of them. Then again, they aren't catering to me, they're catering to the Center City crowd who thinks it's funny, I guess? They mostly just confuse me.
Ah yes... The Glinch.
You never start your night (or happy hour) there. McGlinchey's is best enjoyed after you've had a few drinks already and decide that a jukebox, a Ms. Pacman, and cheap beer are the ingredients to make your night go up a notch or two.
Bring cash (for the bar), bring quarters (for Ms. Pacman), bring patience (for the waiters), and don't forget to put a $5 bill in the jukebox. You'll thank me later.
I think the term "melting pot of the world" needs to be reapplied from NYC to McGlinchey's.
I was led here by a local, and we pulled up a stool at the huge rectangle bar alongside the motliest crew I've ever seen in one place. The aforementioned "surley bartenders" were busting their asses all night getting everyone drinks, no time for BS. My friend knew them, and got our blood pumping with shots of Potcheen, which I found out after is a 90 proof Irish Moonshine. Hellllloooo Drunktown.
The best exchange of the night was between the old man bartender and 4 Jersey guys looking for Car Bombs.
"No bombs," said the bartender.
"Uhhh, okay, how about jager bombs?"
"No bombs. Order a drink or get the f*ck out."
So the genius douchebag said, "Okay, we'll have 4 shots of Baileys, 4 shots of Jameson, and 4 Guinness."
If looks could kill, I swear. The bartender quickly replied, "Don't insult me, get the f*ck out."
I left drunk, with a black lung, and a new found appreciation for Philly.
This place was really fun dive bar. The bouncer was cool. The bartenders are friendly and attentive. Not only are they quick to refill your beer, they also refill your water. Every hour is happy hour here. They have a good selection of beer, they don't have crappy lite beers on tap!!! There was a diverse group of people there, hipsters, older people, yuppies, locals. Only downside is that it's a bit smokey. This place is worth a visit.
McGlinchey's is a great bar if you want to feel like an asshole immediately upon entering, when you're paying them money, and after you leave.
More than once, I've asked myself, "What the hell am I still doing here?" It's smokey, the staff wishes I would die, some hipster with a moustache is reading Nietzsche, Kerouac, or whatever the hell hipsters are reading this week to look cool in public, the doorman is sleeping, the waitress apparently also hates me, the bathroom is like a demilitarized zone and a breeding ground for hepatitis, and some homeless guy next to me smells like a human compost heap.
Then, I get two hot dogs with the works and a Miller High Life bottle for under $4. Also, $1 on the jukebox gets you FOUR songs...take THAT, internet jukeboxes that charge $1 per song. And I stumble home, under a block. I move in a month, but there will always be a tiny (very tiny) spot in my heart for McGlinchey's.
I can pretty much say that I've confessed my undying love for this small little bar. In my eyes, they can do no wrong.
From the strange, and tragic bartenders, waiters and doormen, right down to the obscene amount of smoke in the air. A large gin and tonic, Nina Simone and various other random artists on there jukebox, and a disgusting hot dog. Just about everything I could ask for in a small dive bar.
I wouldn't go here if you were looking for a quality establishment, but really, who wants quality anyways?
I heard someone order an appletini here once. I thought that was hilarious.
I've had both the hot dogs and the sausage, am still alive, and would gladly eat both again. But - you need to order from the waitresses even if you're sitting at the bar. Sometimes if you mention it to the bartenders they will send the waitress over to you. Sometimes they'll say order from the waitress. This is how things are.
I like McGlinchey's. I've never had a problem with the bartenders - I don't want to be their friend, I just want them to serve me booze. But they're always fine and usually pretty attentive to your drink levels. The waitresses have their moments, but seriously it's not that bad. I don't need to be treated like a king all the time.
I love to smoke cigarettes in poorly lit bars with old people and good beer!
Foolio, you ain't no grill. Quit frontin.
McGlinchey's is a great place to break up with all of your tomorrows.
Thank God there's at least one bar in this town with a real live jukebox too.
When i was twenty one, I pretty much came to McGlinchey's once a week, to drink shots of Jamison and and cheep beer, smoke too much and listen to music and the conversations of those around me. people watch and plan to take over the world.
