Gowanus · Park Slope edge · Updated October 14, 2026
Gowanus has gardens, a brewery and a cocktail bar. None of them promises the game. Here is where to watch it.
If you typed sports bar Gowanus into a search box, this is the honest map. We checked eleven bars around the canal on their own websites on October 14, 2026 and timed every walk from the Union St station on 4th Avenue. The bars inside Gowanus sell beer gardens, music and trivia; the four rooms that say sports sit just across 4th Avenue, and ours is the nearest of them, six minutes from the station.
- Eleven bars, 1 to 20 minutes from Union St
- Websites read October 14, 2026
- Giants and Jets lists checked
- Who opens for a 1:00 PM kickoff
- 100% gluten-free kitchen at 148 5th Avenue
Marina Charny, Owner, The Beer Garage
Gowanus is the low ground between Park Slope and Carroll Gardens, built around a canal. Its bars lean toward patios, a brewery taproom, cocktails and live music. That is a fine neighborhood to drink in. It is a harder one to watch a game in, because not one of its bars tells you online that the game will be on.
So this page does two jobs. It lists what each bar in Gowanus says about itself, so you know where to go before and after. And it names the four rooms just over the 4th Avenue line that do say sports, including our own bar at 148 5th Avenue. Every walk starts at the Union St stop on the R train, at 4th Avenue and Union Street, the station most of Gowanus uses.
No bar inside Gowanus says on its own website that it shows games. The nearest rooms that do are The Beer Garage at 148 5th Avenue (6 minutes from the Union St station), The LayUp at 47 5th Avenue (12 minutes), McMahon’s Public House at 39 5th Avenue (13 minutes) and The Dram Shop at 339 9th Street (17 minutes).
For a Giants or Jets crowd, the 47 5th Avenue address is on both teams’ bar lists, and McMahon’s is on the Giants list. For Packers or Mets fans, The Dram Shop names both as home teams and plays the sound for every Packers game. For a fully gluten-free kitchen, ours is the only one.
Wings, burger buns and the fryer are where gluten hides on a game day. The food at our Park Slope bar is 100% gluten-free, so a guest with celiac disease or a wheat allergy can order anything on the menu at 148 5th Avenue. We did not find the same promise on any other website behind this page, and we have not tested anyone else’s kitchen.
That promise covers our Brooklyn kitchen only; our West Village bar cooks with ordinary flour. Beer is its own question, so ask the bartender.
Sports bar Gowanus: eleven bars around the canal, nearest first
Walks are the fastest route Google Maps offered on foot from the Union St station. The fourth column answers one question: does the bar’s own website say it shows sports?
| Bar | Address | Walk from Union St | Sports on its own site? | How it describes itself |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gowanus Gardens | 256 4th Ave | 1 minute, 187 feet | No | Craft cocktails, local beer, late-night food and “a heated, covered patio” |
| Canal Bar | 270 3rd Ave | 3 minutes, 0.1 mile | No website found | Nothing to read online |
| Threes Brewing Gowanus | 333 Douglass St | 4 minutes, 0.2 mile | No | A brewery, coffee shop and beer shop by day; “brewpub, beer garden, and music venue by night” |
| The Beer Garage Park Slope | 148 5th Ave | 6 minutes, 0.3 mile | Yes | A converted garage that “broadcasts a full sports line up”, with a 100% gluten-free kitchen |
| Fourth Avenue Pub | 76 4th Ave | 9 minutes, 0.4 mile | No | A “neighborhood watering hole & beer garden” with 26 craft beer draft lines |
| Halyards | 406 3rd Ave | 11 minutes, 0.5 mile | No | “Your neighborhood cocktail bar and oasis among the gritty Gowanus industrial streets” |
| The LayUp | 47 5th Ave | 12 minutes, 0.5 mile | Yes | “Brooklyn’s true neighborhood sports bar” |
| McMahon’s Public House | 39 5th Ave | 13 minutes, 0.6 mile | Yes | An Irish pub showing “soccer across all leagues”, with an NFL Sunday page |
| Union Grounds | 270 Smith St | 16 minutes, 0.7 mile | Not on its site | Its site prints hours and a menu link; Google files it as a sports bar |
| The Dram Shop | 339 9th St | 17 minutes, 0.7 mile | Yes | “Your neighborhood sports bar and restaurant in Park Slope” |
| Lowlands | 543 3rd Ave | 20 minutes, 0.9 mile | No | Live music on Mondays and Tuesdays, karaoke on Wednesdays, coffee by day |
Read the table by its fourth column and the pattern is plain: every “yes” sits east of 4th Avenue on the Park Slope side, and every room inside Gowanus says something else about itself.
