Best Sports Bars
in Boston

Sullivan's Tap is the canonical pre-game bar for Celtics and Bruins fans, positioned 3 minutes' walk from TD Garden on Canal Street. It is a genuine neighborhood bar that serves the North End as much as it serves arena crowds. Cheapest pints in the area. No food, which is honest. The bartenders have worked here for decades and possess full institutional memory of Boston sports heartbreak and triumph.

Inside the Marriott Copley Place, Champions is Boston's most polished sports bar: 80 screens, full-service kitchen, and championship memorabilia donated by Boston's teams across 4 decades of winning. The 11 Super Bowl trophies, World Series hardware, and Stanley Cup replicas on display make this the most decorated sports bar in any American city. Worth the premium pricing for the ambience alone.

The Penalty Box is specifically and unapologetically a Bruins bar. Bruins photos, Bruins flags, Bruins history on every surface. Located in the West End with easy access to TD Garden, it fills from the first drop of the puck and empties only after the post-game debate is settled. Genuine hockey knowledge at every stool. The best bar for Bruins playoff games in the city.

Bleacher Bar is built directly into the bleacher section of Fenway Park, accessible through a gate under the center-field bleachers. A window in the bar looks directly onto the outfield grass. On game days the view makes every drink the most expensive $8 beer you have ever had in the best possible way. Off-season, it is simply one of the most atmospheric bars in Boston. Capacity is 40. Arrive early.

The Tavern in the Square chain runs 5 locations across Greater Boston and is the most reliable option for watching sports outside the Fenway cluster. Every location has at least 40 screens, Sunday Ticket, and a kitchen running until midnight. The Porter Square Cambridge location is the strongest; it pulls a young professional crowd that keeps the energy up through late-game finishes.

The Grand occupies a converted Downtown Crossing ballroom, which gives it a scale that most sports bars cannot match: 28-foot ceilings, 90 screens, and a sound system calibrated for 800 people. Pre-game concerts on the stage and post-game DJ sets make it as much a nightlife venue as a sports bar. The cocktail program punches above the average for a sports bar of this size.

The third member of the Lansdowne Street sports bar triumvirate alongside Game On and Cask n' Flagon. Who's On First is the smallest and most neighborhood-feeling of the three, which means it is often the best option on non-Red Sox game nights when the Fenway crowd thins. The beer selection emphasizes New England craft brewing, with 24 regional taps changing monthly.

Harp balances its Irish pub identity with serious sports coverage. Located on Causeway Street near TD Garden, it serves both the post-work crowd and the pre-game Celtics and Bruins faithful with equal competence. The Guinness pour is among the best in Boston. 30 screens cover the major sports; the Thursday evening atmosphere when multiple games run simultaneously is reliably excellent.

Boston Beer Works is a full brewpub that happens to sit in the Fenway sports bar cluster. The house beers are brewed on-site, which gives it a legitimate craft identity that the surrounding sports bars lack. The Fenway Pale Ale is the standard; the seasonal Pumpkinhead Ale in the fall is famous enough that Bostonians plan trips around its availability. Pre-game dining works exceptionally well here.

Named for Red Sox legend Tony Conigliaro, this Assembly Row sports bar has built a loyal following in the city's fastest-developing neighborhood. 60 screens and a kitchen serving until midnight attract the Encore Boston Harbor casino crowd before and after. The full Red Sox game package and direct Red Line access make it the best option outside the Fenway cluster on game nights.

Lir covers the Back Bay sports bar beat with 30 screens, a reliable Guinness pour, and a kitchen that keeps the food coming through late-game finishes. The upstairs room is particularly strong on Sunday afternoons when the NFL dominates. The young professional crowd from the Back Bay and South End fills the room on Friday evenings regardless of what game is on.

Sólás occupies a Fenway corner spot that catches the overflow from the bigger Lansdowne Street venues when Red Sox games sell out the neighborhood. The 25-screen setup handles multiple games simultaneously; the bar's Irish pub bones give it more character than the average sports bar. The Harp Lager on draft is the default order and one of the best pours of it in the area.