McGlinchey's is the realization of every Bukowski novel Ive ever read.
"the days go over the hills like wild horses" and I can't take the smoke as well, and the bathroom skeeves me a little more than it used to, but i still return for all the reasons stated in other reviews, just maybe every 6 months now.
Side note; i was excited to use the lots o songs for lots o money juke box. i went up with a five, some cute girl came up and said" that's alot of tun edge Sir" Wow i felt old, but she was right.
Well, well, well. My old grad school haunt circa 2002-2004. I've downed many a cheap pitcher of Yuengling Porter here. Because I couldn't afford anything else. Oh, how we tried to tempt people into trying the mysterious McGlinchey's hot dogs. (The only food they serve?) The wrecked booths and the most horrible bathroom in Philadelphia. (Thank god I never had to go number 2). And the lovely sit down Pac Man machine with cigarette burns on it. Actually, for a complete dive they have a fair beer selection, an eclectic crowd and it's the cheapest bar in Center City. I'd still be hanging out there all the time if they didn't allow smoking... (Yeah, sorry. I just can't stand it.)
Cheap (and i mean CHEAP) beer
& even cheaper hott doggs
The booths are uber tiny and u will squeeeeeeze yo kinky ass in them booths to drink a $2.35 porter!!!! (whats that u say) YES!!! $2.35!
The hott doggs are hott doggs, but with some chili on them, they are the best you have ever had (also after a few drinks inya)
dark, dirrrrrrrty as hell & the most diverse group of people in the city....
but ull get shitty for less than a 20 spot!!! WAT WAT IN THE BUTTTTT!!! HAHA
go there and EXPECT to be treated like ur scum of the earth by the servers, but pay no mind to it visitors and tourist...they r just showing you some love....
inna Philly way ;)
OMFG! So many whores! Who can possibly handle this many drunk whores?
OMFG! Sleazy bike kids! Their grease stained trousers will be off in no time as they rut with these whores in the alley!
Only on weekends, though.
"Another thing you're forgetting- Excuse me-" [vomits on floor] "is that you might not even show any symptoms. Men are CARRIERS but they don't usually SHOW ANYTHING."
"Did you just puke?"
"Yeah, why?"
Descendents blaring from the jukebox. A $20 bill will last you five hours. That booth is missing all of its padding. Those two were in WWII; The ones next to them are only 19. Bernadette just told me the most racially insensitive joke I've ever heard. Buzzcocks on the jukebox. Thirteen hot dogs for seven dollars. What the hell is that girl doing with her legs? No other dive bars in center city. 44 fixed gears out front, 44 terrible haircuts inside. Depressed drag queens who wandered up from Locust. Fistfight over the megatouch machine. Double Dewars on the rocks. That waitress hasn't been back in 48 minutes. Handjobs. So many handjobs.
It is what it is. Shut up and drink.
You're not paying for smiles here, that's for sure.
Great for a night out with a bunch of frugal friends - and although I've never had one of the fabled 75 cent dogs, It makes me glad to know you can get them at Glinch.
Hands down the best bar in the city. If you like a smokey dark atmosphere that actually feels like a bar, this is the spot. The seats are worn, the drinks are cheap, and the crowd is familiar.
But be polite - the staff here does not operate on "The Customer is Always Right", and I applaud them for that. If you feel like your service is taking too long, maybe this isn't the bar for you. It gets busy there on the weekends. Lastly, packaged goods are available for take out.
However if a smokey unlit atmosphere is what you're searching, look no further. Draughts are absurdly affordable. If you are into taking shots, its probably half the price you pay elsewhere. And if you need to keep your stomach full - hot dogs are available along with a few other snacks.
On the weekends seats fill up and people do not leave. They are there for the long haul. The crowd is usually regulars who know and love the place and want to be there for as long as possible. Week nights it is definitely less crowded and a seat at the bar is your best option.
I just read someone else's review of the joint, something about how they don't like tips...
It's pretty much true, I've noticed. You can lay down $5 on a pitcher or .10 cents, and they will look at it like it's dog shit and roll their eyes at you when they pick it up. It's like your being a patron is patronizing to them. i love it! Seriously, I love this bar.
