Bernice's Tavern
Bar · Bridgeport ·
Cash only dive bar with live music, bingo, open mic & cheap drinks
Cash only dive bar with live music, bingo, open mic & cheap drinks
"Since the 1930s, this Bridgeport bar has been serving beer and shots to a customer base that fawns over this low-ceilinged space. Its current owners, the Badauskas family, took over the bar in the 1950s. This charming corner spot even has an open mic for musicians." - Ashok Selvam
"Bernice’s, a hidden spot in Bridgeport, is small, dark, and cozy. Tunes ring out from the jukebox, and Mike, the bartender, will ensure you’re well taken care of. The place is crawling with locals but don’t worry, staff will still buzz (yes, buzz) customers in through the doors even if they’re not from the neighborhood." - Ashok Selvam
"A South Side dive bar that turned to the community to raise funds needed to renew its liquor license, successfully surpassing its $4,400 goal by collecting $5,355 and securing renewal of the license." - Aimee Levitt
"I learned that Bernice’s Tavern, the longtime Bridgeport dive bar, successfully raised $4,400 through a GoFundMe to cover the cost of its upcoming liquor license renewal and has so far received more than $4,800; owner Steve Baudaskas launched the campaign explaining that pandemic-related closures left the bar with only nine months to use a two-year license and that it’s been hurting financially, after having held another fundraiser last year to pay utilities and insurance." - Ashok Selvam
"This tchotchke-filled dive bar has been a Bridgeport fixture for decades and is currently running a GoFundMe to raise the $4,400 needed to renew its two-year tavern liquor license after pandemic disruptions shortened its last renewal to roughly nine months. The fundraiser, launched on a Friday and already covering more than $2,500, follows a previous campaign that raised $7,791 to pay utilities, stock, and dram-shop insurance while the bar was closed; the basic 2 a.m. tavern license was last renewed in December 2019 and expires on December 15. Owner Steve Badauskas says COVID “took a bigger bite” than expected; the spot reopened in March 2021 after a year-long shutdown and has since resumed regular open-mic nights and Wednesday bingo, having sold to-go drinks earlier in the pandemic to stay afloat. Originally opened as Adam’s Place after Prohibition in 1933, it was taken over by bartender John Badauskas in 1965, who bought the building in 1975 and renamed the bar after his wife Bernice, a fixture behind the bar until her death in 2017." - Aimee Levitt
