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The Florence Bar
Categories: Arts & Entertainment Music Venues Nightlife Music Venues Nightlife Bars Dive Bars Music Venues, Dive Bars [Edit]
37349 Niles Blvd(between G St & H St)
Fremont, CA 94536
(510) 792-5522
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Music:
- Live, Juke Box
- Best Nights:
- Fri, Sun, Sat
- Happy Hour:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
- Coat Check:
- No
- Good For Dancing:
- No
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
28 reviews for The Florence Bar
Review Highlights
28 reviews in English
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Review from Linda N.
Union City, CA
11/6/2011
It's a cool down to earth basic bar. Oh yes indeed this is the place were bikers go too.
Best kept secret is at different times of the year they have burger nights on Friday. On Sunday they have breakfast that has eggs of you're choice, meat, hash browns, homemade biscuits, and homemade gravy....
OMG THE GRAVY MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. Bacon flavored gravy over you're eggs and biscuits Yum Yum in my tum tum.
The food events are put on by The Niles Runaways. Checkout Facebook do a search on them. Click their like page stay update when they put on food events at the bar.
For the burger night and breakfast is $9.00 not to shabby.
Burger nights you can top you're burger the way you like choice of potato salad or mac salad both are yummy.
As far as the bar very cheap drinks here with name brand sprits.
Jukebox playing classic rock and roll tunes that will take you back in time. That matches the theme of the place.
Nice and friendly staff even females are more then welcomed here.
Friendly patrons also even though its a biker bar.
F.Y.I
Located in historic Niles Fremont lots of antique shops few places to eat. A cool remodeled train depot park in the middle of the area. You can take you're dogs to. -
Review from Tina L.
San Leandro, CA
Updated - 1/15/2012
It's good when the Flo serves food. It is always flavorful and plenty to eat. The last two times there recently they served Chicken Breast, with mashed potatoes, gravy, vegees and bread. You get all of this for $10.00 and it's worth it.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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1/24/2011
Always a good time at the Flo, I like Sundays live bands from 5-9. Ends early enough to get home to… Read more »
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Review from Lisa M.
Hayward, CA
1/8/2012
I love this bar! The charm is so cute. I love that they have burger nights & breakfasts put on by The Niles Runaways. A cute little scooter group. That helps out the local community. Also on Sundays they have dinners for $10 and the portions are generous! Dottie the bartender is so sweet. She definitely make a stiff drink & the patrons are all very friendly. I give this bar 5 stars.
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Review from Jocelyn C.
Oakland, CA
10/6/2011
Small bar. What gave it 4 stars instead of 3 though is because they have a jukebox & I love it because then I can play all the songs I want. Well, at least the one time I went there I could cuz it was a weeknight & there were only up to like 6 people including myself. Also, they had a pool table.
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Review from Mischa C.
Fremont, CA
9/29/2011
This is where my friends and I end up when we're hanging out at my place and decide we want to go out to get a drink but maybe we've already been drinking so we walk! Or we're just being lazy to drive so we walk! Point is, it's super close and laid back and the drinks are strong and not $9 for a Jack n coke. Live music on certain nights for a major bonus!
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Review from Kimberlee H.
Fremont, CA
1/2/2011
MAYBE we came on the wrong night? Read the reviews, and it said it was a BIKER BAR, but everyone kept saying it was FUN for a Biker's Bar. Located in Niles near the old school mom and pop shops. Cute place to take a stroll down.
As we were walking up, there was a group of older biker men sitting in the front on the bench, and we walked in, and it was full of bikers.. the older crowd. My friend turned around and goes, "This place is full of old people!" DON'T GET MAD! We were just looking for a bar with people our age group (21-30). So we were like.. OKAY LET'S GO. Hahah, and walked straight out. As we walked out, the old guys in the front say to us, "No ID'S huh?!" We just laughed and kept on walking.
2 stars for now. When I do decided to come back and actually experience this bar and get the whole "feel" of it, I'll update my review. -
Review from Teresa R.
Union City, CA
2/14/2011 4 photos
"The Flo" is my favorite bar! It's close to home, the people are friendly, and the live music on the weekend is a plus. It's a biker bar yet you will find a very mixed crowd. I'm a teacher and have made friends with other teachers who frequent "The Flo" regularly.
My favorite day to go is on Sunday in the afternoon. The summer is especially good when they have their barbecues. Don't go to "The Flo" if you can't hang with a fun group of people! -
Review from Delya S.
