Hank's Pub

My husband and I went to Hank's on a Friday night to hear our friend, Scotty Bratcher and his band play. We had read a review on another site which was less than favorable about the bar. Much to our surprise, we were PLEASANTLY surprised. The bar is cute as can be on the outside. Yes, the parking lot is gravel and has some potholes -but nothing you don't encounter when driving down any Dayton road. If you don't want to park in the lot, park on the lit street. You walk in the back door which gave us a laugh because we all know that back door guests are the best! There is absolutely no smoking permitted in the bar and they do a good job sealing off the smoking area so you don't smell it. It is Cleveland Browns Fans Territory and even though football season was over with, people were still sporting their teams attire. But not to worry, Bengals Fans were sitting among them (in few numbers) and they weren't showing any battle scars. Everyone was friendly, including Mike, the owner. I asked "Where is Hank?" Well, Hank is a bulldog and he is dead. But his picture hangs above the bar. They have a nice long bar, plenty of seating and items to look at on the walls. They are known to be pretty darn good in dart championships and their trophies prove it. OK, so why did this bar get a bad rating on this other site - besides the parking lot? Well, when a band like Scotty Bratcher plays and he pulls in a crowd, you can't move in the bar. Even Mike said "It's hard to move in here, isn't it?" And it was for 4 straight hours. The women's restroom has 2 stalls with 1 sink. It was clean - spotless actually. But SMALL. I wasn't drinking anything stronger than a Diet Coke and had a hard time maneuvering. The bar doesn't run a tab but they do accept credit and debit cards. Beers are in cans only. Shots are served in glass and I did see a few people order margaritas and those were served in glass with salt on the rims. Other than that, all drinks are served in plastic with straws. We didn't eat but I saw a pizza being served and they ate all of it. You order at the bar - but they did come by periodically and clean off your table of the empties. It was a mixture of people from all walks of life and all ages. Everyone got along just fine. Maybe it was the Scotty factor but we stayed for the entire evening - which is rare for us to do - and we intend to return. It's one of the nicer places in the Dayton area that doesn't turn their nose up at you for wearing jeans and a sweatshirt and putting your feet up at the end of the day because you're tired. But then again, dogs always know how to be comfortable!