Eddie C’s is a Maverick Square institution. It’s cash only — because of course it is — and the jukebox is analog (and the tunes are killer). The PBR pitchers are the right price ($10), as is Jameson on the rocks ($6). And those Jamesons are strong — they’ve been described as a “townie pour.”

Sullivan’s recently changed ownership, but it didn’t magically become a non-dive bar when it did. This is the spot to hit before a Celtics game for a cheap lager and some top-notch townie accents.

Irish Village is in good company in Brighton, which is lousy with Irish pubs.

The Model Cafe is one of Allston’s two great dive bars. Musicians and artists and skateboarders and locals occupy the space in sublime concert, sucking back very strong drinks and very cheap beers. The line on weekend nights gets long, so get there early. Fair warning: On Fridays and Saturdays, the Model turns into a dance club. It’s infinitely fun. Say hey to the doorman — obviously named Sully — and engage him in conversation about the Bruins. Read more: The Model Cafe Is the Model of a Good Neighborhood Bar

Ah, the Silhouette Lounge. What is there to say about the Sil that hasn’t been said already? Pitchers are cheap (PBR for $9.50, anyone?), drinks are cheap (and massive, and strong), there’s free popcorn, there’s a pool table, there are many dart boards, and there is an internet-connected jukebox. Play any song imaginable, challenge a local to a game of pool (and don’t be surprised when that pool game ends in defeat to one of the many sharks that occupy the space around the Sil’s table), and chat with Irene, who might be the best bartender in the city/country/universe.

Most dive bars don’t offer very good food, or any food at all. Delux Cafe breaks that mold. Grab a Miller High Life, and also try the half chicken with potato hash. Read more: Delux Cafe Has Defied — and Nourished — Its Neighborhood

The Eagle is one of the oldest — and definitely the grittiest — gay bars in the city. It might feel as though it doesn’t fit in with the modern version of the South End — but it’s the modern version of the South End that doesn’t fit in with the Eagle.

PBR is $1.50. [Cue: Stampede of hipsters from Allston to Southie.] Guinness is $4. [Cue: Stampede of suburban dads to Southie.] It’s cheap; the drinks are strong (the bar’s words); one guy “can say with 100% certainty that this place is, by far, the worst bar in Boston” and “at no point did [he] feel like [he] wasn’t about to be stabbed by the locals”; and the head bartender was in Mystic River as Sean Penn’s body double. “Is that my cheap domestic lager in there?!” Note: Outside food is welcome.