Dozen Street

Not to sound cliché but this bar is a gem! If you’re seeking a break from the banal hangouts on 6^th Street, you’re in the right place. Inside there are so many design nuances that give Dozen Street a lot of quirky character. The owner/​manager is a very lively and nice woman!
There are two pool tables (which are 100% free to play!!) and from what I hear, the venue boasts great live music. Will definitely be frequenting this place!

This place is everything the east side should be. Quirky, good people, great drink, even better music.

This place was such a blast. We went on dancing on a Monday and they had one of the best Soul nights I’ve ever been too in Austin. I used to love Thursdays at another place but after hearing the fifth Jackson 5 song of the night you start to wonder if the DJ is the man at the booth or some internet playlist. The drinks were really good and didn’t break the bank. Outside is nice too because you can smoke but its covered so you’re not shut out in the cold. Indoors also has some nice little coves to sit when you need a break. A nice place to sit is probably not what most look for in a club but whatever. Definitely my new favorite to cut a rug!

I’m not going to make this review about gentrification, but that’s the first thing that came to mind when I checked out Dozen Street recently. Just over a year ago, when this club was called 1808, it was primarily an African-​American hangout, and always crowded. Now, the clientele seems to be mostly Euro-​American. And it’s empty by comparison. So where did all those folks go?
Otherwise, it seems that not much has changed. The décor is still old-​school unfinished ceilings and dark well-​used furniture and low-​lit coves near the dance floor. There’s some interesting collage work on the club walls and in the ladies’ bathroom, though there isn’t a toilet paper holder. It was dark and cold inside on a chilly night.
The staff was incredibly friendly, as was the dog wandering about. The bartenders paid special attention to our requests and were eager to please.
The back yard is spacious and a lovely place to hang out, and most of the clientele bypassed the indoor area and live band without pause on their way out the back. We were there to see the band, so we stayed indoors.
The club’s layout is like a long L-​shaped rectangle, with the stage at the crook of the L. The stage faces the short section of the L, which causes the performers to awkwardly face a small area instead of the entire indoor area.
The night we were there, the band started, then was obliged to stop after two songs for a local comic to perform in the middle of their set. He rambled on without any apparent material for about 15 minutes before he abruptly wandered back into the crowd and the emcee returned to reintroduce the band. It felt a little like watching your kids try to perform a variety show in your living room.
It seems like the club has good intentions, and it could be a decent place to stop in for drinks if you’re in the area. Parking is free in the fenced lot across the street, at least for now. There wasn’t a cover and the drinks are reasonably priced. It reminded me a little of Hole in the Wall, only East Side instead of UT Drag.

This is my favorite bar in Austin. They have great cocktails, live music, free pool, and awesome bartenders. Can’t wait to come visit again

Great place! There’s always something fun going on, and it’s always a really great scene.
Tons of cool art to ogle at on the walls… everywhere!
Always great to just hang out with friends or make new ones, but it’s also a Fun place for live music, theater performances, art, etc. There’s also plenty of room to stretch out in the backyard if the inside gets crowded. You totally feel like you’re at someone’s backyard get– together, except… There’s a food truck! Yum!

Dozen Street has become my most favorite bar! It’s a great, unpretentious place with almost no hipsters! The liquor selection is smaller than some of the bigger bars but their rail is better than most bars second tier and you can tell that each bottle was hand picked. They have Live music most nights, with drunk piano on Sundays (if you play even a little bit, go have a couple of craft cocktails and play like a rock star!). Maydee is awesome and I just can’t say enough good things about the place. If you haven’t been, go now!

Fantastic venue. I’ve been here twice for two drum and bass shows. The fact that the venue is associated with my favorite DNB promoters gives it an edge. However, the bar staff is great (I don’t drink, but their Topo Chicos are frosty as a warlock’s nipple).
Also, they always have cold water ready to go for the danceflooor. This is a huge bonus that is often overlooked by most dance clubs. The back patio is amazing with a warm, positive atmosphere. The fence is painted to look like the ebony and ivory keys of a piano… Or the plastic keys of a Korg. Take your pick.
Free parking across the street makes this venue a no-​brainer for avoiding the disgusting hurricane of fraternity infested chain bars on dirty sixth.
Five stars, through and through!

