Local Bar

Love this local spot whenever I’m in town on business. Good, cheap beer. Friendly bartenders. Pool table in the back. Popcorn. What more does a girl need?
The bathroom on the right is better because the walls are plastered with vintage Playboy ads.
No High Life :(

Lots of room, good drinks, nice atmosphere. Didn’t spend long here, but would like to come back and spend some more time here!

Came here for a friends birthday party. couldnt play the music I wanted because all the douche bartender wanted to play was house music. This used to be a cool bar. Now its just a waste of time… id rather go to any other bar. id rather go to White Castle. im at White Castle right now. crave case baby!

I like this bar but not tonight! If I wanted to watch the Oscars I would have stayed home. Also, the bartender is rude. Do you want my tip???

I don’t quite know how to adequately explain this bar.
Every time I’ve been here, it’s been a different experience.
The beer selection is good — the bar tenders can mix a solid Old Fashioned, they have pool, Ms. Pac Man, but it can get a bit crowded.
It’s a mixed bag. It’s not a place I seek out, nor one I tell people they have to go to, but if someone says they are headed here, it’s worth popping in for.

The atmosphere here is nice. I’m not the dancing type, but there is a good amount of space to do do. Good variety of the local distilleries, and I got to try OYO’s Michelone Reserve for the first time here.
The selection of craft brews was very exciting, pricing was reasonable and the service was excellent.

Local Bar is one of my favorites in the short north. It’s kinda dark inside, but I can overlook this because they have a great local beer selection. It’s not explicitly a gay bar, but there are lots of brothers and sisters and feels very queer friendly

First time here. The craft beer selection made me giddy. they had a few more rare beers you don’t find too many other places. The Ms PacMan machine was a guaranteed boner too! Placed some pool and enjoyed the good music selection. I have heard this places varies from day to day but the Saturday I went was a good time for sure.

Local Bar! Local Bar! Local Bar!
The #1 thing they have going for them is this place is GREAT for groups. This was the second stop on a birthday bar crawl this past weekend but no one wanted to leave once we were there.
It’s big and roomy, with side rooms for lounging and billiards-​ing. There is free popcorn, there were TVs for March Madness viewing, cheap drinks ($ 1 Genesee bhee-​hatches).
There is just enough 70s swag to validify their lava lamp logo, but without going overboard. My bartender was the best and to be the best bartender to me, you’ve just gotta not be a dick and smile and talk to me.
Late Night Slice is a 1 – 2 minute walk away, so really, what else do you need? Claustrophic standing room, hour waits, overwhelming volume level? Skip that and do the right thing.

Nice spot just back off the sidewalk on the north end of the Short North. Good beer selection and cheap domestics if you must. I agree with the review that said the place has a sense of humor, doesn’t take much too seriously, and is all about having a fun casual experience in the SN. You also don’t get judged here if you’re not on trend. who cares!

This is my go-​to place! It’s the perfect hybrid of a gay and straight bar. Sometimes straight bars just aren’t as fun as the gay bars. And sometimes, I do need to fulfill my need for male attention as a straight young woman. This is the perfect mix!
WEDNESDAY KAREOKE IS THE BEST IN C-​BUS!!! The system sounds great, the karaōke-​dj is awesome and entertaining and there is always a ton of damn good singers or at least entertaining singers.
They also serve the stiffest drinks on High Street (with the exception of Union). One of Local’s drinks =2 drinks elsewhere. So, be careful… or DON“T
Furthermore, if you forget anything there, like a cardigan or umbrella or wallet, etc. (I do this a lot since I’m like «Along Came Polly») — they will save it for you! How nice!
THe little couch area is nice, too!

the local is a bar for everybody. gay, straight, drag… Who cares??? Beer selection terrific. Staff is awesome!

We just stopped in here briefly, but it made me want to go back sometime. Casual little spot with a friendly staff. Seems like there are nice places to sit and hang out, play games, etc.

