The Real Cheers Bar Opened on Beacon Street in 1969 as the Bull & Finch

Yes, the Cheers bar is real, and you can still get a drink there. It’s at 84 Beacon Street, across from the Public Garden, and it opened in 1969 as the Bull & Finch Pub.

How did it end up on TV?

The bar’s exterior was used in the opening of Cheers for all eleven seasons, from 1982 to 1993. The inside of the TV bar was a set, so the real room looks different.

The show made it one of the city’s biggest attractions: a 1990 report ranked it among Boston’s top three tourist spots. When the finale aired on May 20, 1993, there was a party outside.

Is it still called the Bull & Finch?

It was renamed Cheers Beacon Hill in 2002, under a deal with CBS. A second Cheers at Faneuil Hall opened in 2001 and closed in 2020, so Beacon Street is the one to visit. Upstairs is the Hampshire House restaurant.

Good to know

• Address: 84 Beacon Street, by the Public Garden.
• The closest T stops are Arlington and Charles/MGH.
• The menu is American pub food, including a Norm Burger Hall of Fame.

For more old Boston bars, read about the Union Oyster House, or see what’s on tonight.

Sources: Wikipedia: Cheers Beacon Hill, Cheers Boston.

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