Holland Cocktail Lounge Dive Bar

Hell's Kitchen, New York –

Adventurous souls in search of the ultimate dive bar need look no further than the Holland Cocktail Lounge, the preferred location for dedicated dive hunters in search of the down-and-dirtiest watering hole in New York.

This venerable beer joint consists of the barest essentials – namely, a long bar inside a narrow space, a jukebox, and lots of cheap beer.

If the heart of any dive bar is a colorful clientele, Holland doesn't disappoint with its loyal crowd of wizened blue-collar regulars trickling in and out all day and night, commuters liquoring up before their train ride home, and a sizable contingent of rowdy dive bar enthusiasts ready for another no-frills party in dubious company.

While definitely not a place for hooking up, the bar’s affordable drinks keep the liquor and the conversation flowing, while a couple of flat-screen TVs fill any lulls with sports by day and bad TV movies by night.

Drinkers not enthralled by the Spanish-language version of Superman II at 2am can plop some quarters in the jukebox and chill to Jersey-style classics by Sinatra and Springsteen, favorites of owners Gary Kelly and the infamous Dr. Bill – whose nickname, incidentally, lines the walls in the form of strategically-clipped newspaper headlines like “Dr. Jerk-yll Caught in Sperm Probe!”

Although the decorations are purely accidental and the patrons hardly top drawer, this famed neighborhood haunt still puts on a good party on the weekends and welcomes anyone with enough spare laundry money in their pocket to buy a golden delicious can of cheap, gets-the-job-done beer.