Why Gowanus has no sports bar of its own
Look at what the Gowanus bars choose to advertise. Threes calls its flagship a brewery, coffee shop, beer garden and music venue, with live music on its events list. Lowlands fills its calendar with bands and karaoke. Halyards sells cocktails, toasted cheese sandwiches and a private party room with its own sound system. Gowanus Gardens runs trivia on Mondays, free ping pong in the backyard and a different drinks deal most nights. Those are good reasons to go. None of them is a promise that your game will be on, with or without sound.
Two names you may remember are missing for a different reason. Pig Beach’s own website now lists locations in Queens, Boston and Palm Beach but not its Union Street barbecue yard, and Draft Barn’s old site no longer links its Third Avenue room. We list neither as open.
The four rooms that say sports
All four are on the Park Slope side of 4th Avenue. Our full comparison of them is in the best sports bar in Park Slope; here is what matters if you are coming from the canal.
- The Beer Garage, 148 5th Avenue. Six minutes from the station, with the door on Douglass Street. Our site says the bar broadcasts a full sports line-up; it does not give a screen count, so neither do we.
- The LayUp, 47 5th Avenue. Twelve minutes away. Its own page description promises nine screens with the sound on and every NBA, WNBA, NFL, NHL and MLB game, plus college football and basketball. The same address appears on the Giants Bar Network as The Layup and on the Jets Bar Network as “That Bar”.
- McMahon’s Public House, 39 5th Avenue. Thirteen minutes away and on the Giants Bar Network. Its site has pages for NFL Sunday, Premier League and UEFA soccer, and offers its back garden to groups who want to watch a game.
- The Dram Shop, 339 9th Street. Seventeen minutes away. Its FAQ counts 8 high definition TVs plus a projector, names the Green Bay Packers, New York Mets, Brooklyn Nets and Wisconsin Badgers as its home teams, and plays the sound for every Packers game and for playoff and championship games.
Union Grounds on Smith Street, at the Carroll Gardens edge, is the fifth candidate. Google lists it as a sports bar, but its own site prints only hours, which run late with an “-ish” after each closing time, and sends you to Instagram for special events.
Who is open for your game
For most fans the question is simple: will the door be open at kickoff, and will it still be open at the final whistle?
| Bar | Opens Saturday | Opens Sunday | Latest close |
|---|---|---|---|
| McMahon’s Public House | 11:00 AM | 11:00 AM | 2:00 AM every night |
| The Dram Shop | 11:00 AM | 11:00 AM | 1:00 AM Friday and Saturday |
| The LayUp | Noon | Noon | Midnight every night |
| Union Grounds | Noon | Noon | “2:00am-ish” Friday and Saturday |
| The Beer Garage Park Slope | 1:00 PM | 1:00 PM | 11:00 PM Friday and Saturday |
| Fourth Avenue Pub | 1:00 PM | 1:00 PM | 4:00 AM Monday to Saturday |
| Lowlands | 3:00 PM | 3:00 PM | 4:00 AM Friday and Saturday |
Three things follow. For an early NFL Sunday, McMahon’s and The Dram Shop have been open for two hours by the 1:00 PM kickoff and The LayUp for one, while our door opens at 1:00 PM exactly, so arrive at one and you are watching the first drive. None of the four rooms that say sports opens before 11:00 AM, which rules them out for a morning Premier League match. And for a game that runs past midnight, the Gowanus side wins: Fourth Avenue Pub prints a 4:00 AM close from Monday to Saturday, while we close at 10:00 PM on weeknights.
Before and after the game, in Gowanus
Gowanus is where you go before kickoff or after the final whistle. What each bar prints:
- Gowanus Gardens, 256 4th Avenue. One minute from the station. Open 3:00 PM to 2:00 AM on weekdays and 1:00 PM to 2:00 AM at the weekend, with the kitchen open until 1:00 AM every day and a happy hour from 3:00 to 7:00 PM, Monday to Friday. Its calendar lists trivia on Mondays at 7:30 PM and, every Saturday, 20 wings for $30 to eat in.
- Threes Brewing Gowanus, 333 Douglass Street. Four minutes away. Open from noon every day until midnight, or 11:00 PM on Sundays, with its own beer, a yard and a kitchen whose hours change by day.
- Halyards, 406 3rd Avenue. Eleven minutes away. Cocktails and toasted cheese sandwiches from 4:00 PM on weekdays and 2:00 PM at the weekend, until 2:00 AM, or midnight on Sundays.
- Fourth Avenue Pub, 76 4th Avenue. Nine minutes away. Twenty-six draft lines, a backyard beer garden and a 4:00 AM close six nights a week. Its site offers a 4% discount when you pay your tab in cash.
- Canal Bar, 270 3rd Avenue. Three minutes away, with no website we could find. Walk past and look at the door.