There is almost ALWAYS a guy that's fun to look at. And by look at, I mean 'eye fuck' until he comes up to chat and you realize that he's mildly retarded.
LOVE.
Warning: Your clothes.hair/skin/eyes will smell like cigarettes for a couple weeks after you leave this place.
This place came in handy with my starving college student friends. It most definitely touts the cheapest beer in the city. If you are looking for ambiance you can pass this one up. It is completely no-frills. Just a large square-shaped bar and dated mirrors on the wall. It does offer a jute box and an eclectic mix of people. Even though it is a dive bar, no one has ever given me a hard time here.
I have to throw a five star rating at this place in hopes that its legend goes on forever. I would be concerned that the low ratings would deter people from stopping in, and then I realized it's not really the sort of place you just happen upon... you must be invited into the embrace.
There is no possibility you will leave here without reaking of smoke. But you won't really mind, because with how cheap their drinks are, you won't even remember how to smell things when you leave.
My new favorite thing about McGlinchey's is the sign for free wifi. Has anyone actually ever brought their computer here?
I LOVE THE SERVERS.
I love the cheap beer. I love scouring the bathroom wall graffiti. I love smoking cigarettes and screaming across the booth about war tactics, Heart, or whether the slumped over girl in the corner is drinking alone or waiting for someone to arrive, only to find out it is secret option C: she's waiting for her shift to start. OF COURSE. Must properly lubricate the senses pre-shift at Glinch.
Where was I? Oh. Who cares. This place is so beyond authentic and trashy chic. I loves it. If you also loves it, we should grab a drink sometime. And ponder the mystery of the McGlinchey's hot dog.
I take out-of-town friends here when I'm trying to explain what Philly attitude is all about. Don't even think about trying to cluster around a booth when you can't fit all your friends in. Don't even think about swinging your bar stools around and putting your back to the bartender. Don't even think about breathing, now that this bar is one of the few public smoking bars in the city the smoke cloud has only gotten thicker.
But if you want a cheap beer (and maybe a hot dog) and you don't mind a little salty service, or just want to pay a visit to one of Philly's classic dives (I like to throw it in as #2 on my Center City dive tour), this is your place.
Our waitress loved us and carefully tread the line between surly and fun. We loved her right back. The beer was cheap but good (she recommended the Weyerbacher on draft to me and half an hour later I was buzzed). It was smoky, but not as much as anticipated (this coming from a complete non-smoker). The bathrooms were passably bad but at least I didn't fall in.
I wouldn't bring a date here, I probably won't order the hot dogs unless I drink too many Weyerbachers, and I wouldn't bother trying to squeeze in on the weekends. But for a rowdy night with the girls, or for more awkward come-ons at the jukebox, I'm in.
The special inexpensive charms of this downtown institution are becoming rarer by the minute. They may have WiFi and a good beer selection, but the prices, the smokiness, and the good company are of an anachronistic quality you had better savor while you can.
There is no other place in Center City where conversation between people of all kinds is so free, and where drinks are damn near free too. Tip the servers and bartenders well, and you may find out that they are as worthwhile as the colorful regulars.
I have experienced better, for sure. I went here with my pal Todd after the Phillies won the series last night. The place was packed, but the line moved along quickly, probably because the place was packed.
Here's the bar setup: it's an ovular bar with seating all around it, with some booths on the sides. Even though Philly's smoke-free, you can still smoke inside here, which was great at the time but because of the amount of smokers, my coat now smells like an ashtray.
There are I think two or three bartenders working the place. The one that "took care of us" definitely had an attitude, which is GREAT except she definitely didn't pay us any attention whatsoever.
The patrons all seemed pretty cool. It was a very mixed crowd, although mostly younger types were drinking here. Oh, speaking of the drinks--the Boddingtons on tap was just awful! And the speaker system definitely wasn't loud enough to hear any of the music off the Juke. Sad times, sad times.
I bet the place is a lot better when it's not packed, but despite the cheap drinks and the friendly atmosphere, last night's experience really wasn't great enough to make me want to go back. But that's what second chances are for.
