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Dive Bar Thursday – Patterson Pub

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Dive Bar Thursday Patterson Pub

Welcome to the Patterson Pub!

When I moved to the Dayton area in the late 1990’s, one of the first places I frequented for an adult beverage was Taggart’s Pub. It was close to my apartment and had a friendly atmosphere with inexpensive beer. Perfect for someone in a new city just out of school! As a bonus it was also a Browns bar, adding that little touch of home. Every Sunday, I would head over with other masochistic fans of Cleveland football and watch our team struggle, enjoying complimentary food far more than the football games. We were happy the team had returned to Cleveland, but it was painful to watch. In 2014, the owner of Taggart’s Pub announced he was going to move to a larger venue. Unfortunately for Dayton, that new space never materialized. Even as they were leaving their seventeen-year home, they announced there was going to be a new owner taking over the space. After an incredibly short closure, the Patterson Pub opened up and has been going strong ever since.

If you have not been to Patterson Pub (970 Patterson Rd Dayton, OH 45419) in a while, you need to come and visit. Other than the ownership, little has changed in this Belmont area staple. There are two main areas to the pub: the spacious front room and the much more intimate back bar. The front room holds three large televisions and all the dart boards you could want. Six steel tip and three plastic tip board are there for the throwing, with multiple dart leagues through the week and the occasional tournament. The back bar is just that. It is the place where the magic happens. There is plenty of room to belly up and watch television or play some digital golf while enjoying a beer or cocktail. They have held on to their Irish roots as a pub. Their reverence for a good Irish whiskey and all things green, white, and orange still shines. Along with the orange of the Irish flag, they are still proudly (or, after last season, not as proudly) displaying the orange and brown of the Cleveland Browns. Whiskey and football are two of their great loves. Yes, they still are a Browns bar and show their games on Sundays in the main room. Other games are shown in the back bar area, for reasons that will become clear.

Dive Bar Thursday beer and liquor

So much to offer a thirsty patron.

They offer beers for every palate, from $5 Miller High Life pitchers (when they have it on tap) to a nitro tap to infuse extra smoothness into a beer. While some craft options, like Rhinegheist’s Truth, are always on tap, they bring in a variety of other selections that rotate through the seasons. If that is not enough, there are bottles and cans that expand on the tap offering. They even have a variety of specials through the week, including happy hour pricing from 3 to 7 PM daily. That pricing includes cocktails as well. And yes, they do have a cocktail menu to order from. As with the beers, it changes with the seasons but always has at least one Irish whiskey cocktail on the menu. Their liquor selection is continuing to grow, with plans to add some local Belle of Dayton gin and expand their selection of whiskeys. They do offer the normal bar foods like pizza, nachos, pretzels, and pepperoni and cheese breadsticks known as Bosco sticks. You can bring your own food as well, and their neighbors at Corleone’s Pizza are willing to deliver right to the bar.

How friendly is this bar? Very. They are friendly to the service industry, with Monday night being their Service Industry Night. On a slow night for most bars, they offer special pricing for all of the other hard-working bartenders in the Dayton area. They are also still very friendly to Browns fans. They have continued the tradition of the Browns Club for the diehards that have suffered through over two dozen quarterbacks and one minor logo change.

Patterson Pub Cocktail Specials

Cocktail and beer specials! Just waiting to be enjoyed…

The games are shown on the televisions in the main room along with food, cooked by one of the patrons, for members of the club. For a small fee, you get a t-shirt, a lanyard with an ID card, a magnet with the schedule, and a host of other specials and benefits. If you have a group of fans that want a table for the season, there is a way to buy that as well. Not only that, but any patron who comes in for those Sundays can imbibe a special house made Bloody Mary. Not just the Browns fan. The spacious front room is also available for other events as well, with a small deposit.

Many of the traditions that made Taggart’s Pub a beloved staple in the community have been carried over to the Patterson Pub. The staff is as friendly as I remember and the atmosphere is just as comfortable. They are making their own inroads into the community, embracing their neighborhood and offering a friendly barstool and pint to anyone who stops there.

The Patterson Pub, located at 970 Patterson Rd Dayton, OH 45419, is open 3 PM to 2:30 AM daily. You can call them at (937) 296-9476 and follow them on their Facebook page for more information about events and specials at the pub!

Dive Bar Thursday: King’s Point Pub

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Feast thine eyes on King’s Point Pub!

Heated discussions have occurred among friends about what constitutes a dive bar. The issues of size, food served, the motivation for going, and even spirit selection has been part of the debate. One thing that came out over time was the bar’s location. It had to be part of a neighborhood or some other small community. That could make it a biker bar, a Bengals bar, or a bar that most of Belmont are seen in after the end of a shift. Certain areas of town just do not lend themselves well to having a dive bar. They are too busy. In the center of it all. A place to go for the whole city to party, not just the people who live in that area. Some bars, like the Time Out Cavern, require a little extra effort to go there. There is one that, if you are not paying attention, you will miss as you head down Wilmington Pike. And King’s Point Pub is not a place you want to miss.

King’s Point Pub (4660 Wilmington Pike, Kettering, OH 45440) is a well-hidden prize located in the nearly empty Wilmington Height’s Shopping Center. Unless you know it is back there, it may be difficult for you to find. Based on the times that we have been there, plenty of people are finding their way back to this incredible space. The patio that greets you is a fair size, with plenty of room to sit outside and enjoy warm summer nights. Possibly with a game of cornhole. Yes, the patio is really that big. If cornhole is not your game, head inside to the roomy interior for plenty of dart boards and a few pool tables. Summer dart leagues are just starting to get tossing and keep an ear out for the cornhole leagues to begin. They currently are playing some Luck of the Draw games on Sundays at 2 PM, where you put your name into the hat and hope you get a good partner. They have been known in the past to hold the cornhole games inside if there was bad weather. Yes, the interior of the bar is really that big. One their neighboring party supply store shut down, they purchased the space and added it to their pub. There are a few pool tables inside for good measure.

Beer? Cocktails? What is your pleasure?

They have a healthy respect for the craft beer scene but are not going to deny a person a cold Coors Light if that is what they are after. They have eight taps ready and waiting for thirsty patrons, typically split between old favorites and the new brews in town. It is not a surprise to those in the know when they host a tap takeover by a brewery every now and then. If you prefer your beer out of a bottle or a can, they have a broad selection of those as well. Their liquor selection does not offer any incredibly rare or unusual. It does offer anything you could possibly want to drink while playing any one of a number of games there. While they do not have a cocktail menu to look over, most of the bartenders there have their own specials they offer to patrons. And if you get hungry from all that dart throwing and bean bag tossing, Troni Brothers Pizza is right next store and ready to help! They offer pizza (of course), wings, sandwiches, salads, and desserts. They will even deliver it to their neighbors! That is some service.

One of the many factors that make a dive bar popular is being an integrated part of their community. The people there know who is coming in and when, and what drink to have ready for them when they arrive. They give back to the people who keep their doors open in ways that go beyond just discounts on

Darts for charity? King’s Point may be open to that idea.

drinks or a place to come when difficulties roll in. They support the causes that are important to the patrons. The staff gets to know the patrons, and the patrons get to know each other. King’s Point Pub is no different. They have a board of all the causes they have helped, including the Wounded Warrior Project (it is a bar that very much appreciates the military), being a top fundraiser for Alzheimer’s Awareness, and various other projects around the community. Speaking with patrons and employees alike, everyone is very friendly and helpful, willing to chat with strangers about this little home away from home. They also support national and local bands by hosting them at their venue (did I mention the place is large?), with acts like Mad Hatter and Full Frontal showing up to entertain.

Taking a few steps off the beaten path is worth it. That is where you find all of the most interesting things. King’s Point Pub offers a great atmosphere with delightful pizza and entertainment for everyone in the family. Whether you go to root on THE Ohio State Buckeye or try your luck at corn hole, this is a pub that is well worth the effort to get to know.

Dive Bar Tuesday – Dr. Doodles Lounge

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Dr. Doodle's Lounge exterior

Welcome to Dr. Doodle’s Lounge!

There has been a theme in the last few dive bars we have explored. They are small and intimate venues, where is it hard not to meet know people because you were in pretty close proximity to them. Bar space was limited, and there was not much light in the room, which tends to bring people closer together. Space is expensive; unless you have a good deal, what you pay for the building, as well as its maintenance, can be costly. This could be a reason that dive bars tend to end up in places that are hard to find or out of the way. Many of the ones that are on our list are out of the way places that people almost have to draw us maps for to ensure that we find it. Had people not told us about Time Out Cavern or Adrienne’s White Rabbit Lounge, I am not sure we would have stumbled on them by just wandering down the street. In some ways, this week’s adventure to Dr. Doodle’s Lounge follows that script. In more ways, it breaks it.

Dr. Doodle’s Lounge (1510 Miamisburg Centerville Rd, Dayton, OH 45459) DOES have a sign on 725 that lets you know it is there. However, you won’t see it from the street. You need to go around the back of the Original Pancake House to find this delight. When you do head back there, the first thing you will notice is their nicely enclosed patio. It is spacious and covered, so as long as the weather is warm, you can sit out there with your favorite beverage. When you enter and pass a small shelf of books and a jukebox on the left, there is a good chance someone is going to say hello to you. And it may not be the bartender. Like most of the other bars we have gone to, we immediately felt welcome here. More than one person we spoke with mentioned the feel was very much like the beloved Cubby Hole, complete with several of the bartenders that made that venue great. It was also said a few times that “the stranger you are, the more you fit in.”

Dr. Doodle's Lounge Working SIgn

This place seems a little strict with rules.

The openness was not just for the customers and staff. The whole atmosphere was open, thanks in large part to the walls of windows on two sides of the building. The ceilings were high, and there was natural light (possibly Natural Light too, we did not check) pouring through space. The bar was tucked into the corner, so there was plenty of room for activities like darts, pool, trivia, the occasional Sunday karaoke night, and any other events one can imagine. Even on nights in the past, we were there, and it was busy, it did not feel like a cramped space. There is room for everyone to come in for a drink!

And come in for a drink you should! They have three taps for beer, but a much wider selection of cans and bottles for you to enjoy. There was a cocktail list, but it has been lost to history. The spirits they keep behind the bar offer an imbibing option for everyone and the bartenders there know how to use them. Specials, as well as food, depends on the night that drops in. Each man or woman handling bar duty that night will have their own special, from $3 shots of Fireball to $10 buckets of beer. The food menu is just as dependent on staff taste. One night could be pulled pork sandwiches; another they could be grilling brats on the patio. This is one of the beauties of small, independent businesses. There is always something different going on, and the staff has some leeway to cater to the customers. In fact, some of the customers will bring in side dishes depending on the night and the bartender. Who needs a regular menu?

Dr. Doodle's Lounge bar

What are you in the mood for today?

It would be easy to become a regular here. The whole atmosphere is a big warm embrace. There is going to be a motorcycle run in August to Indian Lake, starting with some hamburgers and brats on the patio and finishing with the ride. Last year over 200 people participated in the event, and this year will probably be bigger. Every night will offer a different experience, which means if you go often enough, you will find the right time for you. It does not matter who you are or what you do; there’s a bar stool and a cold drink waiting for you. Just a cursory look at the parking lot ran the gamut of styles, from hard working pick-up trucks to shining and stylish high-end cars. Stop by Dr. Doodles Lounge over a few different nights as the summer starts to heat up. Enjoy the patio, the food, and the friendly atmosphere. Pretty soon you too will be welcoming people as they walk up to the bar for a drink.

