La Perla Bar

One of the best kept secrets in East Austin. We enjoy bringing friends and family who are visiting Austin. It brings memories of home. Enjoy an Armodello drink and some great music.

loved this spot! the pool table especially was so fun, costs $1.50 to play. everyone was really friendly and the music was good.

Wow what can I say, except this is a quintessential dive bar in the best way! Friendly bartender, fun clientele, and great music mix. The solo pool table rounds out the vibe. Sit at the bar or pull up a banquet chair next to stacked cases of beer and enjoy the night!

Fantastic Street tacos. Some of the best I've had does not matter if it's 8:00 p.m. or 2:00 a.m. I had carne asada, carnitas with red sauce. Grab a couple Dos XX from the small bar next door.

Authentic mexican bar, legit made me feel in Mexico, a dog on the entrance, people drinking modelo with hot sauce (?), watching football and us playing pool, legit made me feel in Mexico, everybody spoke english tho. We won the pool game btw

Really nice atmosphere; clientele are a FUN mix of genuine Austinites, college kids, young urban professionals (YUPPIES), TOURISTS and a curious mix of artists, etc., etc. Beers are Iced-cold; and the price is SUPER RIGHT, amidst a sea of "trendy and way OVERPRICED BOUTIQUE BARS Perla Bar is well worth, actually more than well worth, a visit. Caution: DON'T SHOOT POOL AGAINST THE OWNER; he's Damned good and knows his way around the small, bar sized, pool table (after all, he owns it).

Came here. Started to have a good time. Bartender at closing time locked my brother and good friend in because he had differences with someone. Very scary situation. I attempted to ask them to let my friend and brother go. I called the police and the owner and bartender later confronted me and stated that police never come here anyway. Very scary situation. Please be aware when you come to this place.

Fun place to be, me and my brothers grew up here. Parents had it for 49 years

I was warned about heading over to the Dirty 6th because it was filled with college kids, bachelor/bachelorette parties, and the most likely place to get your wallet stolen. I actually ended up having a great time down in the dirty and ran into this great dive bar, which as fate would have it, is one of my type of places to be. It's a very small spot, and really one of the few that are still standing against all the construction happening all around the city. But what I discovered through my intrepid investigative work and the nice young couple next to me is that I must try a drink called the Ar-Modelo. What is that you ask? It is like a Modelo margarita. Modelo, fresh lime juice, salt, and hot sauce. Holy yum!!! Great service and great atmosphere. This was a great time!

Great bar. They welcomed in the El Blanco aka Lobo Loco and I had a pleasant time. Drink the Ar-Modelo and be happy that a real bar still exists in Austin. No real doofuses to speak of in here, just real locals as I imagine Austin used to be full of.

Drinks: 5/5 La Perla might have the best bang for your buck beers in the whole city. Truly hard to beat! Service: 5/5 Absolutely amazing bar staff who are some of the most welcoming people we've come across yet. Environment: 3/5 This place has an iconic Eastside look but comes with some interesting choices inside. Inventory in the bar area and food all over the place without much room.

Great Tequila Cocktails and super Bartenders. Not conducive for conversation but if you get there early and before the Gen Z crowd it's fantastic.

This place took us by surprise! Coming from North Carolina and seen this small little place that didn't look like much. We had an amazing time with very welcoming company. Beer was cold and the hospitality was a breath of fresh air. Looking at opening something similar here on the East Coast. Salud mi gente

Best bar in town! Somehow this place is holding out against the insane level of gentrification that's happening on the east side. Its been exactly the same for as long as I can remember. Its cozy and their specialty the Armodellos is fantastic. If you like classic little hole in the wall dives you will love La Perla.

I experienced La Perla for the 1st time over the weekend on Saturday, 3/30/2019 while bar/club hopping in the area around La Perla & I would say my experience was "ok". The 1st thing that stuck out to me was how SMALL the inside of La Perla is so that is the reason for 3 stars only. There was a DJ, a few small tables to sit at, and a pool table but the inside area is so small that people were having to stand all around the pool table so even if someone wanted to play pool there really wasn't any room to do so w/out poking people with the pool sticks. There was a Dj playing some really great music BUT with La Perla being so freakin' small inside there really wasn't a lot of open space to dance so people just danced in the little open space that was available. FYI-There is only 1 women's restroom and no cover charge. We had no issues with the bartender & the bartender was super fast at getting us our drinks. For sure I would say La Perla was a good place stop at when bar hopping to grab a drink. -Rebecca out

La Perla is a gem! My friends and I have had many good times here and have never once had a problem with our cars getting towed because when park in their lot, we actually go inside and then move them when we leave--¡imagínate!

