The Old Bag of Nails

EXPERIENCE

The Old Bag of Nails owes its name to an old hardware store. The first pub opened in a converted one in 1996, a beginning that makes the name rather more affectionate than it first sounds. The group has since spread through Ohio and into Michigan, keeping seafood and pub food at the heart of the menu. The unlimited reason to visit is quite specific: Wednesday shrimp and chips.

This is a pub meal at a table, with more shrimp and chips under the Wednesday dine-in offer. It isn’t a room of buffet counters or an invitation to work through the entire seafood menu without limit. That focused arrangement suits the setting. Friends can meet over a familiar fried-seafood supper while companions choose something else from the regular menu.

The buildings have their own character. Hilliard’s hanging sign sits against red brick, while Mason’s pub occupies a more contemporary storefront. Inside, the pub identity makes room for a bar, tables and a casual meal rather than a dressed-up occasion. A group doesn’t need a special event to justify sitting down together, and Wednesday supplies a recurring reason to put it on the calendar.

The Wednesday offer is available at participating Ohio pubs, including Mason, Centerville and Hilliard, all day for dine-in meals. The menu excludes carryout containers from the unlimited offer. Settle in for the meal itself, and let the regular menu cover anyone whose supper plans involve a burger or a Reuben.