Dive Bar and Grille in Savage Mill doesn’t fit a lot of the characteristics of a dive bar. It’s spacious and airy, not cramped and dingy. It has a large cocktail menu and plenty of quality beers on tap, as opposed to a fridge filled with cans of Natty Boh and PBR. The food that emerges from its kitchen is sophisticated and skillfully prepared; there’s not a chip tower or bar top bowl of pretzels to be found.
But it embodies its name in the most important of ways: spirit. Perhaps the preeminent trait of a dive bar is a welcoming atmosphere where locals mix with strangers who are treated like regulars. Since opening in 2021, it’s been an anchor not only of the historic Savage Mill retail complex, but for the communities that neighbor it in Howard County. And thankfully so, as it had big shoes to fill—the space was previously inhabited by an outpost of the regional stalwart Ram’s Head.
The sixth location of a chain that’s other five branches are in Pennsylvania, Dive occupies 9,000 square feet in the mill’s Carding Building. Other than the clunky collection of multiple laminated menus, it doesn’t feel like a chain. It has three indoor levels (the lower one, known as the Blind Pig Tavern, hosts events like karaoke), as well as outdoor seating on a deck and on a patio in the courtyard terrace.
Yet the main bar, with its wooden frame and low tin ceiling, still feels intimate. When we most recently visited during happy hour on a Wednesday in July, the few TVs were muted and music played softly. It created an ambiance that mirrors the laid-back vibe of the mill’s antique shops and artsy stores. Families sat in the main dining room, while the bar stools were occupied mostly by solo people seemingly quite satisfied to enjoy a drink and a bite by themselves.
The extensive cocktail menu features martinis and other standards complemented by intriguing options like the Detox Retox. Made with Ketel One Botanical Cucumber and lemon juice, fresh mint, simple syrup, and soda, it’s a fragrant, refreshing drink that awakens the tastebuds like a julip. The Whiskey Passion, made with Bulleit Rye, Aperol, passionfruit, and lemon juice was beautifully blended and pleasingly acidic. Even a non-whiskey fan might like it.
It only takes a quick glance to realize that there’s nothing divey about the food menu. Appetizers include Ahi tuna bites, crab balls, loaded croquettes, and Poutine-ish, a heaping plate of braised short rib atop French fries with fresh mozzarella, green onions, and a whole lot of gravy. It’s comfort food at its finest.
Large plates include smoked gouda risotto, salmon, and a hanger steak, but most people we’ve seen eating stick to the handhelds. Along with the requisite burgers and chicken sandwiches, there are barbecue pork, Cuban, and shaved sirloin varieties. We’re fans of the Knuckle Sandwich, a cleverly named assemblage of shaved turkey and steak, coleslaw, and tomato topped with fries, provolone cheese, and horseradish aioli. Basically, your meats and sides are all conveniently packed in between bread.
While it might not be a dive, The Dive does do the term dive proud.