PubKey, the Bitcoin-centric dive bar that has become something of a pilgrimage site for the crypto faithful, announced on August 7 that its Bitcoin payment system is offline until further notice. The bar, which operates locations in New York City and Washington, D.C., didn’t offer a reason for the disruption.
What we know about the outage
The announcement came via PubKey’s official account on X, where the bar indicated the outage would be temporary. Beyond that reassurance, the post was light on specifics.
PubKey relies on Square’s point-of-sale system for processing Bitcoin transactions, a feature Square rolled out in 2025. Whether the issue stems from Square’s infrastructure, PubKey’s own integration, or something else entirely remains unclear.
PubKey’s New York location has historically processed about 7% of its transactions in Bitcoin. The bar incentivizes that adoption with a 21% discount for customers who pay in Bitcoin. The number isn’t arbitrary. It’s a nod to Bitcoin’s hard cap of 21 million coins.
PubKey’s role in Bitcoin culture
The original New York City location opened in late 2022, positioning itself not just as a place to grab a beer but as a community hub for Bitcoin enthusiasts, developers, and curious newcomers.
Most notably, former President Donald Trump visited PubKey and used Bitcoin for a transaction in 2024, a moment that generated significant media attention and cemented the bar’s reputation as ground zero for Bitcoin-meets-Main-Street culture.
PubKey expanded to Washington, D.C. in late 2025, partnering with the Bitcoin Policy Institute to create a venue that doubles as a space for Bitcoin policy discussions.
What this says about Bitcoin payment infrastructure
This appears to be PubKey’s first significant service interruption for Bitcoin payments. The model has obvious appeal: businesses plug into a system like Square’s and let the processor handle conversion and settlement. When it works, it’s seamless. When it doesn’t, the business is stuck telling Bitcoin-paying customers to pull out a credit card instead.
For PubKey specifically, the financial impact is probably manageable. At 7% of transactions, the bar can clearly survive on fiat payments alone.