A local Austin dive bar that stays true to the Old Austin. When you walk in this place you will be treated like family. You'll immediately notice most people in there are regulars, which says a lot about a place. You have to try the ARMODELLOS, which is what they are known for... SO GOOD!!

La Perla is a legit east Austin, local bar that is truely standing the test of time and gentrification. If you are looking to get away from the hipster "cool" kid crowd please step into La Perla. This is just what we did during SXSW. The local crowd in the bar at first looked at us wondering if we had stepped into the wrong bar, but once they realized we had not they welcomed us with open arms. The bar is cash only and beer only, so be prepared. The bartender lady working was super awesome. They also serve a few snacks in case you are hungry too. We also made some friends and chatted it up with some of the regulars. There were a couple of older gentleman that gave us some free advice on life, marriage, friendship and other important things. It was truly a time I would not forget hanging with these guys and conversing with them. Remember La Perla is a dive, hole in the wall place serving cold beer and holding it's stake in the ground while everything else around it is being redone. This is one of many factors that make literally as good as it gets on my list. Until next time La Perla!

Awesome dive bar that is one of the only remaining of a dying breed in Austin. Highly recommend the Armodelo. The owner is also very nice and provided great service!

It's really unfortunate that people are not allowed to go out and have a good time, considering the circumstances. Not only did you take from babies mouths (towing fees) you ruined the holidays. This isn't how you treat people and this is not how you thrive in a business. Furthermore Fuck you kindly!!! Do not park here they will tow your car. They watch you and tow you. Even after 5 minutes. Also they do NOT wear masks nor gloves!!!

I wish I could leave a no star rating. A hole in the wall bar with no customer service. This place claims to have a parking lot for customers only but if you have a nice new Mercedes C250 coupe they will have you towed and claim you were never at their bar. They are contracted with Reliant Towing and call them to tow select vehicles. Oh and don't walk out to eat at their food truck because that's considered leaving Perla...this place is a trap!

My new favorite place. The only thing you need to get here are Armodellos. $3 for a bit of heaven in your mouth. 1 unopened ice cold Modello A few shakes of beer salt A squirt of lime juice A few shakes of Tabasco Open, let everything drop into the beer, then guzzle it down. Throw on some Mexican jams in the jukebox, sit back and soak it all in.

Holy dive bar Batman! If you blink you'll miss out... So don't blink. Great little find tucked away in E. 5th. Tiny place that looks like a bar inside a living room. The bartender is super friendly and all the patrons to boot. Make sure you have cash in hand cause they don't take credit cards, but they do have an ATM in case you forget. A must try is their signature Arm-modelo. A very interesting drink that the bartender whips up on the spot. They do have a pretty good sized parking lot for all of their paying customers. Don't go here if you're looking for classy, but definitely go here if you are looking for unique!

I was introduced to this bar on a bike and brews tour. We were waiting for the food trucks across the street to open, so we had a drink here. The bar is pretty small and such a fun atmosphere. Everyone is so friendly and a patron even offered us a slice of his pizza. The Ar-modelo is a unique experience that everyone must try. You can't go wrong with beer, lime, salt, and hot sauce. The kick in the hot sauce makes you wanting more and more of your beer. Can't go wrong with one!

Armodelo is where it's at. Friendly bartender greeted us as we walked in and Walter White is the mascot of this Dive bar. Whenever I'm in the neighborhood, I'll definitely always stop by for the coldest beer in Austin.