I used to really like coming here. Cheap ass beer. Decent jukebox. Horrendous service. I like the older gentlemen behind the bar. He has always been great.
The last couple of times, I have just wanted to leave. It stinks horribly and I guess I am growing up, but I'd rather have good service in a cheap bar than bad service. Sorry.
It's not even that cheap anymore...
Dive is an understatement. I guess I can see why other people love this place, and everyone pretty much agrees on the dark, smokey, cheap, smelliness of it. But it just ain't for me.
I came here on a Thursday night with 3 friends, and they wouldn't serve 2 of us at the bar because the other 2 were sitting at the Ms. Pacman table (the only cool thing in the place). The waitress was kinda rude when she finally took our order. I chugged my miller lite as fast as possible to get out of there since my eyes were watering from the smoke. Cheap, yes. But then again, 75 cent hotdogs kind of skieve me out.
I appreciate what this bar symbolizes for a lot of people, but it is too gnarly for me.
I made the mistake a bringing a girl here once, and at least two skeevy old dudes hit on her, as if I wasn't even there. The jukebox is OK. The way the bar circles around the room is pretty cool. The bathroom is toxic. The house stout beer could probably fuel a small diesel engine.
Rude and nasty.
I LOVE a great dive bar, but take a walk down to Bob and Barbara's for a great time. Avoid this place at all costs!
This place is beyond dive bar. We are in deep sea dive bar territory here. The waitress was beyond surly and the atmosphere was beyond burly. The beers were warm from the tap and the bottle. But you know what? I kinda liked it. Not the "I liked it because you're not supposed to like it" liked it. It was nice to not have a bubbly waiter or waitress in your face every five minutes. It was nice to get back change in dimes everytime I ordered a beer and watch them pile up. It was REALLY nice to smoke. And it was nice to be surrounded by people who just don't give a F and feel that "I don't give a F either" fog creep into your pores. So there you go.
Ohh, Glinch...I can't help but love you. I love you so much I want to take you behind the middle school and get you pregnant. You bring out the inner scuzzball in me, and while I can't say that it's something I need to unleash on a regular basis, it's good to know that when I want to lose a few hours of my life to a cheap whisky buzz and come out smelling like a dirty ashtray, you'll be there for me.
I love your surly bartenders who make me feel like an asshole for ordering a drink. I relish the fact that they're also usually drunk while they're working. And the patrons - oh, the patrons! Yes, you'll find your garden-variety hipsters, for sure, but you'll also see some folks who look like they belong in the Mutter Museum. Glinch, you're the bar most likely to force me to practically wet my pants on the ride home rather than risk trying to use your bathroom. Unless I get shanked there during my next visit I'll keep you in my heart forever.
I can't believe I've been a member of Yelp for over a month now and neglected McGlinchey's! For shame.
Anyway, this was one of the first bars I ever went to in Philadelphia, and I was immediately smitten. Yeah, the service is rude, yeah the place smells, and yeah, the bathrooms would send a germaphobe into a coma, but it's a dive bar for these reasons. You can still smoke and drinks are ridiculously cheap, although I do recall them having strange prices (like, $1.65 for a shot). But whatever, leave the change for your tip!
Also, upstairs at Tops is less crowded, still has a TV, and the bathrooms are (slightly) cleaner. They also have Avery Karma available, which is maybe one of the best beers ever.
Peep this scenario:
It's Friday afternoon and you've just had the most hellacious week ever at work. Your head aches, you think you've got the carpal tunnel, and you're thristy... for cheap beer.
That's where McGlinchy's comes in! I used to live in Pittsburgh, Pa. and lemme tell ya --- there are only two things I miss about Pittsburgh --- cheap real estate and CHEAP DRINKIN'! McGlinchy's brings the cheap drinkin' back for me. This is probably the only place in Philly where I can get completely wasted on $20... and on DECENT BEER at that! The Glinch is the perfect dive bar. Dark, smokey, and featuring just enough smarminess that you feel A-OK about drowning your sorrows and lettin' loose... and playing some table Pac-Man when it's all said and done.
I love this place. CHEAP! The food is great too! Nice and greasy.
