Empress - Vancouver

This is the poorest, toughest postal code in Canada. The people on the streets are down-and-out. The neighborhood is notorious. This is an SRO hotel. The age of the building is obvious like the rings in a tree stump. A reasonable person would describe this bar as lower than a dive. With a warm heart and a quirk for adventure, we enjoy the sense of community (don't sit at the bar stools unless you ask), the humility, the human characters and the low prices. The staff is gracious and the atmosphere is humble. These are good hardy souls and the more I think about it, the better the room looks. I see that it is unchanged in decades. Through the back door and across the alley, I see the police station. I see people watching hockey. We talk to people that don't live in a neighborhood like ours or dress like we do but, we all have the same interest in TV sports, pretty girls, and stiff drinks. Pour me another and keep the change.

The Empress Pub is a quiet respite that seems like another world compared to the corner of the DTES that it's located on. They have a decent quality back bar with cheap specials on beer, spirits, and doubles. There's 5 TVs, a jukebox and a busy pool table. The crowd is mostly over 50, but also mostly friendly and ready to share a story or two.

Dive bar alert! The lovely Gina and I came here after a Yelp party for some drinks. We were dressed to the nines and cozied up at the bar. Apparently the stools at the bar 'belong ' to regulars, even if they are empty, but the staff and regulars insisted we sit there. We felt pretty special! The patrons were friendly and really chill. And the drinks? Cheap! We had amaretto cokes, but the funny thing was, they were super stiff because they came in child-sized glasses! It turns out the normal sized glasses always got stolen, so they had to resort to a more undesirable size. Well, it was quite the novelty and we loved it! This place is right on East Hastings and inside an SRO building, so you can imagine that the decor is um... minimal. The bones of the building are beautiful though. This is no place to take the family, but a fun cheap stop for drinks if you 're in the hood!

Don't confuse this place with the one in Victoria; it's a true dive bar gem. I've visited several times with my boyfriend and some friends, and we always have a good time. The drinks are strong and reasonably priced. The atmosphere is relaxed—people mostly leave you alone, except for the occasional drunken compliment, which is both funny and genuine! There are some regulars who claim their favorite spots, but they’re pretty friendly about it. They also host karaoke on Saturdays, I believe. Another plus is its location right behind the police station. The owner mentioned that many judges and officers come here to unwind, so it tends to be a safe place without much trouble.

If you're reading a review of the Empress Hotel, chances are you're unfamiliar with this establishment, as anyone who knows it wouldn't need to. This place has a certain grim reputation. The heroin available here may not be the highest quality, but it might just get you closer to your goal. The sex workers have long surpassed the point of being unattractive; even the ugliest of them would appear appealing in comparison. The beer is so watered down that it hardly tastes better than stale water, and the decor seems stuck in the eras of World War I and II. If you appreciate an atmosphere filled with foul odors, this might just be the spot for you. Come in and spend some of your last moments here, but remember to leave a tip as you exit this world.