St. Roch Tavern - New Orleans

This charming local bar features billiards, a lending library, Colombian cuisine, affordable drinks, live music, and even haircuts available on Tuesday nights.

Charming little place in the 7th Ward with healthy options. Everything I tried was top-notch—10/10!

This was the first bar we visited when we arrived, and yes, we were tourists, but we weren't wearing floppy hats, cargo pants, or socks with sandals. (Later in the week, we did see some regulars dressed like that.) We dressed normally, ordered beers, and tipped well, yet the bartender looked at us as if we had just walked into her home to rob her. Half of the beer taps were out, and she seemed annoyed when we tried to order from the ones that worked. Sorry, but how were we supposed to know? A simple "out of order" sign would suffice. After one drink, feeling unwelcome, we decided to leave. We ended up at another bar where we had a great time. When we shared our negative experience at St. Roch, everyone exclaimed, “Oh yeah, they’re known for being rude here.” A few days later, we returned to give it another chance, this time for karaoke night. Unfortunately, the bartender’s attitude was once again off-putting. We signed up for karaoke, but the instructions were confusing. Apparently, we had to send a link to our video to the karaoke host, which didn’t seem right. As a karaoke MC, you should be doing that, not us. When we asked for assistance, our inquiries were ignored, and we were skipped in the lineup repeatedly. During this time, my partner scored a great haircut and beer deal for $15 from a talented barber who shared that the karaoke MC often invites her theater friends and neglects newcomers—it’s a common occurrence. She kindly asked the MC to bump us up in the queue, but we ended up watching the same regulars go multiple times while we waited for three hours. The karaoke MC even had the nerve to say, “I’m open to bribes!” Seriously? Isn’t this your job? We spoke with some regulars outside, who were much friendlier than the staff, and they confirmed this treatment is routine and unacceptable. I spent the last two weeks exploring the bars in the area, and St. Roch was the only one where we felt so unwelcome. It seems the staff gets some sort of pleasure from being rude. We directly asked the MC to play our song three times and each time, she smugly reassured us that we were next—but we weren’t. Karaoke should be about community, not showcasing the same group of theater kids performing the same song over and over again. Skip St. Roch and head somewhere else. And yes, everyone keeps mentioning the gutter punks. They may still be around in 2021, but at least they are nicer than the staff here.

This place is a most unique bar. I place where you really wanna sit and people gaze. A man with no legs carried his wheelchair into the bar, and proceeded to play the slots in the back. Like a champion with no help, and no one would notice besides myself, because 4 years in, I am still a tourist. They also have sit down old school pac man which is pretty bad ass. 5 dollar burgers, trivia nights , and a bingo night. This is the most random of drives I've been to thus far in New Orleans. Oh yes, on Tuesdays you can also get your hair cut here with a beer for 15 bucks. Cheap booze, good food, and fantastic company. It's one of the best bars in all the land. I promise you need to check it out, if you enjoy people from all backgrounds. And the decor at the bar is fantastic. 5 stars indeed.

I bought a house around the corner from the St. Roch Tavern a couple of years ago. Always a friendly and diverse crowd. $20 haircut is very cool. Folks singing Karaoke while you get your hair cut is fun! Getting a PBR on top of that is more fun. But the Piece de Resistance is the Country Music Monday! Lots of folks to dance with. Great service great prices. Did I mention Country Music Mondays?