This place is awesome; by far my favorite neighborhood bar in a neighborhood fulla bars. The décor is exactly the right amount of seedy. The patio is a great place to chill and talk and the bar has a variety of music; not all in my tastes, but you can’t make everybody happy all the time. The staff is cool, and I’ve never had a complaint about my drinks or how fast I got them. Love the vintage porn in the bathrooms… lol

Interesting art, cool decorations, good drink menu, nice back yard, and good vibe. I like this place.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE DOZEN!
Mathais, Genevieve, an Ace all take great care of me and my lady. They drinks are always amazing but the taste… Superb :)!!
Come to dozen and see how great it is! Plus if you get hungry you can WALK to Badlands ++

What an odd place! Dozen Street has excellent cocktails, solid live music, and some weird quirks. I gasped a little at the tiles made out of vintage leather jackets (mainly because I wanted one of those tiles as a jacket!), and was a little weirded out at the vintage porn lining the bathroom walls, but Dozen Street is cool. There may have also been an open flame gas heater on the floor, but at least it’s warm in here.
The bartenders know what they’re doing with the cocktails, and the drinks are reasonably priced. There are regular bar specials, especially on Sundays, and the funk band that was there a few weeks ago was kickin’ it.
It’s a little weird that the bar crowd wasn’t that diverse, but I guess that’s the usual for 12^th and Chicon.

I really wanted to like this place. The mosaics are lovely, the patio is expansive and the décor is comfortably low key. FIrst visit I was sure it would become a huge deal, with an interesting drink menu and nice vibe.
My second visit was more lukewarm. Some errors were made in my drink, and although I was offered a replacement it was nothing to write home about. I noticed the crowd had thinned considerably.
Third visit was a Saturday night. I had been at a nearby bar prior and it was packed yet Dozen Street was dead. The live music was uncomfortably loud for such a small space and pretty terrible overall. It also smelled rancid indoors, as though something had not been cleaned up. A very simple whiskey and soda turned out to be mostly soda.
Fourth visit will not happen. If King Bee is next door and offers superior service and awesome pizza, why bother?

«The best margarita I’ve had in a while» is what I was thinking, and indeed drinking, that night at Dozen Street. The bartender and bar manager have decided to keep it simple (in terms of liquor selection) and keep it «craft» in terms of product. NOTE: Small selection does NOT mean bad or limited… it is a well curated wall of hard alcohol delights flanked by fresh fruit and homemade simple syrup. And they use them well.
Interior space is cozy, with a few plush couches, benches, and a stage. Some may say it’s «cramped.» Well, then go outside to the amazing patio area. Then you’re closer to the AMAZING FOOD.
Yes, one of the best things about this place is the coal oven pizza offered by the cool cats in the food truck out back. Brisket pizza you say? Yes, I say! It was a delight. Also, their more «standard» pizza offerings are amazing, due to the HOT fired oven they use. Makes crispy crust.
Is it «trendy,» you ask? So what, I say. Lots of nice folks. I can see this becoming HUGE during SXSW. I wish them well, and I WILL RETURN FOR THE MARGARITAS, hipsters be damned.

We were in the mood for pizza and had to track down the Unconventional Oven since they moved from near my place. Wow, what a find! This is one of my new favorite places.
The glass mosaics on the wall and front door are stunning.
The cocktails are delicious and well-​crafted.
Patio is pet-​friendly.
Apparently they have a lot of live music, especially blues (SCORE).
We met one of the co-​owners and chatted a while. He has really put a lot of love into this place and you can see it.
Go here NOW before everyone discovers this gem!

Club 1808. I remember you. With people lurking outside as I scurried into blues night at Legendary White Swan, music pumping out, always fascinating and a little scary. And now it’s Dozen Street! 12^th and Chicon… you’re the next thing.
Dozen street feels like OG east side. Like what shangrila used to be. No fuss, no muss. It’s a bar, it’s got a pool table (free!), it has a corner stage and a big outdoor area where you may be able to snag a chair — or not. They’ve put up some fantastic mosaics you can ogle whilst sipping your drink.
Had a couple of drinks here the other night and a great conversation with the bartender. It’s a great place to know about before everyone else and I have a feeling it will be a go-​to spot come SX.

Wonderful place at the old club 1808. Beautiful inside with pool tables (free), great outdoor patio, and wonderful bartender. This is definitely a 5 star place and I ONLY give it 4 stars because the liquor selection is lacking. It’s solid, but they are steadfastly trying to work on improving it. From my understanding the selection of liquor is due to something with distribution and the landowner, so it is not their fault. When they get the liquor selection, I will upgrade it to 5 stars. Really awesome place and it looks really promising. 12^th street is really starting to boom with these new businesses opening up.

No matter what the crowd is like at Dozen it always feels good to be here. Wednesdays there’s a blues jam and the sound is incredible! Thursdays is Potty Mouth, a performance open mic of sorts. Free pool, nice people, a great back patio, good cocktails, and the place looks beautiful with art everywhere. This is definitely the new place to be. Can’t wait to go back!

I heard about this spot from a guitar player friend of mine. This place is funky and cool with a really fun crowd. And some really great acts. The owner Maydee is awesome. Good pool tables, a cool lounge area, stage and dance floor. It’s obvious that Dozen Street staff dig what their doing too. All in all, it’s a rockin’ joint. I’ll be going back.