Local bar is simply a very cool place. The combination of craft beers, old but incredibly awesome decorative chairs, a pinball machine, and a classic arcade game is about as good as these sorts of things can get. It has an interesting dive vibe to it, but not the sort that makes you feel like you’ll get stabbed when you walk out side. The sort that makes you feel comfortable and perhaps even a bit edgy as you go on your evening escapades.
The bar tenders are also rather nice, and pretty responsive. I never really had to wait to long to get my next pour (which is always a plus since beer is tasty and all). Speaking of beer, their selection of drafts is pretty great. I was especially pleased to find that they had a nice array of brews from Jackie O’s which is a brewery I’ve taken to recently.

I guess I would call this place «divey,» if I had to pick a label. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that!)
I usually end up here at the end of the night, so I haven’t had the chance to see what the happy hour/​weekly events are like (I gotta catch those crab races one day!) but when I do come, it’s always been fun.
Drinks: decent beer selection for a small place, and they have a heavy hand with the mixed drink pours. Definitely a winner
Food: there’s a free popcorn machine, so eat before or after if you’re planning a full meal.
Music: jukebox has pretty good choices, and should keep your feet happy all night. (can be too loud to gave quiet conversation — but it’s a bar, What’d you expect?)
The biggest downside for me is the single person bathrooms, that is just too small for a busy weekend night.

Pretty annoying spot. Plus, going to a bar in a strip mall in the Short North just doesn’t seem kosher. Dunno what it is about this place that puts a burr in my saddle — as others have said, the layout is dumbfounding as all get out — I didn’t know there was an entire «other» side of the bar until I went wandering trying to find the shitter — and the décor is stuck somewhere between ironic and hideous. I’ve also attempted to play the jukebox but it seems like people put $ 20s in the thing all night and about 300 songs are in the queue, so good luck hearing something you want if it’s busy.
My gay friends seem to love it, which doesn’t jive with me, since the clientele is mainly overflow from the worst of the ShoNo bars like Bernards, and stoners who stumbled in from the parking lot after smoking a bowl in their Cutlass.
They have a decent selection of beers, but truth be told I’m usually just drinking gin straight up by the time I end up here, and the service seems to usually be pretty A-​OK. I guess this might be an acceptable spot for a nightcap or to make out in the parking lot, and there’s a White Castle nearby, so I guess it’s got that going for it.

Just came back last night and this place seems to have (mostly) found its identity as a gay bar.
The layout is still cumbersome and many of us gave up on trying to use the bathroom when the line didn’t move for 10 minutes. Another so-​so experience.

On a cold November Gallery Hop, we decided to give Local Bar a try. While we didn’t hate it, we didn’t quite love it either. It was just plain odd.
Lady Gaga and other gayness blaring from the speakers… YEAHHHHH.
Crowded crowd of sports-​paraphernalia-​wearers and super douches… NOOOOO.
Cider on tap… YEAHHHHH.
Awkward seating… NOOOOO.

I gathered a lot from this bar by the women’s restroom. One: The owners of this bar have great taste in attractive men … & a passion for teenage boy crushes! I swear it was like I was back in my 16-​year-​old self’s bedroom.
Two: This place has a sense of humor (read: good times are had here.) How many other bathrooms do you know of have hunky men glued to them? (and not the creepy, stalker kind.)
They actually have decent wine here, which was what I happened to be drinking, and luckily the cost wasn’t all kinds of outrageous. Beer selection was decent too!
What IS outrageous though is that they have hermit crab races to attract the peoples. Yes, CRABS! Awesome. I need to go back.
I noted a pool table & some arcade games, but the real entertainment was the patrons. A nice mix of regulars packed the place — you can judge a lot about a bar from it’s regulars. I’m happy to report those bellied up at the bar were cool.
I know my bars; and this one is legit for the Short North. Approved!

My review is based on the establishment and interactions. I meet several friends here for a happy hour. This bar only serves liquid, and where totally fine with us bringing in zPizza. The décor was 70s and 80s teen bop. The egg chair and couch were good elements, caught my eye. Several tables, three of four patio-​style doors were open to the front (gave an inviting feel to the local vibe). I was told that later in the evening, they pump up the music (thus, left to yelling, as opposed to happy hour chit chat). All in all, no bad. Unfortunately, no lasting impression to make me a fan.