Big John’s Tavern

I’m giving this place 5 stars because every time we go, it’s the best part of the night. We have made it a ritual to end our bar nights here, because we know it’s going to be fun. The place is loud, and I might need to get a tetanus shot after, but that’s the allure that draws us in. Cheap beer, good live music and sticky floors. Don’t expect to have a classy time, but expect to have a blast.

The remodel is great! Although I enjoyed the atmosphere/​environment years ago, it is still the same old Big Johns! The hamburger is amazing and the fries were the icing on the cake!
Thankfully they kept the pool tables and darts (who doesn’t like pool and darts)! The staff offers great help on beer selection and I was pumped to see they had their own draft!
I look forward to continuing visiting this establishment!

Got here via a pub-​crawl. Place is dirty, old, and gross. Within 5 mins of sitting down at this place our group was approached by a crusty older lady trying to solicit the girls in our group to get on the bar topless. T-​R-​A-​S-​H-​Y! Will not be going back to this place.

I hadn’t been in here since the remodel and I must say it looks pretty good. They kept the dive bar factor prevalent but cleaned things up a bit too. Green door got evicted and has been replace with pool tables galore. Big Johns seems to be back to their old ways. The bar feels a little more intentionaly divey instead of just being unkempt. Reminds me a bit of a dive bar in The Mission of San Fran.
Not only did they clean up the place physically, they cleaned up the menu too. When they first re-​opened, I know they had Chef Brannon Florie (Menu creator at The Rarebit and Owner of The Granary) create the simple but unique bar menu. The bartender mentioned things were changing a bit as they recently brought in a guy from Cru Café. Either way, I ordered the burger and fries. It was recently rated as one of SC’s favorite burgers by Garden & Gun magazine so I figured it was worth a try. I wanted to upgrade my fries to those of the duck fat nature but, for some reason that wasn’t possible. The meal hit the spot and would definitely be a reliable cheap eats for future reference.
Drinks are still cheap and they are offering a more impressive craft selection including some unique cans and bottles as well. As I mentioned in my past review… Big John’s isn’t for everyone but, I like it that way.

Nothing beats the old school grilled cheese on sourdough. The roast beef and burgers are great also. Say hey to Tyler behind the bar, always a good time.

I’ve been here a few times now that it has been remodeled, or cleaned rather. It’s still your corner dive bar on East Bay. They have decent cheap food during happy hour which is worth it for a quick dinner on the go. But to be honest, I just can’t get into this place. I’m so bored there after about 3 minutes. I was the youngest guy in there which made me feel completely out of place. I mean I don’t need to be seeing a raggedy old couple make out practically laying on one of the booth table. I think I’m’ over this place.

I like how the redid the place. It’s pretty much your typical dive bar, but updated. There are pool tables and a limited bar menu. It’s quite a bit cleaner now.

Divey spot with divey accommodations. Cheap draft beers, pool, and a local crowd.
Especially worth noting– the Budweiser «chandelier» over the bar, the vintage chromed beer tap, and the always convenient trough-​style urinal.
Centrally located to the downtown tourist district and plenty of big booths for large groups.

Dissapointed. Used to be amazing (like 6 months ago). It’s sad that market/​eastbay is just a tourist trap now. Thanks carnival.

Exactly what we were looking for. Great dive bar, great music, really friendly staff and cheap drinks.

Newly re-​opened. the infamous Big John’s is back. And slightly different though it has kept some of its charm. There are far less bras hanging from the ceiling… but they did manage to keep one. The light up Santa is still in his place.
Overall, it looks the same just with a larger, newer bar (yes, the actual wooden bar).
We had a few drinks, a few laughs and enjoyed our re-​visit.

As a lover of dive bars, I always try to Unilocal the best spots when I’m going to a new city, and this one stood out to me based on review. Not being familiar with the city, it wasn’t on my absolute «to do» list — but when we went to dinner at Amen and walked right past this place, it was obviously fate that my hubby and I were to stop in here.
After dinner, we walked back and it was still early enough to grab seats at the bar (this being on a weekend night in the summer). The band was setting up, and we were right in front of where they were going to play. It’s a really small place, the bar and few tables pretty much fill the whole joint up, leaving just enough room for a band and teeny-​tiny dancing area. Once the band started, there was instantaneous dancing and shots (most of them terrible) and beers and it was FUN. The kind of place where you take off your heels and leave them on the floor by your bar stool — which gets taken by someone else cuz you’re dancing — but you still leave all your stuff there and put on your flip flops to enjoy the dancing (yep, that was me).
I might’ve just gotten lucky with the awesome atmosphere the night I was here, but regardless, it left me wanting to return if I am back in Charleston anytime soon.

