O'Malleys In The Alley

One of my favorite bars all time, and i have been to a few in my day.  First, a little background.  This bar is literally in an Alley.  The first time I went there, I passed by a homeless woman pooping behind the dumpster that is alway at the entrance to said alley. Being undaunted since I am a native of Detroit, I proceeded straight ahead to the well lit sign half way down the alley and entered dive bar perfection.  O'malley's smells just a little.  Not enough that you want to leave, but it ain't roses either. Doesn't matter. This bar is staffed by the best professional bartenders I have ever seen.  I bartended for years and this is the main reason why I keep coming back.  Hal not only knows what I drink, but when we came in on New Years Eve, he remembered that we had not been there since May.  Keep in mind that I have been to this place less than a dozen times in my life.  The food is above average bar food, the beer selection is above average for the setting, the cell phone service is non existant due to the location, but the service and the overall atmosphere and comraderie inside makes this a place worth coming back to again and again.  Also, my wife wanted me to mention that he internet jukebox has every Journey song ever recorded. Good luck getting them to play it since Hal loads it up with Widespread Panic on an hourly basis.

Fast forward to 2/2013.  O'Malley's was purchased by someone who apparently believes that they don't own a back alley bar in Cincinnati.  The staff who made this place great have been let go and are now at another bar in town (Plum Street Café).  Whatever genius who bought the place and gave it a hundred thousand dollar facelift has apparently not subscribed to the school of thought that if you have a successful bar business, don't mess with the clientele in order to go after a better clientele.  This is especially true when you clientele is mostly regulars and your bar is located in A BACK ALLEY.

O'Malley's was a combination of narrow and crowded when I ventured there. Very tightly packed and a slightly rude bartender. If I was downtown for a Red's game or event at Sawyer Point, I might consider going back here, but it didn't impress me enough to make the trip back just for the sake of going back.

O'Malleys is kind of our go to staple when we're downtown... or rather when we decide to do something other than what we came down for...

"I'm hungry" "Lets go to O'Malleys!"
"I just want a cheap beer" "O'Malleys!!"
I just want to go sit down someplace warm" Got the hint yet?

And then its off down the yellow brick road... or the red one? or... ok it's one of these 2, ok maybe 3 alleys... or that one. OH! There it is! Even if you've been before it doesn't guarentee you can ever find the danged place. But thats part of its charm. That its not going to be packed, and its especially not going to be packed full of hipsters. In fact it'll be semi full of all sorts of people! Young, old, downtown, burbs, you name it.

Their food is typical yummy greasy dive bar goodness with a twist. Their specialty by far is the smashers. A panini like sandwhich served with chips and amazing ranch dressing. (seriously turkey and provalone dipped in the ranch, YUM!) They have a shortened menu for major events, but it's still good. For Opening Day they had a HomeRun Sundae. Mashed potatoes, roast beef, gravy and a cherry tomato on top. It was great after a day of drinking.

You won't find girly drinks here, unless it's a mixed drink. And their pitchers are $6 or less! Also feel free to help yourself to the giant barrel of peanuts by the firplace. Don't worry, you can throw the shells on the floor. The bathrooms are cramped, but decent.. so you're not going to cram 5 girls in there.