public bar

American  

noun

British.

1. (in a tavern or pub) the common section of a bar or barroom, not as exclusive, as quiet, or as comfortably furnished as the saloon section.

---

public bar British  

noun

1. Also called: the public.  a bar in a public house usually serving drinks at a cheaper price than in the saloon bar Compare private bar

---

Example Sentences

The document alleges that he pressured her to have a drink with him at his SoHo apartment, instead of at a public bar as she said she suggested.

From Washington Post • Nov. 10, 2022

Fully half of the Henri, which opens as a public bar and 60-seat dining room, is devoted to private events in the back.

From Washington Post • Apr. 25, 2022

Breest said she asked to go to a public bar instead, but the director insisted and she relented, not wanting to offend him.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 5, 2018

One can't imagine New Statesman founder Sidney Webb enjoying a pint of mild and bitter in the public bar, playing shove ha'penny to pass the time.

From BBC • Nov. 26, 2014

“Course not! He never said a word about that. Well, he wouldn’t go blabbing about that in a public bar, would he?”

From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman