Rohman's Inn and Pub

Sometimes the dirt doesn't wash off.

In the case of Rohman's Inn, a relic from pre-Civil War times, the dirt is over 160 years old. It served as a hub in days of yore, first as a town meeting, even before Shohola became a town, and then as a watering hole for visitors from NYC who were dropped off via the Eerie-Lackawanna train.

We were basically the only patrons in this definition of a dive in Shohola, PA, straddling the border between this state and NY. (If you've hit NY, you've gone too far.) Two inches thick of dust (read: dead skin) cloaked the countertops and walls (okay I am absolutely exaggerating, but for story's sake... .) My jaw dropped when I found out the price of my tasty gin and tonic: $2.50.

The decor was a mix of old and new. Pool tables and a rather impressive TV are juxtaposed next to vintage signs such as "Everybody can bring happiness into this room, some by coming in, other's by going out." Jukebox upstairs and down. An interesting feature is the swath of military and servicemen patches proudly displayed along the back bar. Like you can tell the age of a tree by counting its rings, you can tell the age of the patch by the dust and soot.

Best part of all? The bowling alley on the second floor. Four lanes of duckpin bowling, must have been forty or so heavy cannon-ball-bowling bowls (one with about 20 fingerholes)... and you better believe you have to restock your own pins and roll back your own balls by shimmying down the gutters. Keep your own score.

A place I won't soon forget. Finding it was like writing the start of your own horror movie, but the sheer awesomeness of this place outweighs the sketch.