Southie After Dark: The Old Bar and the New Bar

Everyone who writes about South Boston ends up writing the same argument: old Southie against new Southie, the pubs against the pasta. The Infatuation put it best when it said that Southie's favorite pastime is fighting about Southie. Here is our side: eat at the new place, drink at the old one, and stay on one end of Broadway. The rest of this guide is the case for that.

Know which Broadway you are on

Broadway is two streets with one name. According to South Boston Online, the street was divided in two at Perkins Square. The same piece says West Broadway came to be known as "Big Broadway" because it was the more popular place to go. Later, it says, East Broadway became the place to go.

Do not take that as a rule for tonight. It is a reminder that this strip has changed hands before, and that a crowd you see on one end this month may be on the other end next year.

7 PM: start with the tavern that has a date on its sign

Amrheins calls itself "Since 1890". Boston Magazine calls it a 130-year-old tavern. It sits at 80 West Broadway. It lists free on-site parking, which matters only if someone in your group is not drinking.

Time Out reports that the owners boast of the oldest hand carved bar in America. It adds, fairly, that this may be true. Treat the claim as a story and not a fact. The better reason to go is the history on the sign. Its own site does not post a closing time we could read, so do not plan to end the night there without calling.

Amrheins is the old-bar half of the argument. Go for the pint and the story, and leave the rest of the evening open.

8 PM: then the new place, a short walk away

Boston Magazine places Amrheins a short walk down Broadway from Bar Volpe. That is the new-Southie half. Bar Volpe describes itself on its own site as a Pastificio (pasta shop) , with a dining room attached, so you can leave with fresh pasta.

The two are not enemies. One is a tavern with a century of mileage. The other is a restaurant you book. Go new for the first plate and old for the second drink, and do not try it the other way round: a pasta room is a bad place to nurse a pint.

What the new Southie is, and is not

Boston Magazine describes a neighborhood changing by the day, with new high rises and new money. It also says that, luckily, so are all the Irish pubs still here. Hidden Boston is less comfortable, arguing that the old Southie continues to disappear, and with it, dive bars.

Both are right in their way. A night in Southie is a good way to see both: you can leave Broadway in the same evening that you arrived on it and feel like you saw two neighborhoods.

The other name you will hear

Hidden Boston writes about the Seapoint Bar and Grill, which it describes as renowned for its function room. It is not a reason to rearrange your night. It is an example of how a neighborhood tells its own story: the places locals name are not always the ones a visitor would pick.

If a local tells you the real Southie is somewhere else, take the tip and check the hours first. The advice in this guide still holds. Pick one end of Broadway, one old room and one new one, and a train time.

How to run it

The mistake is to treat Southie as a bar crawl up and down one street. Broadway is long, and the argument above is partly an argument about distance. Pick one end for the evening. Eat well, have one drink at the old room, and let the walk be part of the night rather than something you get through.

It also helps to decide what you are there for. If you want a pub, you want the oldest one you can find and a seat near the bar. If you want a dinner, book it, and do not expect to walk in on a weekend. The people who have the worst time in Southie are the ones who want both at once and have no plan for either.

Getting home

Southie's Red Line stop is Broadway. The MBTA keeps a page for Broadway station. Its trip planner gives the real last train for your night. Look it up on Last Train before the second round, not after. If you miss it, getting home after last call has the backups.

What to do with this

• Start at the old bar, eat at the new one, and finish wherever the train is.
• Check which end of Broadway your plan is on before you walk.
• Do not use hours from an old list for a late plan. Confirm them.
• Pick a train time before the second round.

For the wider picture of what stays open late, see the Eat Late page and our late food guide. The nearest neighborhood we cover in depth is the Seaport.

Across the harbor, East Boston has its own plan in a night in East Boston. If the question is price, start with the cheapest beer in Boston.