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OxfordPress.com

[Club Scene]

Ned Pepper's is capable of change

By Angelle Haney

For the Dayton Daily News

Listen closely, grasshopper. This week's Zen lesson from the Universe is that bars, like people, are capable of change. What does this mean for us? It means that, in much the way that a person who initially annoyed the bejeezus out of you may deserve a second chance, a bar that was less than pleasant the first time may not be so bad after all.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves here. I'm not saying that Ned Pepper's, 419 E. Fifth St., has morphed from a skeezy biker bar into a drinking girl's utopia. There is a serious shortage of seating, and the "dance floor" deserves the air quotes for its postage-stamp size and unintentionally ironic lighting rig and disco ball.

On a Saturday night, the DJ plays mostly classic rock, interspersed with old school R&B and what a white person who grew up in the '80s might consider hip-hop (think Morris Day and the Time). Drinks are priced at the high end of average, with two cocktails setting you back about $10 including tip.

So after all that, you might be asking, what on earth did I find to like about Ned's? Maybe it was because I went in with such low expectations, but my most recent visit was light years away from my last, and I feel the place deserves some props for that. There's plenty of security these days, though I would hazard a guess that those gentlemen are big for a reason.

The staff is seasoned, in age or experience or both, and they serve like pros. The long, narrow space has super high ceilings, which help carry the smoke and noise away. And in a town that's as racially segregated as Dayton, I love walking into a bar that's not.

Ned Pepper's probably isn't for everybody. But the bar knows its niche — people who just want to have a beer and shoot some pool, without distractions. It's a sound philosophy. I believe it was Socrates who said: Know thyself.

Who knew?

Ned Peppers is one of the most architecturally interesting bars left in the Oregon district. Fluted steel support columns are topped with gold Corinthian capitals. Turn-of-the-century carved wooden arches and bare brick walls are nice surprises.

Outer space

Ned's has opened an overflow room in the building next door as a game room of sorts. Old-school barflies (such as yours truly) will remember the storefront as the old Tolliver's. Know what? That space still makes a great bar.

Secret identity

By day, the place is more sports bar, with 11 televisions, including a projection screen. The food runs along those lines as well and like other Fifth Street establishments, Ned's does lunch. Call 224-4888.

kitsch

Best piece of kitschy décor? The old pinball machine, legless and mounted on the wall right above the DJ booth. The worst? Assorted fiberglass car bodies and parts, particularly the monster squatting over the pool tables.

Dateworthy?

That'd be a big no, unless you are well and truly into the comfortable stage of the relationship, where you don't mind sharing crowded spaces and talking to lots of other people. Maybe a group date to throw down at pool, but that's about it.

ANGELLE HANEY is a freelancer from Dayton who knows just what she wants in a bar.