Paul’s

Well, what can be said about this place that has not already been said. Out of your bar choices in the Circle I think Paul’s is the best spot. The place is not over priced and you have plenty of room to move around all though sometimes it can get packed. I actually avoid this place like the plague during the Street Fair.
But this place has been serving thirsty locals for a long time. It also has been the demise of college students praying to the porcelain god. The bartenders here are all great and you can get a drink in a couple spots which is also good. I love that you can get pitchers and or mini pitchers. The bloody marys here are spot on as well if you are the type of person to hit the bar for a hang over cure.
Anytime I want to do some drinking in the circle for the night I always go with Pauls. It’s always a good time and growing up here in Orange I always see people I know so it’s great to catch up with people. Be smart about coming here and take a über or a cab if you come here and drink. The cops keep a close eye on this area. Get home safe and CHEERS!!!

This is an exceptional dive bar with great bartenders, a fun crowd, good prices, and even the security guys are cool. As laid back dive bars goes, Paul’s rules.

This is as good as it gets. A great little place with a unique vibe and somewhere you can sit down have a drink, or a few more, and have a conversation with those around you. Intimate setting and great staff!

Good Times. Love the back patio, almost always a fun & diverse crowd, locals are typically very welcoming & full of fun n’ funny stories, a Main bar inside, & a small Back bar located on back patio… Pauls can be Pack Jammed!-Thus, hard to get a drink quickly,.“The more bartenders the better at Pauls.” Do wish they’d hire/​add on one or two Guy bartenders, diversity with both sexes is definitely good for business.” No complaint, simply sayin’ what most everyone thinks/​feels re: Bartenders @ Pauls. Cheers!

My wife and I meet up with another couple in old town orange. After eating dinner we wanted to grab a drink and spend some more time together.
Strong drinks; friendly staff; great location; mellow crowd, cheap drinks.

I’m not really an Orange circle kinda girl because of all the local schmucks I run into there but this divey bar was pretty cool the drinks were cheap but it was pretty crowded however, the music was great!

This bar was pretty awesome. Packed with that divey feel. I love how they have the patio too! Reminds me of bars back in Portland

Your average dive. Cheap drinks, fun crowd. They have 2 pools tables and a patio. Some might say it is a little smelly here.

Great service. Good vibes. Idiotic security gaurd (singular) whom does not understand basic conversation skills. Long story short, this man will kick you out for talking to him with articulate, all encompassing vocabulary… TL;DR great bar but one absolutely horrible and idiotic security gaurd. And I’m saying this as the sober dd of the night (i do hope my friends call an über or something…) Hopefully, he will soon be let go, and order will be restored in the orange circle. Until then, please avoid this bar at all costs. The surrounding bars have cheaper, better, well made drinks and good brew. Again. AVOID THIS ESTABLISHMENT AT ALL COSTS!!!

A great place to run into people from high school you don’t want to see and get totally sloshed on cheap drinks — albeit, pretty terrible ones.
As a 5 year Paul’s vet, I’ve completely reneged on going here. It’s like that Orange bar that everyone goes to because you live in Orange. You’ll always see someone you know — especially since this place packs crowds like sardines on weekends.
There’s a couple of pool tables that are always piled on with people playing and a back smoking patio with barely anywhere to sit.
If you’re up for a night of rowdy drinking and drunken mingling, Pauls is your place. Or, if you’re missing that cheerleader from your sophomore English class at Elmo — she’s probably here. Just buy her a round of cactus cooler shots and you’re in ;).

A once great dive bar, turned college bar. Most of the staff is slow and learned to mix on the job. Nearly anyone who makes youe drink here will make it differently. The prices are nearly on par with a nightclub.