This was absolutely the worst experience I have ever had in Austin. Supposedly the husband and wife owners were present through all of this and the wife was the aggressor. My friends and I had been there for a couple of hours enjoying ourselves and we spent over $100 dollars there. The nightmare began when I had to use the restroom. I came up and jingled the restroom door and yes, it was occupied. There is a pool table in the tiny bar and I did not realize I "cut" in front of someone when I jingled the door. It happens to be the wife of the owner. No big deal as I can wait and get behind this woman but she was for some reason furious. She made it known that she was furious to everyone in the tiny room with the pool table. Then it was preceded by absolutely everyone trying to intimidate me. This ranged from multiple men and women. I was completely appalled at this disgusting behavior as the supposed owners were present. And other point to be made is this random older woman stated she wanted to fight me. By this point I can't even believe this was happening to me. This woman was literally in her 50s trying to fight? After that the owners wife was trying to kick me out because she was so angry. Then she preceded to hurl insult after insult at me and tried to prevent me from using the restroom. She went in the restroom and literally stayed there for around ten to fifteen minutes while I had people glaring at me and just stating outright rude things. They had some weird mob, intimidation mentality. They were trying very hard to make me leave before I used the restroom. I absolutely needed to use the restroom and my goal was to leave this horrible place immediately after. I also can't believe the husband was present for this entire ordeal and did nothing. He asked the bartender if my tab was open and asked to close it for me to leave. For him to allow this behavior is astounding and this man and women clearly do not need to be in the service industry. I finally was able to use the restroom as this angel lady who I believe was a regular helped me out. That was the only saving grace in this story. After I got of the restroom the owners wife made sure she was at the entrance of the door to tell me breath stank. Who does this? This is complete unacceptable behavior. This place is truly terrible and in my opinion if you're not a regular they will treat you like the trash they are. Terrible, terrible place!

We heard about this place and the food trucks around. So parked, went in for drinks. Left to get food from the cross the street...food truck. And they had us towed. Yup towed their paying customers. They didn't say anything. The three employees of theirs sitting outside waiting to call the tow company. If we knew we would have moved, or let them know what we doing. They could have said something. We found out they get money from the towing company Reliant. Which told us it would be $119. When we came up, they then changed the price to $193! Our advice is to report them and the towing company to 311. They said the more we report them, the faster they will have to stop. Eventually they will stop taking kick backs and hurting paying customers.

La Perla is a unique dive bar, with a great atmosphere. I went with a friend on a Saturday night, they only serve beer and ciders and it is pretty bare bones. There is a pool table, and some seating. The bar feels like you are in someones house, which is a cool spin on a normal dive. I took off a star because of the limited drink options. Service was great, we got a beer within minutes of walking in the door even though the bar was crowded. There is a wide range of ages who hang out here which I like, people seem to come from all walks of earth. Overall I would go back, I probably wouldn't spend a lot of time here but it was a chill place to close out a Saturday night!

Absolutely terrible place with rude ownership. We had one of our worst experiences in Austin here and plan to never go back. Stay far away from this place. As many people have mentioned, if I could leave a negative review for this place, I would.

Holy shit, this venue looks scary from the outside! Especially at night!! I went in last night and within seconds I felt unsafe in this venue. Super small, and the vibe is somewhere between a prison cell and a scetchy alley. As soon as you walk in the bar is 4ft away. To the left is a 7x7 room with a pool table and an old juke box. This is definitely a dive bar, or a veteran serrano bar. The guests there last night were not friendly and didnt give off a friendly vibe.

Had the best experience here tonight! Suchhhhh friendly people- we were welcomed in immediately and felt like we had entered someone's living room. The tiniest bar I've been in- all 6 people there seemed to know each other and the bartender really well, but everyone talked to us and told us to order the armodelo! Soooo good- it's a can of Modelo topped with tobasco and lime and something else? Not sure but it's spicy and delicious! Like a Michelada. Cash only and beer only, one pool table, and only a couple small tables- this place rocks. Jukebox playing tejano- one of the only east side places that's stayed true to their roots!

La Perla has a parking lot to the side of the establishment that is unlit and unmarked. There are two small signs that tell you the lot is for La Perla but after dark these are difficult to see. I had been at Hotel Vegas, on the other side of the parking lot, about 45 minutes when my car was towed. This was a $200 tow for me. Normally I'm neither for or against gentrification but I really can't wait until someone buys La Perla, levels it, and turns it into a parking garage.

Austin staple and a must go to to say you've been. Stopped in for a drink last Saturday afternoon and ended up staying for two and watching the world cup. Quick service, cheap beer and a seedy atmosphere which is part of its charm. It's good to see places like this not changing like the rest of Austin. It feels like you're getting a glimpse into the old city before all of us came in and changed it. Thanks for that.

I'm just going to say this: order an Armodelo. The bartender takes an unopened can of Modelo, sprinkles the top with coarse salt, squirts lime juice until the top of the can is almost full to the brim, then puts a healthy dose of hot sauce on top. WTF, right? The can is cracked open, the lime mixes with the salt mixes with the beer mixes with the hot sauce, you'll wonder why in the hell this tastes so good, and then you'll resolve to do this with every single light American lager that's sent your way from now on. And it'll cost you about $3.50. Trust me on this one.

