OE Penguin

By now, y’all should know that I have a knack for finding dive bars in any city I go to and Dallas was no different. On the last evening of my Dallas trip, I found OE Penguin… i.e. the One-​Eyed Penguin.
If you aren’t looking for it, the OE Penguin is easy to miss. Once you find the door, you ascend stairs, quite a few stairs actually. Once you reach your destination, you find yourself on the second floor of an old building looking across at the bar with lounge seating on your right along with a pool table with FREE POOL! (Don’t get that at very many places anymore.)
The drinks were good and were as pricey as the drinks served in any dive bar in Oklahoma City. There is no smoking indoors, but you cant venture out to the balcony and have a smoke and overlook downtown Dallas if you desire. The view wasn’t great, because there were trees in the way. However, it was nice to see all the lights and hear all the sounds of downtown.
Overall, I didn’t find anything really wrong with the OE Penguin and enjoyed myself just as much as I would in most other dive bars I have been in.

Had a biz conference in Dallas, never visited Dallas before. A friend and I were walking down main Street on a random week night. The whole town seemed kinda dead. As we strolled past the graffiti-​ish entrance, I stopped. We we actually on our way to another place, but I was intrigued. Using the advice I adhere to– «take the path that makes for the best story» — we made our way up the ominous stairwell.
I wasn’t sure if there was going to be a drag queen club or if they were gonna «bring out the Gimp», but what i found was excellent. Kinda artsy, dive-​ish, yet eclectic, really cool bartender and staff. The patrons were friendly too.
We actually went here 3 times over our 5 day trip. Even recommended it to people at our convention.
Met several different staff members and the owner. All cool, with great info about the city and where to go.
I witnessed an altercation late one night, a very drunk patron from out of town was being an asshole to the staff, and was completely in the wrong. I was a bartender for 12 years, so I’m pretty used to this sort of thing. They handled it the correct way. Without incident.
All in all, great people in a not over the top over priced place. Would definitely recommend! But to the right kind of people. Good people.

Would love to support a downtown business, especially one that reminds me of my hometown Austin but unfortunately the bar staff is unforgivably and unnecessarily rude and that ruined it for us.

Grungy bar with cheap drinks! It reminds me of deep ellum but on main street. It is hard to find, it is just a door that leads to stairs to get up to the bar. I would say start here to get drunk, then move on to your fancy bars so you save money :)

Stopped in for the happy hour early, late afternoon right after open so place was empty. I liked the space.
Bartender was pleasant and friendly. as opposed to the city tavern downstairs I stopped afterwards where the bartenders and waitresses were aloof and seemed bothered to serve a drink.
O E Penguin also has this nice hidden feel. Only a door on the street to the stairwell to the bar on the 2^nd story. A pool table and a nifty balcony type smoking area. the rest basic bar neon hodge podged about. I’ll probably be back. For a happy hour drink, the wells were pretty strong.

I like this bar a lot. Great scene, awesome DJs and an overall good vibe. But I’m losing sleep because I had an unfortunate experience tonight with one of the bartenders (blonde, long hair, relatively tall for a woman). I was closing my tab and I noticed my buddy, also closing out, attempting to waive them down to no avail. Understandably they didn’t notice b/​c the bar was full. In an effort to assist, I pointed one of the bartenders in his direction. The bartender responded «Okay thanks, do you want to come back here and do our job?» I ignored her and pretended to watch NCAA. She then handed my friend his tab in which he later told me that she was being extremely sarcastic with him and stated «Oh I’m so sorry it took me soooo long to get to you.» After handing my friend his tab she approached me and stated «I really didn’t appreciate that, we have five things going on and we are busy (something to that effect — paraphrasing)!» I once again disregarded her and we left.
Why would you attempt to engage in an argument with a patron? Especially since the patron meant no malice. I mean I get it… there are tough nights… there are certain things that bartenders do not appreciate… but damn, even in a casual environment there still has to be some level of professionalism.
This is how one bad experience can ruin one great bar.
Edit: And as expected… my card was charged incorrectly. Professionalism is not that difficult to implement.

Good dive bar. Games, music and for a Weds night, it was pretty packed. Street level is just a door so it’s easy to miss but I’m glad we found it. Cool mixed crowd. one downside is the men were using the ladies’ restroom for some reason. I didn’t feel too comfortable with that.

A jewel in downtown Dallas’ petit and shoddy Main Street club strip, OE Penguin launches you up a long grafitti stairway where your fears of filth may be alleviated by the highly enjoyable loud danceable DJ, flashing lights, handsome unshaven urban boys and ghetto-​tastik bartendresses with enough trailer park bling style, flesh and attitude to make the world go round. (The toothy blond bar maid in a white tank, and a neon pink halter particularly rocked double F T and triple A A and big goofy glasses and a gang like ball cap.)
OE penguin might feel just clean enough to pass health inspection but probably isn’t.
The cheese is just stylish enough to be charming and energizing and the bar has enough dive bar chutzpah to compete with NOLA or LES.
The smokers patio with its arched column windows and beat up furniture overlooks the street.
Not a destination — It’s where chaos and delightful accidents happen.
If you aren’t scared yet — GO.
Slime levels — retro college detectable
Drink prices — average — $ 5 fireball all the time
Crowd — stylers, jail baits and the normal office drones that love them.
Where’s the exit?