This is a dive bar. I’m thinking, «How can this be 5 stars.» Well, among dive bars, this is the Crème de la crème.
And it’s not really a dive bar. Is it cuz it opens at 6 or 6:30 am that it gets this designation? Inside it is darkish, with the walls filled with stuff. But there are no off-​putting odors (like piss or old beer or cigarettes). In the early morning, lots of nurses and cops coming off their shifts stop in to unwind. Later in the day and at night, lots of Chapman college students. So, really, not divey at all.
There is a pretty decent craft beer selection. A full bar. Fun bartenders.
Who amongst us hasn’t finished breakfast somewhere and wanted a beer? It’s 9:30 am. Where can you go?
Now you know. Paul’s! Conveniently right off the Orange Circle!

A chill place (both in atmosphere and air conditioning) full of hipsters and locals. I am neither so I felt out of place.

I can’t say enough about Pauls. I love the laid back attitude. Lots of regulars. All pretty cool. This is the go to place.

TLDR:
If you enjoy a place that smells of urine, if you don’t mind being overcharged on your credit card, and if you like salty/​rude staff, boy is this the place for you!
Drinks:
They have a full bar with a fair whiskey selection. My first drink was weak. I learned my lesson and took my spirits on the rocks from there on out.
Price:
The prices are average. I wouldn’t call their drinks cheap, but I also wouldn’t say that they’re expensive.
Ambiance:
While waiting for our first round, one of my friends looked at me and scrunched his nose. «Do you smell that?!» he yelled over the blaring music. What we were smelling were the unmistakable odors of bleach and chemical cleaners that poorly tried to mask the smell of pee. Gross.
I disagree with how Unilocal indicates that, 20−30-somethings hang out here. As you can see in most of the Unilocal pictures, this place attracts an older crowd, at least on the (school) night that we went.
Amenities:
One plus that I give Paul’s is that the darts and pool tables are in a separate area from the bar. There are also TVs tuned in to different sports channels. The juke box has an ok selection, although it sometimes likes to eat your quarters and skip over the songs that you paid for.
Customer Service:
When we arrived, it was not very busy; yet it took us a long time to get a drink. My friends and I were literally the only people at the bar who didn’t have drinks in front of them, but we still waited almost 15 minutes before a bartender regarded us.
Here is the main reason for the one star. Let me start off by saying that my first job was in food service, so I have a lot of sympathy towards wait staff and bartenders. As a courtesy and general rule, I like to leave cash tips for them. This way, come tax time, I leave it completely up to them to report (or not). So, we went to Paul’s on April 19^th. On May 24^th, I got my credit card statement and noticed that Paul’s charged me $ 4 more than what I had on my receipt copy. Some people might think that $ 4 is not a big deal, but it’s more the principal that I have a problem with. I remember when I closed out that I was sober enough to leave $ 1-​$ 2 cash tip PER drink. Had the bartender taken it upon herself to (undeservedly) give herself a little extra at my expense? On May 26^th, I called my credit card company to request a copy of the receipt that had my signature on it. I was told that it would cost $ 12 to recover it and that I should just call the merchant for a copy of the original. I called Paul’s and Laura instructed me to call on Monday when Tish (the manager) works in the office. She took my information and said she would have Tish call me back. On the afternoon of that following Monday June 1^st, I called again and Eva told me that Tish had already left. Again, I left my contact info and Eva recommended that I try calling Tish between 8am-​10am. Two weeks passed and still no call back. At 9:20am on June 22^nd, I called a third time and was told that Tish was there earlier, but had already left. The woman (who kept ignoring my question when I asked for her name), said that maybe she could help. I started to explain the reason for my call, when she asked me when I was there. «April? Oh no, that’s too long ago. Our books are closed,» she wrote off. I countered that I had been calling for the past month to resolve this. «Did you tip?» she asked, as if to justify the action of the bartender. «I tip in cash,» I answered. She asked what the difference was, then replied, «Four dollars? That’s it?» she mocked, «You can just come down and I’ll give you four of my dollars.» Now, I live in LA — over 30 miles away. The cost of gas, let alone the time spent in traffic, would make it pointless to drive to Orange. I told her that it was not feasible for me to do that. «Look,» she snipped, «I just lost FOUR customers because I’ve been on the phone with you.» In my mind, I’m thinking, really lady? We’ve been on the phone for barely two minutes. That early in the morning, I would think that if one was the type of person with the intention to drink this time of the day, that one would be patient enough to wait a few more seconds. Again I left my info, but who knows if she wrote it down. It’s now early July and no one has returned my calls.
Restroom:
Shockingly, the ladies’ room did not smell the same as the bar area. This isn’t to say that I would eat off of the bathroom floor, but I’d actually prefer to drink here instead of at the bar.
Parking:
There is a parking lot that Paul’s shares with a few other businesses, but let’s be honest: Just do yourself (and everyone else) a favor and Über/​Lyft or take a taxi.
Overall Assessment:
Congratulations Paul’s. You get my first one-​star review. I’ll consider giving them a higher rating if they ever get back to me. But until then, all I can say is take your money and thirst elsewhere. I love dive bars, but this one… no. Just. No.
Tip:
Pay in CASH.