4/24/2010
As far as bars go, this place is fan-freakin'-tastic! I'm a Niles local and I live within a short walk of the Florence. I don't make it in as often as I'd like to, given my schedule. My favorite nights are quiet nights with the pool table and the juke box. Recently, I made it to some nights with live bands and a full compliment of bikers. Though I'm not a party-er normally, even I can't resist the fun there.
The range of customers is extremely wide. While bikers and their sweethearts are the most well represented group, local Niles soccer moms, older hippies, country western folks, young cutie pies, and everybody else in between can be spotted perched on their bar stools. I think its the diversity of the clientele that keeps it so friendly.
The drinks are cheap and generous. Bring cash as it's cash only, but that tiny inconvenience is a small price to pay for pours like that! They also have an ATM machine inside, if you find yourself poorly equipped. And don't forget to tip well. All of the women I've met working behind the bar are friendly to everybody. -
Review from joe y.
Livermore, CA
11/29/2008
We typically go to the Niles antique fair in August. One of our stops is at the Florence for the hot sausage, bag of chips, and a beer. A good deal for $10.00. People always seemed friendly. 3 stars!!
However, it's not the same at night (or any other time )
If your not dressed like a "Hells Angel" wannabe, avoid at all costs. My wife and I are not stuffy conservative types, but black leather chaps are not part of our wardrobes.
(At least not in public. :P)
We were in Fremont on a Friday night and decided to stop in for a drink. Regulars gave us a funny look and the bartender ignored us. Once I finally got someones attention, I asked for a beer and a drink for my wife. She rarely drinks, but when she does she likes a mixed drink called a "Tokyo Tea". The bartender said "we don't make no fancy drinks here!" I pointed out that it is merely a Long Island with Medori (melon) liqueur instead of coke. "Oh, she said, never heard of it" It's a pretty standard drink in any bar I point out. After receiving our drinks, I brought them to a dirty table that my wife had found. My wife tried to use the restroom, but YIKES!! What is that!! We enjoy 80's / 90's rock music, but it was so loud we couldn't hear each other from 6 inches away.
After our drink, we went on our merry "Ozzy and Harriet" way.
I'm not saying the Florence is a bad place. It's actually the kind of place we'd like to go. If the regulars didn't look at you like you were trespassing, the bartender could pour more than beer, the music was turned from 11 to 7 or 8, and you could use a restroom without contracting Hep C.
Can't wait 'til August so we can return for the hot sausage deal... -
Review from Karen C.
Fremont, CA
7/14/2011
I really like this place. It's close enough to where my friends and I live that we can drive there at the end of a long day to just hang out a grab a drink. Dottie, the bartender, is adorable. She's such a doll. She's nice to everyone and really knows how to make you feel welcome. She was even nice enough to show my friend and I the underground tunnels that were build and used during the prohibition era, which is so cool! This is a super laid back biker bar. I've never been here without seeing motorcycles out front. Don't worry about not bing a biker, though. I'm certainly not. No one there cares was you drive.
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Review from D.wight L.
Fremont, CA
7/6/2007
Aka, the Flo. I guess this is not a type of place that one really reviews, but what the heck. It is a biker bar in the Niles area of Fremont. I do not ride a hog, nor do I own a lot of leather clothing. I do not sport a lot of facial hair, nor do I wear my sunglasses indoors. For the most part, I don't actually go here a lot and when I do frequent, it's in the later hours of the weeknights when most of the people/bikers are on their way out. I have a few friends that live in the neighborhood, so we'll slip in every now and then to shoot the bull and tip a few.
During these hours, say 10-midnight on a Tues. or Wed., this place is right up my alley. Just a handfull of bar-flys, chillin and drinkin. The bartenders pour the perfect mixes, and they are old school. They've been in the biz for days, and I jokingly/lovingly call them my aunties. Aunt Dottie and Aunt Terri. "Auntie Terri, can I have another Tanqueray tonic, and also a bag of potato chips?' "Sure honey" she always replies. Just like family, I tell you. And with the whole small town vibe here in Niles, it all makes it that much more special and intimate.
If you're down for some noise, they have bands that play Sat nights and Sunday afternoons. No covers. Mostly rock/blues. SWEET TALK is one of their regular bands and they are great. Nothing serious but straight fun. They do great covers of Cheap Trick, Sammy Hagar, Bonnie Raitt and Janis Joplin. Good shit, I tell ya.Listed in: Dive in!
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Review from NaNa M.
