9450 Dayton Lebanon Pike
Price of a Guinness: $6.00 | 5.35
We traveled to Centerville to find the Craic and in return we found a grimy countertop, plastic darts, and 25-cent condoms. The place fills up rather nicely at all times; there's a heck of a chance you'll walk in here on any given afternoon and not be able to find a barstool. There's definitely a crowd of people who support the place and show it love. But why?
There are a few good things about O'Leary's and there are definitely some things about it that make you think "why is everyone flocking here"? Let's look at the good stuff. The patio is wonderful; it's spacious, it allows you to interact with the people inside, it's always themed to the current season, and it overlooks the crowded parking lot. The bar counter itself is a nice horseshoe style bar that holds over 20 people. Its layout makes it easy for everyone to join the conversation at hand and communicate as a whole. The prices are cheap on both the food and the beverages; you may not be leaving in astonishment, but your wallet won't take a beating. Another good thing about O'Leary's is the music; 9 times out of 10 the music caters to the right mood.
Some gripes about the place is that it's cheap for a reason. The furniture and countertop are rather gross. There's a big difference between a good "worn in" feel to the furniture vs "cheap and outdated."
The people here definitely have a good time; nobody's arguing that. However, the place gets incredibly loud when it's full. We're not some old timers who scream "get off my lawn" or "keep it quiet," we have certainly been around and know how to enjoy a rambunctious place, but at O'Leary's you very well may need to yell at the person sitting right next to you. The extreme/unnecessary loudness and everyone screaming just doesn't seem to fit the mold of what you'd expect here until you realize everyone is drinking nothing but the cheapest light beer on the market and liquor no better than Mr. Boston; then it starts making more sense.
O'Leary's is definitely more of a cheap sports bar and a good way to forget about life for a few hours. You can do some gambling, buy some novelties in the bathroom, and find some people to smoke Marlboro Reds with. Don't get things twisted; there's absolutely nothing wrong with being a bar of that nature, although if you label yourself as an Irish Pub then someone like me is going to rate you on both your Irish culture and how much Craic you provide.
When you pour your Guinness in poor fashion inside a non-traditional pint glass, offer plastic darts for children instead of steel tip darts for grown men, and only fully embrace your Celtic culture during the month of March then you're not going to impress many Irish Pub enthusiasts (dare I say... Craic Addicts).
One admirable thing about the people here is that at the end of the day, none of them will give a rat's ass about this rather negative rating. They'll continue doing their thing and filling the place up with the strong base of regulars. If being a cheap and grungy sports bar is what works for you then by all means; keep it going and make your money. More power to you! (Just don't get upset when someone calls you out on not being that great of an Irish Pub).
To cap it all off, O'Leary's is not worth driving out of town for and it certainly doesn't get any type of recommendation. It has some fun stuff inside, it has a smelly toilet, and the atmosphere can certainly be forgotten about. We had a decent time here, but we won't be coming back. The fine people of Centerville can have fun with this one without us.
Thanks anyways, O'Leary's! Slainte.
