The Cave

I love this place! It’s divey, and the drink are as they should be… cheap! Friendly bartenders. The scummiest, and least pretentious bar in the triangle.

Fun, mega dive bar that is in between Elaine’s and Tatulla’s on Franklin St. Walk down stairs and it actually looks like a cave inside and is a pun on «man cave» I’m guessing because there is craft beer on tap, a pool table, Photohunt, TV, pin ball machines, lounge chairs. Cool vibe, had a blast. Only thing that needs to change is the nice beer being served in red Solo cups. Come on. Only four taps, but all NC craft producers like Big Boss, Highland, Carolina Brewery. Certainly fun.

First off this is a dive bar. You should avoid if loud music and cheap beer is not your thing. As a hater of all things upscale and world class I love this place. The bar has been open since the 60’s. The walls and ceiling appear to have been made of plaster and have been roughly fashioned to resemble a cave. It looks like a place where bikers would hang out in an old b-​movie. They have a back room with pool tables. Local musicians make up most of the staff. Long live The Cave!

Say what? I felt like I walked down some stairs and into a time machine. Why because this place made me feel young again (though I be old) — like a college student in a cool ass dive bar. Sooo laid back! Abby B. has it right — just come as you are — freaks, geeks and normal nellies. Ben served me up a Fullsteam Porter and a wicked punk playlist. Seems like an awesome place to see a show — low stuccoed ceiling just like a cave — the acoustics are intense — you can reach out and touch the band ’cause they’re right there. I’m sure it gets loud down there. For the short time I was in «The Cave», I had fun and Ben told me I had to go to Baxter’s next. He was sooo right!

Small with cheap beers and bands. Staff is super friendly, and there’s a back room to shoot some pool if you’re not feeling whoever is playing.

I think the Cave would still look and feel like a cave if it didn’t have the ridiculous brown paper mache «cave walls». How many k’s are in kitschy? Regardless, the PBR cans are cheap cheap cheap I sound like a baby bird here but it’s true. You can drink them like water, which is fun at the moment, right?
Saw a show here, too, Lee Bains III & The Gloryfires. Not a bad venue for music, because it seems that most shows don’t get more than 20 folk. In the back there is a pool table, and you basically can roam from the Cellar to the Cave all night in the front alley as well as the back. Nice little space.

Simply put, The Cave is a venue for people who genuinely love music. It’s divey with a cool vibe but the people here aren’t coming for perks or frills. They want good music, cheap drinks, and a crowd of like-​minded people. That is what I found at The Cave. I would return.

SUPER DIVE!
I love the cave. You can go in your sweats. You can go in your 6 inch hooker heels. You can go nude. No one cares!
I have literally done a crossword while taking shots and listening to a live band at 1 am on a Saturday at the Cave. No one looked twice. (OK, very telling about me, but still AWESOME)
Make sure to have your hangover cure handy for the next morning. After taking shots and drinking $ 2 PBRs you are going to need it!

Such fun. I love places like this – legends that don’t have to try too hard to be good. And this dive is good. I’d give it 4 stars but the cigarette smoke wafting in from the small crowd outside in the cold gave me a headache even my drinks couldn’t eradicate.
P. S. Unilocal has the worst customer service on the planet.

I really don’t like the Cave. I’ve been here on a couple of occasions and never liked it. First off, they have live music here sometimes which would be great, but it’s deafening. Like, ear-​damaging loud. Like you cannot hear yourself speak let alone anyone else loud. Not to mention that there is literally no where to sit or even stand where you can both see the band and not be directly in the way of everyone else in the bar. On top of that, the bar is tiny, right by the «stage,» and service is slow when they are busy.
Another time I went in already tipsy and hung out in the back and it was just… gross. Dark, smoky, and unpleasant.

I went here the other night. It was alright. The setup was desirable in terms of having a back room to get away from the bar and the crowd, however you smelled the cig smoke from outside even while the door was closed. The restroom was a bit odd too as the sink is a shared sink, outside of the toilet room. There is only one toilet for women, which is not cool… But the joint is small, so I get it. The place is pretty creative in terms of modeling it to look like a cave, which is kinda is. (Long and narrow). :) Will I be back? Probably, but only if the music is good. I wouldn’t make it my local hang out. Sorry if this offends anyone! It’s just my opinion!

Great dive bar. As you can see from the photos it’s dark and a little dingy, two great qualities in a dive because it scares off the sissies. The sink is outside of the bathrooms in the main bar area, kind of hilarious. We went on a Saturday afternoon, when the place was very quiet. I imagine it’s a great venue for music given the acoustics.
Factoid: This is the oldest bar in Chapel Hill still in operation, dating back to 1967. I wasn’t too impressed with that date either.

Ewwww.
I don’t know how so many people can give 4 and 5 stars to this place.
IT SMELLS!!! Seriously, everything within a 15 foot radius of the bathrooms is stinky. And, given that the bar is tiny, it’s hard to avoid the 15 foot radius around the bathroom. Ick.