Dr. Doodles lounge is located at 1510 Miamisburg Centerville Rd, Dayton, OH 45459. Their number is (937) 434-8748, and they are open every day from 12:00 PM to 2:30 AM. You can find their upcoming events and other information on their Facebook page.

Dive Bar Tuesday: Dog’s Breath Tavern

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Fat Heads and pool? What more do you need?

Fat Heads and pool? What more do you need?

Last week was cold. And snowy. So when we were looking for a dive bar to visit, we wanted something relatively central. There are many in the area that we have been to, but one I had always been curious about but had not explored. Well, not since I moved to the great city of Dayton, and it was better known as Alan’s Billiard’s and Brew. When it was Alan’s, I remember pool tables as far as the eye could see and beer that was exactly what beer should be: inexpensive and cold. I don’t remember much in the way of food, but who needed it? It would just ruin the flow of beer and pool.

Bits and pieces of it became the new Dog’s Breath Tavern (1912 E. Whipp Rd, Kettering, OH), which after a brief stint with a previous owner was relaunched under new ownership just over a year ago. This is where we chose to head over for our Dive Bar Tuesday. We had not heard anything about the bar, but the parking lot was always full when we drove by. People more hip to the Dayton food scene, namely The Food Adventures Crew, explored the food and gave it their stamp of approval. Normally there are football games on, people on stage belting out karaoke favorites, and bands testing the limits of the sound system. The bartenders would be taking care of customers like pros, and games of pool and darts would be going on.

Unless it is a week night during the first real snowfall of winter. Then there are a handful of people chatting warmly at the largely empty bar. Much of what we found out about the weekend shenanigans was from the bartender that night. He was incredibly friendly and informative, as well as multi-talented. Not only was he the bartender, but the cook as well. There are several dart boards for metal tipped play and some pool tables that were enjoying some action the evening we were there. Checking out the signs around the bar, there is something interesting going on every night; beer specials, trivia, 2 4 2’s Day (a wide variety of $2.42 specials on Tuesday evening, and karaoke to kick off the weekend. The one that caught our eye was the food truck rally. They have a kitchen (more on that in a few sentences), but they are willing to support local businesses and bring food trucks to a place where few are going to tread. The only other place I have seen food trucks in this area is Eudora Brewing.

So much room for activities...

So much room for activities…

During an evening of drinking, you are going to get hungry. Fortunately, they have a kitchen to take care of that for you. The menu consists of solid bar fare like burgers, wings, and appetizers like jalapeno poppers and cheese sticks. We had to try the burger (of course), their signature Dog Bones (egg rolls filled with an assortment of unique fillings), and one other thing. Since we were enjoying beers that night, we also added the pretzel bites. What goes better with beer than pretzels? The burger (which came with chips) was lovely. We tried the Barbecue Pulled Pork Dog Bones, and were impressed with the flavor, though there was a lack of traditional barbecue sauce. The pretzel bites…well, we were really unsure about them, so we had to get a second order. For evaluating purposes, of course.

Did we mention beer? They had an excellent selection of beer, from the ones you would expect every bar to have to local favorites like Yellow Springs and Warped Wing. Their selection of craft beers is a fine one, and the ones we had went down well. You have your choice of taps which are always rotating, bottles, and cans of other favorites. If you want to keep up with the beers they have, you can find them on BeerMenus and keep tabs on their changes. The bartender knew his way around the taps and bottles, which is a good thing. The impressive chalk board and printed menus on the table had not been updated in a while. There is a cocktail menu as well, filled with comfortable favorites like the classic Dirty Martini and Cosmopolitan. The staff has added their own unique cocktails like the Dog Gone Good Martini and the DBT Bulldog for good measure.