Was suggested to come here from a local. It's not much to look at. But if you want to have good beer w a local come here. Ask for Finn.

The definition of a dive bar. It's a house converted to a bar, but still 60% house. Don't be surprised if there are cases of their stocked beer in the lounge area because where else are they gonna put em!? This place is tiny. The 'bartenders' are nice enough and drinks are dirt cheap. Lots of Hispanics hang out here.

Great drinks. Great dogs. Great people. They cut you off at 12 but the armodelo is amazing. When I'm Austin, come here.

Ya get what ya pay for. Nothing flashy or special about this bar besides it's local/neighborhoody atmosphere that's been lost on the east side. Grab a modeling and play a game of pool before enjoying your boogie meal reservations on the east side.

I love this bar, it's my kind of place. Personally it's my favorite bar in town. Growing up here in Austin this is one of the last places that feels like home! Everyone has been great to me since I started going there. Long live La Perla

A family vibe that you cant get at just any bar. If you go here you have to try the armodelo! It sounds weird but it's actually pretty tasty!!!

We went to go next door at to the lazy lizard and were informed by a woman who worked at La Perla that it was closed. We said no worries, we just want to take some pictures; to which she said that we couldn't park there. We then offered for the 6 of us to go into la perla for beers before our photos, so that we could be customers, and she said that us getting one or two beers didn't make us customers...we then asked what we could do to park there? Since drinking beer seemed like what would constitute that...and she told us she didn't like our tone and to leave immediately...very odd, as we were being very polite and friendly. Oh well, their loss.

I've never actually set foot in your crappy bar, but I DID almost get towed from your parking lot last night... at midnight... on a MONDAY... with only five other cars in the entire lot! Luckily I've been in Austin twelve years and know the deal when a sleazy tow truck driver shows up. God forbid I park in an almost completely empty lot so I don't have to carry my 300lbs of drum gear two blocks to my gig.... on a MONDAY! Musicians like me BUILT this city. Then slimeballs like you come here (probably from California) and buy one of the most used lots in that area and try to tow people who may very well end up in your bar at some point in the night anyway! Pricks like you are the reason people in Austin say "Don't move here!" You are scum and your bar is a dump. No wonder your parking lot was empty.

One of the old school east side cantinas still standing their ground. The locals who drink here have their own permament spot at the bar. I like to stop here every once in a while and have a drink and listen to Chente on the jukebox. That's right. You wont find no Coldplay in this jukebox. Puro Chente, rancheras, and pop en español. I hadn't been here in a few years, but I noticed they still have that half-naked lady poster by the restroom. Nice, don't ever change. La Perla is certainly a bright pearl in the middle of this zombie hipster apocalypse.

One of my favorite bars in Austin. I grew up here in town and it epitomizes old school East Austin for me. Coldest beer in town, awesome jukebox, and a fun crowd! Once you're a regular everyone knows your name!

Was excited to see some of Austin's dive bars tonight and grab a few beers. Went to La Perla this evening and had a beer with the friends we're visiting after a round of drink we walked across the street to get food truck food and within 20 minutes they had my friends car towed...I'm not surprised by how rude this is with how the woman behind the bar treated us during our visit...horrible service, horrible woman

This place is a joke. The owner is nasty and they have a scam running with the towing company and will tow you even if you're in the establishment (as other reviews are stating). My friends and I went here last night and we were repeatedly verbally and sexually harassed by their overly-intoxicated patrons. These grown men kept telling us we were sexy and asked to see our feet. They followed us outside and would not leave us alone. One of them even went up to my friend pretending to be security and said he needed to see her ID and pat her down. I made a decision to not stay for a drink and leave for our safety and well-being as we walked over to the Brixton for a proper atmosphere. I came back and my car was towed. They sit in the back and watch the cameras to scam the people who park in their lot instead of paying attention to the front of the house while guests are being harassed. I essentially had to pay $200 to remove myself and my friends from a toxic situation. Never in my life did I think I would have to PAY FOR BEING SEXUALLY HARASSED. No empathy from these people. I will never, ever, EVER return here and will be reporting this establishment to the city. If you are a woman just stay away from this shit dive bar. There are plenty more dives around you can get your fix at without the extra attention.