This place has good affordable strong drinks and is always packed fri&sat night, the bartenders are very nice as well as the bouncers. I recommend Paul’s way over the district.

Great spot for locals a strong poor friendly bartenders and security that doesn’t put up with nonsense I mean there’s a lot of hipsters and college kids but doesn’t take away from this awesome place

Been coming here for the last 15 years and, for a dive, this is the best in Orange County. Not too dirty and dark, not too trendy or douchy. Right in the middle. It can get packed at times but, unlike nearly every other joint when it gets too packed, you can still find room to move around. So the layout’s great as is the patio out back.
Regardless of the crowd, bartenders are on top of it. If someone feels the urge to give a bartender with crappy service/​attitude a pass because the place they’re at is too busy, my no-​fail response: Paul’s. Doesn’t matter how crowded it is here. They’re on it and that’s how you run a good spot.
Drinks are great value too and most of the time the patrons aren’t playing god awful tunes in the juke. Never had a bad night here.

We were approached first by Steven, and my lady friend showed her I.D. I forgot mine at District so I had to run back. After a 2 minute jog, I came back and was greeted yet again by Steven, with open arms. He knew I was awesome and assured us that we’d have a stellar evening. Thanks dude!

A solid dive in the heart of old towne Orange! There’s a smoking patio in the back with lots of seating, 2 pool tables, a dart board and a huge lounge with a bunch of TV’s. I was a regular here for a couple years before I moved to LA. It’s a fun time all the time. The bartenders are all friendly and nice. Security is good about keeping jerks out of the bar and getting rowdy drunks out of the place.
It’s a dive but it’s top notch! It gets busy at night, especially on Friday and Saturday nights.
If you’re in the area and thirsty… Go to Paul’s!!!

I came by here to meet a friend to discuss biz. Paul’s is real bar located just off DT Orange on Chapman. By real bar, I mean it opens at 6 am, doesn’t serve food and there is a bright PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) outside.
I ordered a Stella and the beer was ice cold and refreshing. The bartender here didn’t short pour me like the bartender at Linx earlier across the street. The bartender at Linx’s response when I called her out on the short pour: It is a 12 oz pour in a 14 oz glass. WTF!!! Do I look like I just fell off a pineapple truck!!!
The clientele was chill and the beer was inexpensive ($ 4 vs most places at $ 6). The ambiance isn’t much, but there is a pool table and juke box. I think next time I’ll drink at Paul’s and eat at Linx later. Then I will come back and drink at Paul’s again — LOL!!!
BTW, one of the female clients mentioned a Kendrick Lamar song and I knew the words. I started singing the opening lines, and she even played it on the jukebox later. The lyrics were perfect for my experience earlier in the evening:
I am a sinner
Who’s probably gonna sin again
Lord forgive me
Lord forgive me
Things I don’t understand
Sometimes I need to be alone
B*tch don’t kill my vibe
B*tch don’t kill my vibe
LMAO!!!