I give this local music bar five stars. No place like this one exist in North Carolina or most place in the south and even in New York.
It’s Chapel Hill’s oldest bar – and place where music is born, comedians can come and try out their skit, meatloaf baking/​rock-​paper-​scissors contests happen frequently and the townies of Chapel Hill call home.
And the musicians that come through are 10 to 1 going to rock your socks off.
You never know who’s hanging in here. Local celebrities and national celebrities (REM, Trey Anastacio, etc) when in Chapel Hill frequently make a stop at this classic music bar.
In the afternoons, it’s a family atmosphere with pool table in the back and some arcade games and even Wii. This is a Wifi spot (surprisingly!) and word is, that Mouse, the owner, webstreams the shows that occur and international callers often get their source of culture here, where the American transition between hippie and hipster occurs.
As a warning, The Cave requires membership to get in. But drinks are very cheap. PBRs, last I checked, was $ 2.50. Make sure to tip! The bartenders remember faces. And make sure to park in designated parking areas because Chapel Hill is notorious for towing.

My friend Mark was playing a show here on a Saturday night. After struggling to find a parking spot that was remotely close, I helped him carry his gear down to The Cave.
Having never been here before, I have to say that it was almost exactly as I had pictured. It’s very dark, and small – which makes sense since it has a Being John Malkovich-​esque address. My head almost could hit the cavern ceiling!
Technically, The Cave requires a membership since they are a «private club», but they weren’t enforcing that at all. Since I’m a law-​abiding citizen, I signed in as a guest.
The bar had PBR, Downtown Trolley Brown (Carolina Brewery), and Flagship IPA all on tap. I chose the latter, and enjoyed people watching AND dog watching on a Saturday evening. Apparently, dogs roam freely in The Cave.
The front room has the bar and some booths. I can’t imagine more than 15 – 20 people sitting comfortably. Be prepared to know your neighbors if you’re seeing a well-​known band or musician. The back room has a pool table, but I didn’t go back there.
Overall, it’s a pretty chill place. The sound is good and the bartenders are friendly. If you like local music and hang around CH, this should be on your shortlist.

They weren’t kidding when they named this place. Except maybe they should have added «of the Banshee» at the end because being here was like being trapped in a closet with a wailing monster.
I’m sure it’s a fine place when there isn’t music playing here. But when there is, it’s overpowering and you can’t enjoy yourself. I have to be honest, actually; I think this is the type of place that I would love if it were a little bit quieter. But I guess being in a college town you can’t help but roll with it.
When I used to go here, smoking inside was still legal but I think NC has fully outlawed it now, so if you’re worried about that, don’t be. But, if they’re still selling cigarettes here and you’re visiting from a big city or anywhere north of the Mason-​Dixon you should ask to buy a pack and be shocked at how cheap they are.

I’ve been informed that the Cave is now ENTIRELY smoke free, front and back, up and down. I bet it will stink like an ashtray for another twenty years, though, even if they ever bother to mop the floors.
Also– a pretty cool, quiet little place to watch the Carolina games in the afternoon or early evenings before the nightlife starts ramping up.

I’ve never been a huge fan of The Cave, though that’s not really its fault. I’m a pretty tall guy, to the ceilings make it really uncomfortable for me to stand around. With my sensitivity to cigarette smoke I have real problems (there’s supposedly a smoke-​free area, but there are also supposedly unicorns in the world). The covers are usually a bit much for me, too.
On the other hand, the clientele is excellent. Everyone here seems to be a great balance of cool and real, hipster and chill, serious and fun, intellectual and spirited. Not once have I gone to the Cave without meeting someone who I really like.
The beer selection isn’t great, so be ready to crank back some PBR (not necessarily a bad thing, if you’re ready for it). It can get pretty crowded, depending on the entertainment, so you might want to show up early.

Beware claustrophobes and really tall people. This place should be experienced at least once for novelty’s sake. Down a really steep, narrow staircase and beyond a creaky door lies the crypt of a bar, The Cave.
I am of the belief that any departure from the norm can create a unique experience which is probably what made the night so fun. The smoke gets almost unbearable, likely due to the impossibly low «being john malkovich» ceilings but if you go with the right crowd and in the right frame of mind, you’ll have an odd, entertaining night on your hands.

I came here with a friend of mine for a drink before we went to another spot to hang out. Apparently, he really liked the place– I think this was my first time actually in there. Honestly, it really does look like a cave– perhaps worse. I felt kind of weird in there– I think maybe the cave effects were overdone and it had ventured into a scary movie set of some kind. I don’t mind scary movies, but it just felt kind of grimy in there to me– not my cup of tea.
The bartender was really nice and attentive– also the crowd was interesting yet not too weird or distracting like the space of the cave. So I suppose I’d say this isn’t my most favorite place in Chapel Hill. I’m the kind of person that I’ll try a place another time– maybe that particular time was just off or something, nevertheless at this point until then I’ll leave the rating where it is.