Where: The Double Wide, 3510 Commerce St., 214-887-6510
When: From opening till closing Monday and Tuesday, 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Friday
What: $2 domestics. Also, the bar offers half-price drafts all day Wednesday and $3 calls all day Sunday
Why or why not: You might be put off or even insulted by the trailer-park theme of this combination neighborhood hangout and rock venue. The place is strewn with faux-redneck decor ranging from Elvis-on-velvet to fake outhouse doors to a mounted jackalope head -- and it's crowned, for extra sensitivity to the plight of mobile-home dwellers, with an enormous fake tornado.
But then you'd miss out on what we happen to think is the Best Rock Bar in Dallas, as you can read in our just-out Best of Dallas issue.
Despite the manufactured blue-collar vibe, the Double Wide manages to feel like a fun, neighborhood dive that welcomes one and all. You'll find plenty of musicians and artists drinking the stereotypical Pabst Blue Ribbon, but the bar actually has a surprisingly good selection of liquors and beers, including a couple of Franconia taps.
The main bar area and its rockin' jukebox is reason enough to show up early for a happy hour drink or two, but the smoker-friendly patio with yard-sale furniture and (disconnected) toilet seat/planters make it even more functional. And that's not to mention the weeknight DJ sessions and excellent local and touring music acts playing in the small concert room across the patio. Shows -- mostly rock, but with the occasional folk, country or hip-hop act -- tend to start after happy hour ends. But if you show up early enough to get a couple of discount drinks in your system, you've got that much better a chance of getting close to the stage without swinging an elbow or two.