I had thought Philly banned smoking from food establishments but this place is one of the few that does not honor it. I love that seedy dive bar feel and atmosphere! I seriously do like this place!!!
If you want friendly chatter and an atmosphere. Don't come here. You are coming to a "dive" bar. Come with that in mind and you are GOLDEN!
I think this is my favorite DIVE bar nationwide!!!
I gave it one less star only because I end up feeling sick afterwards! Drunk and full with grease! So I guess I should give them that star back? Hmmm...I will come back to update my rating. Maybe they will get that star! muhahahaha
This place brings back memories for me, too, in the early 90s. I was underage and besides Anthony's on Market Street in Old City (and Kellianne's on SpringGarden) this was the only place you could get served underage. I never had fake id. No need for it with such great places around town.
We used to drink Guinness and Yuengling (before it became the "it" beer) for so cheap. There were many nights I fell asleep/passed out on the EL after an all-nighter at the "Mick G". One time, I passed out at 15th Street at around 3am. I was woken up at 730am in the midst of rush hour by a cop. O! The memories.
I stopped in with my girlfriend last year. The place is the same. The waitresses are still b*tches. They had tattoos and piercings when tattoos and piercings weren't so cool (or clique).
The one thing missing was Fergie who served me my first underage Guinness in the States. I was served at 13 at my cousin's pub in Ireland years before. Fergie went on to start his own pub and beer icon, Monk's. He's still good for a pint and a laugh.
my website... http://www.Gigfy.com
my blog... http://lovelyday4aguin.../
McGlinchey's is the type of dive bar you seen in a movie and think to yourself "I really wish I could be there right now". It's dark, smokey, has a big round bar, and an extremely diverse crowd. You walk in and immediately feel like you've been there before, which can either be comforting or played-out depending on your opinion.
There are several reasons why I dig this place:
1. The beer is super cheap. You can get a 12oz bottle of Chimay Grande Reserve for $5 (hell yeah :D), and I believe that Miller High Lifes are only like $2.
2. It's one of the only bars, if not the only one, that has given a big "fuck you" to the smoking ban. It's nice for smokers, but it can get a bit intense on the weekends. I've walked out of there with teary eyes from the smoke but hey, i'll take red eyes for the privilege to smoke and drink in the same area.
3. THE MS. PACMAN TABLE. Seriously, how much better can it get? My best friends and I love having tournaments while getting shitty. It's the BEST.
Now, for the bad. As much as I like this place, I was seriously tempted to give it 3 stars because 90% of the staff is mean, rude, and slow. Seriously, I've never wanted to slap a restaurant employee more than I have there and that's saying a lot because I've worked and grown up in the restaurant industry my whole life. I had an incident there last weekend when I went up to get a round of drinks for my friends and I and this is what happened when I asked the bartender for them:
Me - I'd like two Chimay's and a Boddington's please
Bartender - Are you sitting at the bar?
Me - No, we're at the Pacman table
Bartender - Then you can wait for the server to take your order
Me - What the hell, are you serious?
Bartender - Yup
Me - You realize you're losing money on this because I would tip you, right? (but he didnt hear this because he was already walking away)
Oh, and just in case your curious, it was the tall and old bartender. Avoid him like the plague.
Despite that, I keep coming back to the place because it really is just the epitome of what you could ask for in a Dive. Asshole employees and all.
Not much to say: it is cheap, dark, and they allow smoking. A group I was with sat at a booth and someone cut their leg on an exposed screw coming out of the red vinyl leather sideboard.
McGlinchy's is one of those by-gone era dive bars where things aren't pleasant and sometimes a bit dangerous. Some people like this, but it's not for me.
UPDATE: I just went in here the other day and because the door was open, the smoke cleared out pretty well. Our server was drunk and sat down at our table for a moment to rest her legs. Then got up and left.
This is the first bar I ever drank at in Philadelphia back when I was 18, probably because it was the only bar that accepted my shoddy fake id that I made with Paintshop.
Our waitress that cold rainy night was a tattooed chick wearing a Kowalskis t-shirt. She might have been in the band, I don't know. Almost ten years later, I wonder what ever happened to that nice waitress who, with great friendliness, served a blatantly underage party of three.