San Francisco, CA
3/18/2009
As a last minute happy hour on St. Paddy's day, my friends and colleagues were sharing a birthday and I guess they wanted to mix it up-- and take us to a biker bar? I have to admit my other teacher friend and I were scared to say the least and when we walked in. It was pretty clear we were "outsiders" in this bizarre yet endearing little community of aging leather clad loving people.
For any of you who know Niles Canyon, it's an interesting little vintage community in Fremont next to the train tracks- and it's claim to fame is the Charlie Chaplain museum, because it's where many of his films were made. There are a ton of old Victorians and antique stores down here, and it has this rustic and almost isolated charm to it...so the biker bar is not an anomaly here.
And did I mention FREE?? Yeah they were serving free corned beef and cabbage with all the fixins'...ummm yes I said free! And get this- it was awesome: super tender beef in all the juices and spicy perfectly cooked cabbage. The bartender was adorable in her tight green pants with sexy librarian glasses, and very friendly. The bonus here is that the drinks were good and strong. Either my tolerance is going down, or I really did get tipsy off of that one drink.
The blues band came on and all of us teacher dorks couldn't help but groove out and chair dance along with the hot older ladies across from us. The best part was sharing this with some awesome coworkers of mine and all reminding ourselves why we love what we do. Stepping out of my comfort zone never felt so good. -
Review from Barbara S.
Fremont, CA
5/5/2010
The Sunday summer BBQ is BACK!!! You really can't beat this deal, for $10 you get steak or chicken and all the fixens. Greg does an excellent job cooking up your order. The Runaways are doing burgers nights - last Friday of the month (I believe) through the summer. $8 gets you the biggest and best burger around.
Then there's the people, always friendly and a little quirky. What more could you ask for? This is by far the best local hangout around. -
Review from jamie z.
San Jose, CA
11/27/2007
The FLO!
Everyone loves this bar.. its got something of everything.. it has to, its in the middle of historic niles. Many a night this has lead me to random adventures and usually no memory of anything but Dotty and her stiff drinks...
good times, its a good bar to hit up if you find yourself in the middle of Niles for anything -
Review from Katie H.
San Francisco, CA
9/23/2008
Who DOESN'T give 5 stars to the biker bar that is next door to the antique shop and within walking distance from their mom's house? To not do so would be un- American, on par with not liking puppies or nachos. Or something.
Anyway! The Florence rocks my socks because it's a respectable drinking establishment, with salty old barflies, bikers n bbqs, a decent 80s/ 90s heavy jukebox with flippy pages, and also... a trapdoor/ plexiglass window thingie in the floor!
Now, I forget why there is a window in the floor, but it has something to do with historical significance of the basement. And I REALLY love historical significance, and have a great fascination with basements (probs 'cause I grew up in CA where we don't have 'em) thus the Florence combines my loves. YES!
Also the bartender got his panties all in a wad when I asked for a maraschino cherry in my vodka 7. "Cherries?" he snorted derisively at me. "Whatever, a lime's great."
Methinks the man doth protest too much- it's not like offering maraschino cherries to your bar patrons is going to ruin your biker street cred or anything. But whatever, it has provided me with a fun new way to entertain myself at biker bars. Not that I go to biker bars all the time or anything...Listed in: "It doesn't take much to amuse…
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Review from Janet P.
San Leandro, CA
4/12/2007
Oh, come on people, nobody has been to the Florence except Michelle? Fess up. Ya gotta love hangin' with the biker crowd sometimes. At least they like to dance. This bar regularly has fabulous bands and they usually play on both Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. My favorite regular band is Jungle Rooster. Summer Sundays they have a BBQ in the afternoon/evening that is a pretty good deal for the money.
Best part of this bar is that it is in Niles (part of Fremont) - the historic district. Lots of antiquey type shops and a large "hippie-biker" store.
Be brave. The bikers won't bother you and if you are really friendly they might even speak to you about their gorgeous Harley's. C'mon, they are pretty awesome...The Harley's that is. -
Review from Pawan R.
Fremont, CA
2/21/2010
This place is pretty damn fun. I went here after checking yelp reviews for bars in Fremont. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. The crowd there was pretty cool, the music was really fun, and a change from the typical top 40's hip hop/R&B play list 99.7 uses. The one downside that makes this place a 4 star and not a 5 star is the fact that they don't have draft beer.
Someone told me that the florence now has tap beer! HORRAY -
Review from rebecca m.
Alexandria, VA
12/25/2009
Word on the street is that The Saddle Rack is going bankrupt, and after they started charging $20 cover, several friends and I decided it was time to start branching out to other Fremont bars.
First on our list, based solely off Yelp reviews, was The Florence Bar...which we have now dubbed "The Flo".
