Lamplighter Lounge

The 80 year old bartender Ann is an absolute trip. It’s like you’re walking into her living room complete with cat statues, tons of ash trays and PBR signs for days. She’s got a collection of 10,000 records and wants you to hear all of them. You can have a hamburger or just drink. It’s the oldest bar in Memphis and I’m so happy I stumbled upon it! PS the beers are $ 1.50 on Saturdays and you can bring your own alcohol and she’ll set you up with mixers for $ 3.50. Is this place for real?! Yes it is and you need to go there now

This place is full of draft dodgers and hobos. No clue as to how they actually make any money in this place. 2 stars cause the jukebox is ok. This place was a lot cooler in the 80s.

Haven’t been to the Lamplighter for almost 20 years. It didn’t change, it’s still a wonderful place to hang out and drink PBR. Recommended.

hipster rubbish — not worth the time — the music sucks, the service is lousy and rude… avoid this place

Crapy tiny place, only serves crapy beer even though it says there is wine here.

This place is disgusting. But will I be back? There’s a distinct possibility of it.
I wanted to give it one star because it is just that crappy. I mean worst bar I’ve ever been in. Tiny, grotesque, doesn’t serve real alcohol, and I had to drink yuengling because all they serve is that or bud light.
Why does anyone go here under such horrid conditions? I’ll tell you why. Because hip people go here. You know the sort. The college kids or college age kids who dropped out, all of whom shop at goodwill and deliberately buy clothes that make them look homeless and wear glasses that they don’t need.
You go here because that poet friend of yours goes here. You go here because you’re into some hipster chick who goes here. You go here because you’re trying to get in on some of that ragin’ scene.
But do not go here because you actually want a cold, reasonably priced beer. Or culture. Or anything you’d normally get at a bar besides the smoky interior. They will not all know your name, unless you look homeless, say «amazing» a lot, and wrote a screenplay once about how the man is keeping you down.
This is the neo hippie scene, and I’m not a fan. But I can’t always avoid it, and I don’t hold it against my friends who enjoy it. Just, next time I’m here, you can trust I will leave my banana republic skirt and button-​down at home.

My current work hours are literally the exact opposite of what I have done the past 7 years of my life. With that being said, I am usually up when most people are dreaming. So what do I do? Usually write reviews during that time. After all of the yelling, running, and loud noises, I just want to relax.
One day on my trustworthy Unilocal app, I pulled up dive bars. I got a few bookmarked. Today was one of those days at work, well hell, I needed a drink or 2 or 7 (who’s counting, anyways?). So I got picked up from my roomie, and went on the trek.
After all of the missed exits and illegal turns, we finally made it to The Lamplighter. We were confused when we came up, as the only «vehicle» in sight was a motorcycle. I guess at 1230 on a Thursday morning, that is normal? Alas, the door was open, and we walked in.
I tell you what– this place is a true definition of a dive bar. It looks like 1966 got put on pause, and this is the result. I didn’t see any liquor, and they had a simple menu: PBR, Miller, Busch, Coors, Bud/​Light, and High Life. An easy food menu as well– hamburger, cheeseburger, fries. And since this place is frozen in time– its a cash bar.
The beer came quick, and that’s all that mattered. There were about 7 – 8 booths to choose from, and a pool table to play with. There is an ashtray at each table as well. There is a jukebox, and I assume of all older stuff. A TV in the corner too. The jukebox wasn’t obnoxiously loud either. It was just a pleasant place to drink beer, and not get bothered.
Speaking of not getting bothered, being a person of larger size here, well, even a patron said he wouldn’t mess with me (my roomie is 6’6, im 5’8 in heels).
The bathrooms reminded me of a typical dive bar– no locks and free for all. Hell yea. I have no idea what this place is like on the weekends, but if you wanna grab some classic beer on a weeknight, this is a place worth checking out. I will definitely be coming back on the fun nights I have at work. If I really need a drink, Murphy’s is right down the street.

Wow — looks like I will be in the minority. I have spend more than my share of time in dive bars, but this one, for some reason, did not spark my appreciation. A guy from out of town took two of us there, as he had read on the internet how this was the traditional Memphis Dive Bar. They did have cold blue ribbon and it was cheap. It had been a while since I had seen a «cussing jar» (no we did not have to feed it). Lots of regulars the night we went there, and they were amiable. Juke box was pretty good. It met my expectations for a dive bar and it was a safe enough place. I guess I should have tried a burger.

This use to be my I look like hell/​I just got off work/​I’m kind of blue and just want to drink alone in a dark dive kind of place. I may have come alone many a night, but usually made a friend sitting at the bar.
It’s a cash only dive, dimly lit and cozy, and they have a 6 ft. tall framed picture of VAMPIRELLA on the wall. You cannot beat that. The week night crowd is polar opposite from the weekend crowd.

Lamplighter is so hipster that it feels like you’re drinking in a strangely well-​lit version of the basement of those guys in college you were just friends with because they had a pool table – and a really crappy pool table with cigarette burns and scuffs.
Miss Shirley runs the joint and pretty much only serves PBR by the buckets. Cash only. Incredibly smoky. Can bring in your own booze if you buy set-​ups.
My two stars are for the jukebox only, which always seems to be playing the perfect song to suit my mood when I’m in Lamplighter – sentimental, a little morose, and longing to find my way back home.