148 5th Avenue, honestly
The Beer Garage Park Slope is at 148 5th Avenue, with the entrance on Douglass Street, six minutes and 0.3 mile from the Union St station by way of 4th Avenue. The bar was built in an actual converted garage, its website says it broadcasts a full sports line-up, and every plate from the kitchen is gluten-free. That combination is the reason to make the six-minute walk from the canal.
We are not in Gowanus, and we are not a late bar. We open at 3:00 PM Monday to Thursday, 2:00 PM on Friday and 1:00 PM at the weekend, and we close at 10:00 PM from Sunday to Thursday and 11:00 PM on Friday and Saturday. No team lists us, and we do not publish a screen count. Call 718-576-3409 to ask which game is on, or book on OpenTable.
Four picks by game
Each pick rests on what that bar publishes about itself.
The LayUp, 47 5th Avenue. Twelve minutes from Union St.
- Best for hearing the game: nine screens with the sound on, and the one address on both the Giants and Jets lists.
- Skip if you want a seat before noon at the weekend; that is when it opens.
McMahon’s Public House, 39 5th Avenue. Thirteen minutes from Union St.
- Best for soccer and NFL Sundays from 11:00 AM, with a back garden and a 2:00 AM close every night.
- Skip if your match kicks off before 11:00 AM; that is when the door opens.
The Dram Shop, 339 9th Street. Seventeen minutes from Union St.
- Best for Packers fans and a family Saturday: sound for every Packers game, pool and darts, and kids eat free on Saturdays from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
- Skip if you need sound for an ordinary regular-season game; its FAQ keeps the sound for the Packers, playoffs and championships.
The Beer Garage, 148 5th Avenue. Six minutes from Union St.
- Best for the closest sports room to the canal and a menu that is entirely gluten-free.
- Skip if the game ends after 10:00 PM on a weeknight, or you want to be there before 1:00 PM.
Every bar on this page serves alcohol to guests 21 and over, so bring a photo ID. Gowanus Gardens spells out one more rule on its homepage, “21 and over after 8pm”, so plan a family visit there for earlier in the day.
Five things to check first
- These hours were read on October 14, 2026. Bars change them for holidays, private events and the playoffs, so call before a big game.
- “Ish” is a real word on one site. Union Grounds prints every closing time with “-ish” after it, so treat its late hours as a guide.
- The team lists name addresses, not promises. The Giants and Jets pages list bars for their fans; ask the bar whether your game gets the sound.
- Sound is not automatic. The Dram Shop’s FAQ keeps it for Packers games, playoffs and championships, and TV requests there are first come, first seated.
- A listing is not a bar. Pig Beach and Draft Barn still show up in some searches, but their own sites no longer list the Gowanus rooms.
Find your room
Choose when the game is, then what matters most. Each of the sixteen answers points to a room on this page.
1. When is the game?
2. What matters most?
The LayUp, 47 5th Avenue. Open from noon on Saturday with nine screens and the sound on. Twelve minutes from the Union St station.
The Beer Garage, 148 5th Avenue. Open at 1:00 PM on Saturday with a 100% gluten-free kitchen, six minutes from the station. For an earlier start, The Dram Shop opens at 11:00 AM and kids eat free there on Saturdays.
Gowanus Gardens, 256 4th Avenue. Every Saturday, 20 wings for $30 to eat in, plus $7 well shots, a minute from the station. It does not say it shows games, so ask.
McMahon’s Public House, 39 5th Avenue. Open from 11:00 AM, and its site offers the back garden to groups who want to watch a game.
The LayUp. Open at noon on Sunday, an hour before kickoff, with the sound on. It is the address on both the Giants and Jets lists.
The Dram Shop, 339 9th Street. Open from 11:00 AM with a full kitchen and 8 TVs plus a projector. If someone in the group cannot eat gluten, come to us at 148 5th Avenue from 1:00 PM.
No Sunday deal to count on. The Dram Shop’s FAQ suspends its Sunday happy hour during football season. Fourth Avenue Pub opens at 1:00 PM and takes 4% off when you pay cash, but does not say it shows games.
McMahon’s Public House. Open since 11:00 AM with an NFL Sunday page and a back garden for groups.
The LayUp. Open from 4:00 PM on weekdays, sound on for every major game, kitchen until midnight.
The Beer Garage, 148 5th Avenue. Open from 3:00 PM Monday to Thursday with a fully gluten-free kitchen; a 7:00 PM start leaves three hours before our 10:00 PM close.
Gowanus Gardens. Happy hour from 3:00 to 7:00 PM, Monday to Friday, then a different deal each night, from $10 margaritas on Tuesday to two sliders for $10 on Thursday. Ask whether the game is on.
Gowanus Gardens. Its covered patio is heated, and it is a minute from the station. Remember the rule: 21 and over after 8:00 PM.
McMahon’s Public House. Open until 2:00 AM every night, the latest close of the four rooms that say sports.
Gowanus Gardens. Its kitchen stays open until 1:00 AM every day. We stop serving well before that.
Fourth Avenue Pub, 76 4th Avenue. Open to 4:00 AM from Monday to Saturday, with 26 drafts and a 4% discount for paying cash.
Fourth Avenue Pub. Its backyard beer garden is part of a bar that stays open to 4:00 AM most nights. Lowlands also reaches 4:00 AM on Fridays and Saturdays.
How we checked
We started from a Google Maps search for sports bars in Gowanus and added every bar we knew within about twenty minutes’ walk of the canal. On October 14, 2026 we opened each bar’s own website, including pages that only load in a browser, and recorded whether it says it shows sports, its hours and its offers. We also read the Giants and Jets bar lists for their Brooklyn entries. Walks were timed in Google Maps from the Union St station the same day.
It does not rank the bars, and none was visited by our team to write it. Customer reviews that appear on some bar websites were not used as facts, and nor were third-party listings that describe a bar differently from its own site.
No bar paid to be included. If a Gowanus bar does show games and says so somewhere we missed, tell us and we will add it.
Six minutes from the canal, and gluten-free from kickoff
The Beer Garage Park Slope, 148 5th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217, entrance on Douglass Street, six minutes from the Union St station. Monday to Thursday 3:00 to 10:00 PM, Friday 2:00 to 11:00 PM, Saturday 1:00 to 11:00 PM and Sunday 1:00 to 10:00 PM.
Comparing the Park Slope rooms side by side? Read the best sports bar in Park Slope.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a sports bar in Gowanus?
Not by the bars’ own websites. None of the bars inside Gowanus that we read on October 14, 2026 says it shows games. The nearest rooms that do are on the Park Slope side of 4th Avenue: The Beer Garage, The LayUp, McMahon’s Public House and The Dram Shop.
What is the closest sports bar to the Gowanus Canal?
By walking time from the Union St station on 4th Avenue, The Beer Garage at 148 5th Avenue is closest at six minutes. The LayUp at 47 5th Avenue is twelve minutes and McMahon’s Public House at 39 5th Avenue is thirteen.
Where can Giants or Jets fans watch near Gowanus?
The 47 5th Avenue address of The LayUp appears on both the Giants Bar Network and the Jets Bar Network, and McMahon’s Public House at 39 5th Avenue is on the Giants list. Both are twelve to thirteen minutes from the Union St station.
Which bar near Gowanus opens earliest on a Sunday?
McMahon’s Public House and The Dram Shop both open at 11:00 AM on Sundays. The LayUp opens at noon, and The Beer Garage and Fourth Avenue Pub at 1:00 PM.
Which bars near Gowanus stay open latest?
Fourth Avenue Pub prints a 4:00 AM close from Monday to Saturday, and Lowlands reaches 4:00 AM on Fridays and Saturdays. Among the rooms that say sports, McMahon’s runs latest, to 2:00 AM every night.
Is there gluten-free food at a sports bar near Gowanus?
Yes. The food at The Beer Garage at 148 5th Avenue is 100% gluten-free, six minutes from the Union St station. We did not find the same claim on the other bars’ websites.
The verdict
Searching for a sports bar Gowanus can actually walk to? Cross 4th Avenue. Inside the neighborhood, Gowanus Gardens, Threes and Halyards are good for the hours around a game but none promises the game itself. Six minutes from the Union St station, The Beer Garage has the game and a fully gluten-free kitchen until 10:00 PM on weeknights. For sound with every major game go on to The LayUp, for an 11:00 AM start or a 2:00 AM finish McMahon’s, and for the Packers or the Mets The Dram Shop.
Sources and references
- The Beer Garage: beergarageny.com (Park Slope hours in the site footer and the description of the bar and its gluten-free food), read October 14, 2026.
- Gowanus Gardens (home, about and calendar pages), Threes Brewing Gowanus, Halyards and Lowlands, own websites, read October 14, 2026.
- Fourth Avenue Pub, The LayUp, McMahon’s Public House, Union Grounds and The Dram Shop (home page and FAQ), own websites, read October 14, 2026.
- Pig Beach (locations list) and draftbarnny.com, read October 14, 2026.
- Giants Bar Network and Jets Bar Network, Brooklyn entries, read October 14, 2026.
- Google Maps walking mode from the Union St station (R) to each address, timed October 14, 2026.
Related reading: Best sports bar in Park Slope · Sports bar in Park Slope · Giants bar in Brooklyn · Jets bar in Brooklyn · Craft beer bar in Park Slope
Marina Charny