The Dancing Bear Pub

Best craft beer place in Waco. This is how I started getting into craft beer. Things are slower during the summer. All of the bartenders are pretty knowledgeable. They rotate about 16 taps so things don’t get stale. They also have a nice can and bottle selection. If you don’t like craft beer this isn’t the bar for you.

Great pubby atmosphere, good beer selection, friendly staff. Don’t judge it by the street view. Recommended.

This is the best bar in Waco. The employees are great, the beer selection is top notch and the atmosphere is perfect. I absolutely recommend!

My favorite place to hang out in Waco. This is a true pub for people who are serious about their beer. It never gets rowdy, and you will often see business men conducting business, students studying for finals, or a church group having a Bible study. Terrific place. Jeff and Cole are great as are all the regulars. First class place and nothing else like it in the 254. Also kid-​friendly as they have a large outdoor patio area.

Best place to grab a beer in Waco! Really enjoyed this place! Quiet enough to chat with a friend. Bartenders know their beverages and are nice! Go if you like beer! Who doesn’t?

We stopped here after having dinner on our road trip the other night. They were about 45 min to one hour from closing and to be honest the only thing that I remember was that my friend LOVED her beer. I tried it and wasn’t fond of it but I’m one of those that’s like «just give me a beer but please let it be really cold». Second place that my beer was yummy but wasn’t that cold. It was colder than the spot I had just left but it wasn’t like OMG! Maybe I don’t know my beers but one thing I do know is great «service» which this place definitely lacked. I can enjoy a beer and sample different kinds but sometimes I do need some help. I just wanted to let my friend drink hers since she loved it and get back on the road. We felt rushed to get out of there which did upset me because even after we were done there was still 20 min on the clock.
I think I’m being generous giving them 3 stars but they did have an extensive beer list. It was a bit pricey, service was not great and I don’t see any great reason to go back.

I have been a few times and seriously whoever is tending bar can make/​break your experience. First time it had to be a manager/​owner behind the bar who asked and remembers my name once he figured out that I know my beer. Slow Monday evening, he gave the patrons and I a few samples of beer brought in. Very helpful with the draft and can menu. Can menu is not up to date. Come another time and the tall bearded gentleman prob said 6 words to me and no recommendations at all. The other guys at least recognize me and offer suggestions.
The 3 stars is because u can’t get a pint of beer here under $ 6. A pint of 471 Breckenridge for $ 9? Ballast point sculpin $ 8.50/ pint and that don’t include tax. You can get that same sculpin less that 2 miles away for $ 5.50 at Crickets. A few of the bartenders talk about Crickets not having clean lines. I have only found that true 1 time and they took that beer off my tab.
I like they have keep the glass night on thursday but not much of a happy hour here at all. .50 cents off a pint?. That’s not happy hour. They do have a food truck out back and the owner is a cool beer loving guy so check it out. Its worth it to check it out but bring your credit card. It ain’t cheap

Incredible beer selection! Great beers on tap. Fun outdoor seating and food truck out back with fantastic fish and chips and a black bean burger to die for!

Best Pub in Waco. Hands down. Retro setting that is kept up really nicely. Not a dive bar at all, these guys are keeping it real.

Stopped in here to watch the game, and was very glad I did. They had a great selection of local craft beers, staff who were both knowledgeable and friendly, and fellow patrons who were welcoming as well.

Finding a place to experience quality craft beers in Waco is difficult. However, the dancing bear pub does just that. The staff is knowledgeable and, the atmosphere is quaint. A nice place to sit, enjoy sports, friends and enjoy the craftsmanship of micro-​brewed ales.

Staff are very impolite, beer is overpriced and shitty. Owner is a complete douche. Only reason anyone comes in is it’s the only decent bar within walking distance of campus that isn’t Scruff’s

Friendly, knowledgeable staff helps you find the beer you never knew you wanted. Laid back and great atmosphere.