Nice little dumpy beer bar. If this bar were in Brooklyn I’d hate it because it would be hipster central. In Memphis it’s legit. Quality.

This is why you should always carry cash. Because you don’t want to get the skull-​searing look I’ve seen Shirley dish up on rare occasion when curious urban explorers attempt to shove a credit/​debit/​atm card in her face and start a «tab» off with some «shots».
I’ve always feel half: «I ought to huck this cup of chili in their eyes…»
And half: «I’ll just grab your hand and gently help you put that card away, there, dear. Scare up some pocket change and have a PBR. No, really. It’s okay, it won’t bite. It’s just 153 calories and you look starved. Let’s get a burger in ya, ok? Why the rush to drunktown, darlin’? We’re all just happy plants here that need to be watered with a little lager every night.»
Miss you Lamplighter.

This place was… interesting to say the least. I dig the very laid back atmosphere of it, but I felt like when I walked in, I had taken a trip back in time. My complaint is that when I went in there, they didn’t take cards. I only had enough cash on me to get one drink and then leave (I’m more of a card person, not big on toting around cash).

Just like drinking in your uncle’s basement. But with a jukebox. And other beautiful people. And more beard hairs left behind.
Don’t you dare try to steal anything from this place.
(cash only)

The Lamplighter Lounge on is Midtown’s living room. So much so that last night, several bedheadded young men came in and ordered bottles of Pabst in their pajamas.
It’s the definition of a dive bar, meaning that drinking at the Lamplighter is like drinking in your grandma’s basement. There’s no liquor at the Lamplighter, only cheap beer. There’s food, too — greasy burgers, legendary patty melts, the occasional vat of chili (depending on who’s working that night). And don’t even think about trying to pay with a credit card.
The weeknight and weekend crowd is about the same — a mix of musicians, Midtowners and the middle-​aged, all looking for a quiet drink. No one is a big deal (including the people that are). There is no trivia night at the Lamplighter. They’ll probably never do karaōke. You can’t pick up a wireless signal there. What they do have is a pool table, a small TV with grainy reception that constantly plays sports, and the greatest jukebox in town.
This is the sort of place where every song that plays on the ancient, cranky jukebox is the perfect song. Don’t expect any hipster favorites — just lots of un-​ironic country standards, classic ballads and the occasional Meatloaf track.

My name is Jolynna. And I am a dive bar junkie. I don’t know exactly why this is, but there is just something amazingly cool about walking into a room where nobody cares what you do or what you’re wearing. They are just glad to see ya. I can walk in to the lamplighter after a long run in the park for a cold beer, still in my running clothes and feel perfectly at home. It’s just that kind of place.
They patrons are interesting and from all walks of life, but that is one of the things I love about it. It’s beer only — and it’s cheap. PBR is the beverage of choice for most.
So what are you waiting for? Grab a cold one, a corner table or a bar stool and drop a few dimes in the jukebox. Fun times.

Who couldn’t love a bar that has the song «You Make My Pants Want to Get Up and Dance» on the jukebox? Seriously? Honestly, I’m not even sure if that’s the name of the song, but it is part of the chorus, and it makes me giggle.
The Lamplighter is a dive, plain and simple. But it’s a fun place. PBR is the drink of choice, and you’ll see alot of regulars, as well as curious first-​timers walk through the doors seeking solace from the trendy bars and clubs in the rest of the city.
Shirley the bartender is pretty much legend in this place, and pay attention to the other reviewers– she most definitely will kick you out for dropping the f-​bomb.

Stopped there on my road trip from NY to Texas.
If you are looking for something fancy our new this is not the place for you. But in it’s own category of diver bar/​local/​simple, this one is 5 stars!
Exactly what you look for if you Wang an «authentic» experience.
Small bar with cheap beers (we drank pitchers of PBR all night), pool table, great jukebox (plays 45 only!) and some snacks like burger, fries or grilled cheese.
Was perfect for us because we were a small group and wanted to taste some of the local flavors.
The owner is super nice.
If your not from around def worth a visit.

Really divey and very country. There was a trucker on every stool. The great thing about the place: the old jukebox (it’s not like those jukebox’s in LA that play Kings of Leon. They had Dolly Parton and The Beegees) also, they had pool tables and that’s where we spent the majority of the night.
On the bad side, it’s nothing special considering that it’s far off from downtown Memphis.

The day I come back home to Memphis and find the doors of this place shuttered will be the day I break down and cry.
Yeah, this is a «real» dive with colorful regulars, but hipsters don’t survive for long in this place. Seems like Dave Brubeck’s «Take Five» is always playing on the juke, but I know the place as ground zero for the blossoming rockabilly scene in the mid-​90s. Alas, those days are gone, but Miss Anne, Shirley, and cheap PBR seem to still be here.
Edit 10÷28÷10
Got word that Miss Shirley passed away today. Stomach cancer. God bless her and God bless the Lamplighter.