Solid dive. Opens at 3, or whenever. If the door’s open, come on in. I lost the $ 2 «mystery beer» challenge, so I settled for «Icehouse» for my first beer, but I felt right at home wincing as I slurped it down. No pretense, decent tunes, nice «enough» bartenders, and foosball, pool, and sports, what else do you want? Also, they have decent craft beer too.

I honestly hadn’t been back to Big John’s in 10 years, since I graduated (wow…). Good to see that some things never change, although they need to hurry up and get the bras back upon the ceiling!
$ 2 mystery beer was Red Hare, awesome.

It’s cool with me that Big John’s wants to be a dive bar, and as others have reviewed, it is the most dive bar in downtown Charleston. But just because your angle is to be a dive doesn’t mean I should have to worry about wearing a surgical mask to the bathroom. It’s 2013 and they still have a trough toilet in the men’s room, which after some long nights, can get very backed up.
But the main reason BJ’s gets a one star review from me is an incident that happen during my last visit. I had an open tab running and they held my debt card. At some point in the night, a stranger made off with my card and rang up $ 300 at another bar around the corner. While the bartenders were «looking» for my card, I called my bank and they informed me of the fraudulent charges, which I relayed to the BJ’s bartenders. Now, I understand these things happen from time to time but what happen next was the problem. Whomever took my card and ran up the charges actually returned my card to the very BJ’s bartenders that seem so concern about my missing debt card. You might think the bartenders would questioned this person about taking my card and the $ 300 of other charges, but they didn’t. I may have been just on the very wrong end of a big mistake but the bartenders at BJ’s handled it poorly, and to top it off, they still charged me for my tab.
They do have cheap drinks, but so do 29 other downtown bars. I’ll pass on this hole.

Can you say dive bar? I never saw anyone that I would consider Big John here but the beer was cold. I was with a guy named John and he wanted to get a T-​shirt but they were out. I saw PBR in coolers below the bar and they had 4 – 5 bartenders with only 4 partons. I paid my tab on a iphone card swiping device that made me wonder if I was actually paying for the beer or giving the bartender some money. After one beer it was time to move on but it was worth the visit.

Overheated and tired, we popped in here for a drink to cool off. After we got settled with our drinks, we noticed the walls are decorated with paraphernalia from local organizations and the ceiling is spotted with bras! This is your ultimate dive bar. I asked for a shandy, and the bartender had never heard of it. When I told her it was lemonade and beer, she shouted, ‘skip and go naked! I would love to make one for you!’ Apparently, that’s what they call a shandy round these parts, and they are a favorite… go figure… Overall, a dive bar, if that’s what you’re in the mood for.

When checking out a new city I like to venture out into a variety of new places, and the local dive bar is of course on the list. It’s your typical dive – beer, a bit dirty, pinball, and a wide assortment of bras hanging from the ceiling. The beer selection is actually quite good for a dive, and they seem to be getting ready to expand their draft selection. It might have been a bit pricey for a dive, but we ordered good local pints, not your typical dive bar order of PBR.

Solid dive with some great beers. Grabbed a Holy City porter while waiting for our reservations around the corner at Cru Café.
Bras on the ceiling and Citadel name plates on the walls next to the pinball machine makes for a natural venue for people watching and a great place to grab a brew.

For the many times I sauntered in to Big John’s and sometimes stumbled out, each time I was there, I had a blast. The bartenders are some of the best in the city, although it has a very locals only feel (Citadel/​our Guides) you are greeted at the bar in a very friendly manner. Actually, I do not think I can recall a more diverse crowd in all of the downtown bars.
They have coolers of beers iced and ready to go, I do like PBR and they have plenty available for about $ 2.50, d they are really icey/​chilly, perfect for the hot Charleston summers.
The pool table is a little roughed up, sit back and look around (and up) at all of the items hanging from the rafters, bra’s included.
Big John’s place is loaded with soul,
The food is bar typical, but the fries are good to my recollection and fairly priced.