This is the best place in Waco to find great Texas beers. Their staff is knowledgeable on a variety of different beers, but don’t come off as beer snobs. They no longer have food available at their pub, but don’t mind people bringing in outside food to enjoy. They also have good specials on any day of the week. Their large tables out back, provide a nice place to enjoy a smoke with your beers. If you enjoy good beer, you’ll love Dancing Bear Pub.

The best spot I found in Waco. Rotating taps of local and and craft beers, Knowledgable friendly staff, and the porch is nice if like me you smoke.

Best bar/​pub in Waco. Exceptional staff, and a wall of great craft beer. They have big bottles and cans to go, and they fill growlers.
Saturday is half price growler fills, which in my opinion is a stellar deal. Weekly specials, and trivia on Tuesdays.
Go here, you’ll want to come back.

This is the epitome of what I believe a local neighborhood pub should be. It is relatively small, has good seating, a very decent «above average» food menu (restaurant co-​owned next door) and a very sustainable amount of beer taps and a good compliment of bottled beer. The only minor complaint is the bar seating area is a little small, maybe 7 – 8 chairs, but don’t let that discourage you.
We were very pleased to see the selection of taps offered and we didn’t even have to overlook the usual watered down domestics.
These guys are serious about craft beer and they promote it very well. The sixteen taps help ensure that beer is fresh and continually moving, plus tap choices change regularly.
I really like the fact that they offer smaller pours, for a smaller price, so you can taste more styles of beer without filling up too fast.
Mario, our bartender was a hoot and very helpful and quick to pour you a sample of anything you might be a little indecisive about. He also did a great job of explaining the various beers and had a very nice wit about him, which isn’t the case for a lot of people who are bartenders, but shouldn’t be.
If you really like craft beer or want to step outside of your domestic beer comfort zone, you need to try this place. There is another place in town that has a lot more taps and it’s big and usually noisy, but in times past when we’ve gone there, we’ve noticed that some taps tasted ‘stale’ or flat. That’s an indication that the beer isn’t moving much.
Next time we’re in Waco, we’ll definitely stop in again. Hopefully Mario will be behind the bar waiting for us with a smile and more tongue in cheek humor.

HOLYHOPSBATMANTHEDANCINGBEARRULES.
I’d damn near go to Waco just for the Dancing Bear.
–Really awesome guys who own and work here.
–Great selection of beer. Not huge, but every single one is good-​to-​great.
–Great mixture between being lively, but not loud and in your face.
–Easy parking.
–Clean bathrooms.
Go here and drink beer.

This little pub is small but packs a punch. The bartender is friendly and instantly recommended something based on the description of other beers I like. The Left Hand Milk Stout was a surprise to me. It’s very tasty and I think I’ll add it to my rotation of favorite beers. The bar itself is tiny. maybe has 5 chairs. There are several tables around to hang out and possibly an area in the back, but not sure since I didn’t get a chance to go around. Only had time to stop in for a couple of beers before hitting the road again. Good spot! P. S. They don’t accept Discover :) Also, the parking out front is maybe for 2 cars… more parking is in the back.

Stopped in on the way down to San Antonio. Had the munchies, my butt was tired of sitting, and I could use a beer. Seems like a good place to stop.
Parking is a little light, so we parked in the grocery store across the street. No one bothered us about it, so it might be a viable area.
Food menu was a little underwhelming, but the food was good and reasonably priced. I got some black bean burritos. They had cream cheese in them, which was a little shocking (maybe I should read the descriptions better), but ultimately a good thing. The other food looked good as well.
Beer selection was great. Had some off-​the-​wall things that I didn’t expect to see, some good Texas locals, and then a fairly large bottle selection with a nice variety. Of special note was the New Republic seasonal tap. We don’t get the College Station brew in DFW, so it was nice it see it in Waco. Though, I’m not sure if I appreciated the unfiltered, sweet potato beer. Interesting, good tasting, but awkward.
Wait staff was cool, patient with my mulling over of the taps, and fairly timely with getting food and drinks out.
Glad to finally try a New Republic brew and have some nice food along with it.