Bourbon on Rye is a bar in Downtown, Lexington.
Editorially verified August 18, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Tip: Wednesday to Saturday only; kitchen plates pub classics late, which is rare downtown after midnight.
Address: 115 W Main St, Lexington, KY 40507
Henry Clay's Public House pours pints on North Upper Street, blocks from the statesman's old law office, a downtown Lexington blues and covers pub.
Signature drink: Kentucky drafts with live blues on Tuesdays
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday; Tuesday blues nights are the local pick over the busier weekend cover bands.
Dark Arts Whiskey House finishes barrels in Lexington's Distillery District and pours cask tastings on Manchester Street, a Kentucky Bourbon Trail stop.
Signature drink: Barrel tastings drawn straight from the cask
Tip: Book the barrel tasting; pulling your pour straight from an ageing cask beats the standard flight.
Henry Clay's Public House pours pints on North Upper Street, blocks from the statesman's old law office, a downtown Lexington blues and covers pub.
Signature drink: Kentucky drafts with live blues on Tuesdays
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday; Tuesday blues nights are the local pick over the busier weekend cover bands.
Wiseguy Lounge hides a Prohibition-styled bourbon bar above Goodfellas Pizzeria on Manchester Street, Lexington's speakeasy with hundreds of bottles.
Signature drink: Bourbon old fashioned above the pizza ovens
Tip: Enter through the pizzeria and head upstairs; Thursday to Saturday it pours until 02:30 with slices below.
The Green Lantern books doom metal, bluegrass and punk into a West Third Street dive, one of Lexington's most-loved and longest-running dive rooms.
Signature drink: Cheap cans and whatever band is loading in
Tip: Cash helps at the bar; Wednesday karaoke and the happy hour before 19:00 are the reliable nights.
Al's Bar anchors the corner of Sixth and Limestone with burgers, local beer and gigs, the long-running NoLi corner bar wired into Lexington's music scene.
Signature drink: Local drafts before a punk or bluegrass set
Tip: Closed Mondays; Tuesday open mic is free and the Thursday to Saturday bookings range from hip-hop to bluegrass.
Chevy Chase Inn has poured since 1933, Lexington's oldest bar, a cash-friendly Euclid Avenue dive that opens at 14:00 and never pretends to be more.
Signature drink: A cold bottle in Lexington's oldest bar
Tip: Afternoon drinking is the move; it opens at 14:00 daily and the jukebox and regulars do the entertaining.