I was in the area awaiting Santa’s arrival and wanted a good drink. I walked in the general direction of Prohibition before remembering they closed down.
Fortunately for me, OE Penguin is located upstairs above the old Prohibition location. I walked the stairs and entered into a cool spot with lots of TVs, a pool table and a well stocked bar. The bartender (Broadway) was super cool and served up a great pour. In addition to that there was great conversation. We discussed everything from Turducken to watching a football game at Solder Field (Chicago) in December.
This is a cool spot and I will definitely return in the near future.

For dive bars, this one works for me. First time in there was Halloween, so it was packed! Alcoholic beverages were served pretty fast for having so many patrons. I went in there with a couple friends and we sat down at the one table that opened up. Drinks were perfect. Bartender, Jason, was friendly and efficient. It was dark in there, so for cleanliness, I couldn’t really say.
the one toilet for women and one for men is the only thing that brought this to four stars. lines were long. Maybe on any other night, the one and one would be fine…

Definition of One Eyed Penguin from

When you’re doing it in the ass and the guy spits on the girl’s back and yells her name. This will make the girl think that you have ejacualted on her back. When she turns around you jizz in her eye, then punch her in the same eye and leave. The next day she will waddle like a penguin and will only be able to see out of one eye.
Bill is with his friends and they see his girlfriend waddling with a black eye. Bill says, «Yeah, I gave Jill the one eyed penguin last night».

I didn’t know what to expect on a Tuesday downtown Dallas night. I walked to this place with a few co-​workers for drinks. Downtown itself seem pretty dead (vs Los Angeles, New York, SF, Houston). We walk in this place (10ish) and there were 5 other people in here including the staff members. Needless to say we were the party there since we had well over 10 people strolling in.
Drinks:
No specialties. Jaeger bomb mixed for us (no shot glasses?).
Environment:
Darts, Pin ball machines, 1 pool table and a group of guys playing Wii. Outside patioish area (hot as hell) for the smokers.

Enjoyed the drinks, the random collection of people that surrounded us, and all the games of pool!

Finally had a chance to visit this place. Great atmosphere and great vibe. Reminds me of the place in Denton called Pascal. It’s hidden up above another bar where the only way to enter is a not very noticeable door and behind it is a flight of stairs. Would definitely come back if I’m around the area.

Downtown Dallas has traditionally been a ghost land on weekends and evenings. I was surprised to find the sidewalks filled with people lined up for clubs. I had to investigate. but one of the security guys at «the club» noticed we did not match up to the douchiness of the venue and suggested «the one eyed penguin, THAT is where you guys want to go! trust me, you’ll like it there»
I wasn’t sure if I’d been insulted or made the ass end of some joke (again) but I gave the guy the benefit of the doubt, we stumbled across the street, past another douchey club and found a small door labeled OEP, with a pic of a one eyed penguin (I can’t make this shit up!)
we quickly made friends. strangers bought us drinks (too many of them) and I finally walked away from a full pitcher of beer at 2 am and that’s not like me. that OEP crew is hospitable and is familiar to excess that exceeds even my own!
my top hat is off to you OEP! CHEERS!

Enjoy dive bars? This one is a million stairs up but a fun place. Simple bar with a few games and pool table. Drinks are stiff and good. Nothing to over the top!
No parking so this is a locals bar for sure. Hard to find so look carefully.

I’d heard about this place but being in the middle of downtown I never seem to make it there… it’s just not my favorite area of town. I did enjoy OEP though.
You walk up a giant flight of stairs and I couldn’t help but wonder how many people had one too many and fell down these stairs. You walk up to the most laid back bar. The atmosphere to me almost doesn’t fit in the flashy, high end scale bars that surround it. It’s small but they have drinks, some games, and a penguin suit.
Looked up the name on
and was slightly disturbed. /​=
I’d go back, pending finding a parking spot on a weekend night…

Awesome dive bar in downtown Dallas. If your not into the club scene or just want a quieter place to go, definitely head upstairs. Its a bit small but the drinks are pretty cheap. Also, it is much quieter than the loud noise from the clubs downstairs. Definitely stop in for a beer.

Unless you are a regular, you will not get good service… technically, I should say they make you feel «lucky» to get any service at all.
The hubs thought this place was OK. I say he is out of his gourd. There were 6 other people at the bar besides us and no one in the rest of the place when we got there. You could have waved $ 50’s in this gal’s face and she wouldn’t have given you the time of day. It took two beers to get out of the bartender that they no longer have karaōke. Hey… I am a self professed dive bar diva but even I have my limits. Thanks, but no thanks.

First off, this place is aesthetically better than it’s obvious downtown competitor, the spread eagle saloon, but the drinks are the same price ($ 5 for a well, and more for anything fancier), and within its walls it contains at least one d-​bag a-​hole (of which there are fewer at spread eagle). They have dart boards, a pool table, erotic photo hunt, and a smoking patio. The bartender was nice, and people were generally friendly. Not a great place to play pool due to the aforementioned d-​bag a-​hole who will move your balls around to do trick shots while you’re not looking.
Downtown needs a legitimate happy hour, and on weeknights OE might have something worth heading over for — they had a lot of posters advertising specials that referred back to other days so I couldn’t figure out what was going on — but on weekends it’s the same old overpriced downtown scene.