Equipment and backline available at this venue. We verify and update this section regularly.
PA system
Drum kit
Guitar amp
Bass amp
Keys / keyboard
2 vocal mics
In-house engineer
About The American Bar
The American Bar is a grassroots music venue in Sailortown, Belfast with a standing capacity of approximately 50. PA system and vocal mics are provided; bring your own instruments and amps.
The American Bar books Folk, Blues, Acoustic, Trad acts. Both original music and covers are welcome. This listing is part of the Belfast venue directory.
The American Bar has stood on the corner of Dock Street in historic Sailortown, Belfast (BT15 1HW) since 1860 — a former dockers' and sailors' bar that is now one of the city's best-loved grassroots music venues, with a standing capacity of around 50. It bills itself as a bar for artists and musicians, weirdos and outcasts, workers, poets and dog walkers, and since 2021 has been home to The Grateful Bread bakery. The music runs deep across the week: a free Wednesday-night folk open mic with 12-minute slots, Thursday folk nights, Friday open-mic sessions and Saturday-afternoon blues. A PA and vocal mics are provided; performers bring their own instruments and amps. A characterful, fiercely independent home for folk, blues and trad in Belfast.
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun
Nights The American Bar usually has live music — typical start 20:00
Have you played here? Was the backline info accurate? One tap, no sign-up required.
Find The American Bar
67-69 Dock Street, Sailortown, Belfast, BT15 1LF
What should you charge for a gig here? Check live UK rates by role, city and venue size. Based on 3,798 verified rate observations.
The American Bar isn’t in the Belfast top 10 yet — these are the front-runners of its 23 ranked rooms,
by gigs on the calendar over the next 30 days, refreshed nightly.
Not seeing your venue? This ranking counts gigs listed in the next 30 days.
If your room has no page here yet, create
one free and it joins the directory. If it is already listed, add your
gigs and it will rank on the next nightly refresh.
Rankings like this run across GigXchange: the national Hardest Working Rooms table tracks the UK's busiest grassroots
stages week on week, the Pint Index prices a gig ticket in pints
city by city, and UK market statistics covers what live
music pays. All of it is built from the same directory this page lives in.
Common Questions
Seven things people ask about booking The American Bar.
PA system and vocal mics provided. BYO instruments and amps. Need a venue with full backline? Filter Belfast venues by backline.
The American Bar books Folk, Blues, Acoustic, Trad. Both original music and covers are welcome. Browse artist profiles by genre on GigXchange.
Sign up free on GigXchange to view The American Bar’s booking contact, fee range, and submission process. Most grassroots venues accept email submissions with a link to your music or EPK. Check current UK fee benchmarks before quoting.
The American Bar has a standing capacity of approximately 50, classed as a small venue. See all Belfast venues for size comparisons.
Yes — The American Bar hosts open mic nights. Check the listing for day, time, and signup details on the Belfast Open Mic Finder.
67-69 Dock Street, Sailortown, Belfast, BT15 1LF. See the map below for directions. Browse more Belfast venues nearby.
Fee ranges are available to signed-up artists on GigXchange. Grassroots venue fees in Belfast vary by event type, band size, and whether the deal is a flat fee or door split. The GigXchange Rate Calculator shows current UK percentiles.
Keep up with Belfast
One email a week with live music near you. Free, and it keeps rooms like this one full.
Help keep grassroots venues open in Belfast
—
A UK venue stops hosting live music every 5 days — and turning up is what keeps a room
open. Get a free weekly email of gigs in Belfast. Unsubscribe any
time. Privacy.
Booking or playing in Belfast? The GX Index publishes what UK gigs actually
pay, by city, band size and venue type, and the GX Index reports set out the methodology and the sample behind
every figure. Both are free to read and free to cite.