We visited The Florence Bar on Christmas eve, so while it may not have been the best representation of who typically frequents this place...we didn't feel entirely out of place throwing back a couple jack & gingers, jack &cokes, and anchor steams.
This place definitely had character--which we dug. And a pretty sweet jukebox (although it did have some quirks--it wouldn't allow us to select certain songs and kept repeating that awful Santana song from 1999).
The crowd was definitely older--not really a 20/30 something crowd, and by 1am the place was packed.
I dug their beer selection---Anchor Steam, Fat Tire, Sierra Nevada, to name a few out of their selection of over a dozen varieties. And woo wee, those are some stiff drinks.
Word to the wise---apparently the cops patrol this area pretty heavily so if you can figure out a DD beforehand...it may be a wise decision. -
Review from K L.
Inglewood, CA
10/10/2008
Always better during the day when there's not a crowd - you gotta go even just to check out Dotty's hair.
Biker bars are always the best, and the Flo does not disappoint. -
Review from Maria C.
2/22/2011
3.5 stars! i thought it was awesome that they had a live band (which was pretty damn good too), a friendly crowd, and a dance floor! i would've preferred sports channel over dirt biking (which is cool with the flames), but they have a decent amount of tvs, good amount of seating!
as we were leaving, a guy let us know that that strip was the "old hollywood" for silent films! he said there was clear plexiglass over the old area for when they would smuggle in the booze during the prohibition area. we went in and checked it out and it was cool! anyway, great place for fremont, good place to chill with good friends. crowd is generally a lot older, so don't expect to go there to meet people. -
Review from Margo J.
Fremont, CA
3/25/2011
Best bar in the world - LOVE this place!!!
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Review from Lanie T.
Hayward, CA
1/11/2009
Great fun when RON THOMPSON plays!
Yummy steaks when they BBQ on Sundays.
You don't have to worry about getting gussied up to go to the Flo!
NOT the place for Ozzie and Harriet types, definitely!
The crowd is a HOOT to watch, especially after they have a few drinks! There are some pretty bizarre looking regulars that love to dance up a storm! -
Review from joe r.
Fremont, CA
1/2/2009
The place is OK. The crowd is great. Dotty is OK too. Rick is a Dink and he tends to B S! Same bands all the time. Used to be a lot better before he took over.
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Review from Suzy S.
7/27/2008
Woke up late this morning and remembered last night - had we really been at this divey, biker bar? You betcha and had a great time.
I admit this is not the kind of establishment that I frequent, but I am always game for an adventure and was invited to come by and hear my neighbor's band play. Made our way through the biker gauntlet to sit near the band, Big Daddy and the Dirty Dogs (http://www.baddaddyand...). Ordered a Tequila Collins but was told no collins mix (?) so I made due with a Corona. That was a safe order. Sat back and enjoyed a fun show! Great music, fun friendly people and we all danced with gusto. Because I'm an early bird, not a night owl, my gusto only lasted one set and I was ready to go. Good time was had by all.
This bar always features live music on weekends with different bands performing periodically. Try to stop by when Bad Daddy and the Dirty Dogs are playing for a night of good old fashioned rock and roll. -
Review from Michael L.
Pleasanton, CA
6/3/2007 1 photo
Okay, I ventured in the Florence to have a look. I was having lunch across the street. I rode there on my Honda sport bike. I guess I looked kind of out place in my sport rider outfit with Honda written all over it. I got a few looks but no one bothered me. The biker crowd likes to have fun like anyone else and they are regular folks. Well, unless I had opened my mouth and trashed Harley's and bragged out how fast my Honda was. Then it could have got ugly.
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Review from Jeff B.
Union City, CA
8/27/2009
First timer, not a biker, but still loved the place. One of my favorite bartenders (Alex) just moved over here from Mojo's, so I stopped in to visit and loved it! Go soon!
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Review from michelle i.
San Francisco, CA
5/12/2005
ok, dont even ASK how i ended up here one night... but it was a sunday, the place was filled with biker-types and i felt really out of place. oddly enough i had fun. the band playing was really going to town so i did some dancing and made the best of a my night at that strange little dive bar in downtown niles.
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Review from Khloe B.
Fremont, CA
7/30/2008
I love this place, and not just because my name is Florence! I like how I can go to literally drink and not get hit on by creepy drunk guys...and girls. It's usually a bunch of old men, but they're easier to get rid of than the younger ones. I love the bartenders and my friends enjoy the chance to sit, talk, gossip, and drink.
Listed in: My Watering Holes
