The Old Bag of Nails Pub is located at 2102 Tremont Center. Credit: Courtesy of Kim Dailey

The Old Bag of Nails Pub is located at 2102 Tremont Center in Upper Arlington. Credit: Courtesy of Kim Dailey

Grabbing a pint at the pub becomes a little more authentic at this joint, only five miles away from central campus.

The Old Bag of Nails Pub, located across the street from the Upper Arlington Library at 2102 Tremont Center, offers its guests its famous pub food recipes, such as soups, burgers, sandwiches and British-style fish and chips.

Of course, what pub wouldn’t be complete without a variety of beers and other alcoholic beverages? From red and white wines to imports and ciders, Old Bag offers a variety of choices, as well as draft beers on rotation, to wet the whistles of its patrons.

As I entered the restaurant, I felt as if I had entered one of the pubs I had visited on a previous vacation in England. It was dimly lit, accompanied by music from the ‘60s and ‘70s, decorated in photos of people from the 1920s and barflies were seated at one of the two bars in the restaurant. Walking to my table with my server, I kept reminding myself it was not five o’clock somewhere and that a $2.29 soda would have to suffice.

My server set out the regular menu, a drinks menu and an Oktoberfest Celebration menu featuring German-oriented foods ranging from $7 to $11.

The highest priced menu items were the 12-ounce New York strip at about $18 with some fish dinners ranging from about $13 to $15. However, the rest of the menu was reasonably priced with burgers and sandwiches ranging from roughly $8 to $9, all-you-can-eat soup and salad at about $7.50 and appetizers ranging from $6 to $10.

I ordered the $7 goetta sliders, off the Oktoberfest menu, and chips, which took around 10 minutes to be delivered. The sliders were made of ground beef, steel oats and spices, topped with red onions and served with a side of ketchup and honey mustard.

The sliders were interesting at first; the texture was sort of like meatloaf, but I found myself thoroughly enjoying them once I dipped them in the ketchup to give the meal extra flavor. Due to the nature of the meat, I ended up opting to use a fork, since most of it fell off the bun. The honey mustard had a bit of a kick to it, which although was tasty, I had to give it a pass.

The staff at Old Bag was very friendly and welcoming. As I sat waiting for my meal to be delivered, I watched the bar, feeling as if I was watching an episode of “Cheers.” The bartender interacted with the patrons at the bar, calling them by their first names, bantering back and forth with them and knew their drinks before they even had the chance to order them.

My server was very polite and attentive. He made several trips to my table, asking me how my food was and refilling my drink once it became half empty.

The Old Bag of Nails Pub is a friendly joint where you can enjoy delicious pub food at a reasonable price.

Grade: A