We knew some people who knew some people who are somehow involved with this place, so I guess you could say we had the inside track. La Perla definitely has it's own kind of charm. It's a small space (although it's got plenty of parking!) with a short bar and a pool table. Most everyone seemed to know each other inside and there was a nice homey feel. We ended up buying some tickets to a bbq fundraiser for a local softball team which is something I haven't done since I left my hometown. It was cash only and they didn't have hard liquor when we went, but I branched out and tried a Smirnoff Raw Tea Green Tea beverage. It was ICE cold and extremely refreshing. The bartender even lent me one of the coozies she had hidden behind the bar. All in all a pretty chill, cheap hangout. I probably wouldn't have ventured out unless we knew someone there but it turned out to be a great time.

Ice cold cheap beer on E. 6th!! I've been in this place probably 10 times and this past Saturday was the first time I've ever heard the phrase "We are out of Tecate" come out of the mouth of the owner "Ribs." Why?? Because we had our 1st Annual E. 6th Street Pub Crawl and it had to be one of his busiest nights ever. Over 200 Foodies gals in and out of the establishment on a Saturday night on the Eastside and everyone loved it. My only complaint, it was freakin' hot inside, I don't think it was the weather, I think it was the small place hot with excitement. Ha! Tell him Debbie sent ya. Don't be scared, it's very friendly inside. Shhh, they close at Midnight.

East side. Last, and best, stop on our bar crawl. Air conditioning coolness greeted us on the way in. All silver on the inside like an airstream that got turned outside in. Good cheap drinks and DJ spinning whatever tunes we asked for. Got a good dance on. Everyone was friendly, the owner came over to chat with us for a while and regal us with her plans of expansion to include a backyard patio. Good drinks, good DJ, good crowd, great little place. A definite destination if you're crawling down the eastside.

It was a Friday. We parked in a lot next to the bar. We went into the bar and immediately felt bad energy - the bartender/owner - whatever you wanna call her, and a customer sitting at the bar, were not so nice. Just bad energy altogether! So we decided not to stay. Well obviously they were watching us, because our car got towed pretty much immediately. When we went to pick up the car from the tow place, another guy showed up right after us, and his car was towed from the exact same parking lot! I understand that the bar is just trying to run a business, but you don't have to be greedy about it - because obviously they have some type of deal with the towing company if two cars were towed back-to-back - not to mention, once their bar was closed at midnight, there were plenty of cars still parked there after it was closed - why weren't they getting towed!?!? Clearly they were picking and choosing. If being greedy and money-hungry is how you want to run your establishment, by all means, more power to you... but that will only get you so far... and I hope it catches up to you. KARMA!

Cold beer cheaper than any other bar I know, sports are always on, cold beer, jukebox has good drinking music and it's only 25 cents per song, cold beer, pool table that is 50 cents, cold beer, cold beer cold beer. Did I mention that the beer is super cold?

Went here on a Tuesday night. They had me at $2.50 Caronas. Great little dive bar. Bartender was very nice & friendly. Will make it a priority to go here every time we are in Austin. They do not serve liquor, but did have, not your fathers root beer which was fine for my wife since she does not drink Beer. Great bar.

I hesitate to call this a restaurant , La Perla is a run-down (not in the good way) and disgusting establishment. After taking a break from my overpriced and undercooked enchilada, I noticed that there was literal shit on the men's room floor. I notified the manager and they stated that it would be taken care of, it was not according to my knowledge. After eating, our group went down to 6th St. When we return to our parking spot about an hour later, my car had been towed! The sign says parking for customers only, which according the over $50 I spent, I most certainly was. We will not be returning to La Perla now or anytime ever!

Place was disgusting and the food was trash. We paid for our meal in La Perla and walked down the street for about an hour, when we returned my car had been towed even though we were paying customers! The bar has a deal with the towing company and they both benefit from screwing their customers.

This place looks like it's about to explode at any minute, and the inside isn't a ton better. But ya know, maybe that's what makes this place great? Cheap beer, pool table, friendly bartender, good conversations - and, the owner is a braves fan! The "premium" beers are $3, regular beers are $2.50. Awesome. Also, order the armodelo. You won't be disappointed.

It's a run-down cantina. I get appreciating kitsch and whatnot, but on a busy night it was just a few grizzled characters staring at baseball. There is junk piled everywhere and it's old and grimy. It's a good place for some texture to be sure but I can't imagine it as more than a one-time check it out and flee kind of destination.

This is a cash only bar that the locals hang in. And even though its tiny anyone in the area should stop in for a couple. Be sure to bring CASH only.

Fun old school cantina. Cheep beer, nothing fancy. Think Bud light, Coors light, maybe a Corona...