An Iowa City Dive Bar & Music Venue is One of 2025’s Best Bars in America

A few days ago, USA Today put out a list of the 29 best bars in America for 2025. We told you that The Bartender's Handshake in Des Moines was one of the bars to make the national list (read more HERE), but it wasn't the only one! There was another bar in Iowa to make the cut... Gabe's in Iowa City!

About Gabe's

Gabe's has been a staple in Iowa City for more than half a century now, celebrating its 50-year anniversary back in September of 2024. But, it hasn't always been known as "Gabe's."  A 2019 article from Little Village Mag says it was initially called Fox and Sam’s when it opened in 1974, and then Gabe & Walker’s a year later. In 1979, it was shortened to just "Gabe’s," but the name was changed again in 2006 to the Picador. It eventually went back to the name Gabe’s in 2010, and the name remains today.

One of the main draws of Gabe's is the live music, with local and national acts playing both downstairs and upstairs on the big stage. The article from USA Today has an excerpt from Jessica Rish of the Iowa City Press Citizen that reads:

"Stay downstairs for a no-frills dive bar experience made for a sitcom, with eccentric characters spilling stories of their memories that leak into the urban beer garden in the back. Upstairs, audience members crowd the edge of the stage to see their underground favorites from EDM DJs to hardcore punks."

Some of the notable acts that played Gabe's before they made it big include Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, The Black Keys, Flaming Lips, Chance the Rapper, and Macklemore.

Upcoming Events

Gabe's has a ton of live musical acts scheduled through October of 2025, including another Emo Nite, which I highly recommend! You can check out the full calendar HERE.

READ MORE: Eastern Iowa Winery & Distillery to Celebrate 20 Years in August

Other Midwest Picks

In addition to the two Iowa bars on the list, there are a few other places from the Midwest to be recognized. That includes:

• Ghost Baby - Cincinnati, Ohio
• Threes Above High - Columbus, Ohio
• Saloon No. 10 - Deadwood, South Dakota
• Agency - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

I was also excited to see that Robert's Western World in Nashville made the list of the best bars for 2025! We had a blast there during one of our Nashville trips, and the burgers (which they serve late into the night) are delicious!

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