You find Burns Alley the way you're supposed to find a dive: by accident. It's tucked down an alley just off King Street, one entrance actually leads through the back of another restaurant, and people say "it's a little hidden" in that way that means it's a full block past the place you were actually trying to reach. Inside it's exactly what the name on the door promises - a local dive, two floors, live music on most nights, and a college-aged energy that never gets mean about it. Golden Tee in the back, TV on, wings and a short but honest list if you're hungry, and you can order from basically any local restaurant and have it brought to the table, which is a genius move for a bar with no kitchen.
We walked in at 9 p.m. to get out of the King Street crowd and played eighteen holes of Golden Tee while the drink list did what drink lists do. Prices are in the right place, the bartenders are friendly, and the upstairs is a decent spot to stand and watch the room below do its thing. The beer list isn't huge, but for a bar on this side of town it runs better than most. It's one of those places a local will send you to and sound a little embarrassed about, like recommending their own messy house. Go anyway.