We are planning on making a return trip in the future, and not just because of convenience. The atmosphere was friendly and the food was delightful. Did we mention the pretzel bites? There will be other beers to explore the next time we step in, and a few cocktails to try out as well. I am not sure anyone in our group is going to step up for karaoke, but when the pool tournament starts up, count us in!

 

New Owner Breathes Life Into Dog’s Breath Tavern

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Gary Leasure, New Owner of Dog’s Breath tavern

Been chasing your tail looking for a good watering hole?

New things are happening under the woof, err. roof at Dog’s Breath Tavern on Whipp Road in Kettering.  New owner Gary Leasure has already set some of his vision in motion.  Keeping with the dog theme, he has revamped the menu and promises even more improvements and innovations.

As for drinks, he is focusing on having beer available from every Dayton Brewery.  You could literally do a brew tour without leaving your bar stool.  He is working out distribution with some of the breweries, and has some Dayton beers on tap already.  Right now they have Toxic, Warped Wing, and Yellow Springs Brewery beer on draught.  Dog’s Breath will feature Ohio Breweries on tap as well.  Click HERE for full beer list.

Gary has owned bars before and he hopes to use his experience to make some big changes.  Some things to look for are pool leagues, dart leagues, karaoke,  NFL game specials, new HD TV’s, and bands every week.  The huge restaurant provides a great venue for live music, and a fun atmosphere for watching sports.  Unofficially, one area could be called the “Dawg Pound” and another the “Jungle.”

“Shed” what you knew about this place and let us “retrieve” the scoop on this revamped spot.

HERE’S THE SKINNY:

 — The tavern is located at 1912 E. Whipp Rd in Kettering,

— Hours are:  Mon – Thurs: 3pm – Midnight,   Fri – Sat: 11am – 2:30am, Sun: 11am – Midnight

— FREE POOL on Tuesday nights

Homemade “Bones” like this Ham and Cheese Roll

— Wednesdays are Warped Wednesdays, $1 off Warped Wing pints,  and open mic night

— Thursdays Trivia Nights and $1 off all bottle or draft IPA’s

— Fridays is karaoke and Saturday they have live bands !

 

MUST EATS:

— HAND ROLLED “PULLED PORK BONE” (Egg Roll): The pulled pork bone is served with cole slaw for “dipping.”  They hand roll their homemade egg rolls. Let us tell you, this is their signature appetizer, and some good stuff.  If you don’t like pulled pork, you gotta try the Ham n Cheese rolls, the Turkey Club rolls or the Reuben rolls.  They are all fantastic and made in house !

— DEEP FRIED PRETZEL BITES: Yes deep fried..  This twist on a familiar favorite will make  you “roll over and beg for more !”  The taste is a bit crispier and the pretzels are dusted with a cinnamon spice and some soft of  hot spices.  The bites are served with a honey mustard for dipping that is essential.

Yellow Springs Beer, Warped Wing and more on tap NOW at Dog’s Breath Tavern

— THE DOUBLE BUTTER BURGER: 2 burgers and a mountain of a sandwich.  Here’s the secret: before they cook the burgers on the tabletop fryer, they slap each side with some butter.  You can taste the difference. And cheesey?  OMG they put a ton of American cheese on this one to hold it all together.  Top it how you want it and go town like a hungry Rottweiler.

Honorable Mention: The Buffalo Wings aren’t bad, and go great with a local beer.

The owner promises even more good things to come.  Look for the menu and kitchen to expand, and for some more unique food items and local beers.

So don’t bark, just take some bites at Dog’s Breath Tavern soon.  It is a heck of a place to enjoy some adult beverages, watch some football, shoot pool or take in a live band.  We won’t “hound” you any more.

Speaking of a howling good time, make sure you “LIKE” Food Adventures on Facebook by clicking HERE !  Over 3,000 loyal fans can’t be wrong !

Check out our photo gallery below from our visits to Dog’s Breath Tavern !   You won’t see this anywhere else…. Dog Breath’s Full Menu —>  Page 1      Page 2

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