If you turn to page 46 in the July 1975 issue of D Magazine you’ll find a gritty piece on the roughest bars in Dallas.
“When we say these places are ‘mean,’ we aren’t kidding. We’re talking about bars where you literally take your life in your hands when you walk in the door,” the author writes. “The Venetian Room they ain’t, but in their special milieu – sleazy, flabby go-go girls and stale, rancid beer smells – these joints have reputations as large as the Fairmont’s nightclub. This is the Third World of the bar culture, beyond the chic nightclubs, the discos, the piano lounges, and even the beer joints.”
The list of dingy watering holes includes Chavarria’s Lounge at 4545 Bryan, dubbed the “deadliest of all the Mexican-American clubs,” Little Egypt at 8022 Harry Hines which was home to “the toughest-looking battalion of go-go girls in town,” and The Players Lounge at 1705 N. Carroll at Ross. The writer admits to not going to the bar because “the vice squad said [they] probably wouldn’t come out if [they] went in.”
As you can imagine, these bars are long gone. But the piece makes for an interesting read. Did you frequent any of the meanest bars in Dallas? Have a story? Divulge in the comment section below.
Click the images to enlarge, and take a step back in Dallas dining history.
