Bala Inn

Waaaaaaaay back in the day I did a stint at St Joe's and I practically lived in the Bala... Flash forward more years than I care to count and many Friday nights you will find me there, again. The Bala is a solid neighborhood bar with good food, good music, good people, and good pool.

Friday nights are pretty nice. Happy hour is filled but calm, but by 9-10 pm it's crowded and the DJ is usually killing old school rap (a week or two ago I heard MC Lyte's I'm Not Havin' It for the first time in maybe 20 years! And, i am proud to say, I discovered i *still* know every word!).

Drinks are cheap, bartenders are fast and nice. Bar is a giant oval, and if you sit on theo ne side you'll have open sight lines to their tvs, so it's a good spot to relax and catch a game, too.

Pool Tables: I wanna say there are 6, but there are at least 4. All are in good condition, almost always at least half in use, and always full of people who are good game. (Even when it's crowded it is possible to get a table for you and a date to mess around on, though...)

Kitchen: inexpensive and darn good food. I heartily recommend their chicken (fried, fingers or wings) and fries (thick and salty).

The parking lot out back is occasionally host to trunk parties, but that just means you can feel like you're still partying when you go outside to smoke ;)

The lady and I decided to check out this place after hearing that they had pool tables and cheap beers.  Looks pretty divey from the outside, not that that is always a bad thing, after all, I said I was looking for cheap drinks.  Place was pretty busy on a Thurs nite, with most of the patrons gathered around the several pool tables in the back.  I'm a pretty crappy pool player so I was too intimidated to go and try to get into the mix with all the players so we opted to sit and the bar and feed the Megatouch (3 games for a buck).  The interior is pretty no-frills but not not terrible.  The beers were definitely not cheap: 2 Victory and 2 Yuengling were almost $18 bucks.  Service was kind of on the lackluster side but not unfriendly.  At one point one of the employees told my girl to "put her purse on her lap" (it was hanging on the bar chair she was seated at, but clearly under her control and supervision) "because someone will walk out with it".  Really, it's like that in here?  I'm sure he said this to be nice but I don't generally think it's a great idea to tell a woman how to look after her purse.  As she said, "do I tell guys where to put there wallets?"  Point taken little lady.  Anyway, it didn't exactly contribute to a relaxed night out.  We probably won't be back, except possibly during the day if it is empty enough to shoot some pool.  Just a little too expensive for the slightly shady/divey factor.  But if you are a pool shark this spot could be worth checking out.

a fine establishment that radiates that true blue collar classy feel of Philadelphia.  i have been known to occasionally go there after work for a couple pints to watch the first (and sometimes second) period of Flyers' games so i consider myself an expert on the place.  ancient wood work and dank corners make you think it's a dive but it's always a good time.  the food is outrageously delish, and they sometimes have sushi AND sashimi.  the Bala Inn Roll is my favorite; it combines Pennsylvania land crab, lettuce, broccoli, ground beef and honey mustard, encrusted with sesami seeds.  friendly locals abound, i've never had an uninteresting time there.

great for meeting friends or a beer after going to the nearby LA Fitness gym or just relaxing after a hard day at work.