The Old Bag of Nails Pub

Bar, Eatery

63 Mill St
Gahanna, Ohio, 43230-3011
United States

(614) 337-9430 | map
oldbagofnails.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.7
Reviews:
9
Ratings:
13
pDev:
11.89%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by AtLagerHeads:
Photo of AtLagerHeads
Reviewed by AtLagerHeads from Ohio

3.88/5  rDev +4.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
This is a really nice Bag with a great outside, creekside area and very nice landscaping, decorating and appointment. The area is cramped for parking, but there is a lot a few doors down the street. Good food, good brews, and good service make this a very good stop, but I do like the original in Worthington for its feel and service.
Oct 31, 2003
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.59 by safphoto from Ohio

Nov 13, 2015
Photo of dviering
Rated by dviering from Pennsylvania

2.55/5  rDev -31.1%
vibe: 2 | quality: 2 | service: 4.5 | selection: 1.5
Not what I anticipated. Not a very big selection of brews. What I did order had to be poured at their sister pub next door. Strange.
Feb 26, 2015
 
Rated: 3.75 by Lynn from Ohio

Apr 13, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by kvnklingler from Ohio

Feb 10, 2014
Photo of Dogbrick
Reviewed by Dogbrick from Ohio

3.7/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 4.5
My tour of Old Bags continues. Visited the Gahanna location after the 2008 Walk For Wishes. The pub is on the corner of Granville and Mill. There are some nearby public lots and street parking.

The place looks like an old house on the outside. The interior is segmented into rooms with tables and booths, and the bar is near the entrance. They definitely get dinged on atmosphere for the number of flies that were buzzing around.

The beer selection is pretty standard for pretty much any Old Bag aside from the one in Worthington (in other words, pretty weak). There are around 8 taps with the standard Guinness, Bass etc. One GLBC tap was a saving grace. The bottled list is nothing spectacular either, with about 25 selections. Again mostly macros and larger micros like Sierra Nevada.

Service was good on a weekend early lunch. The server didn't really know much about beer but there wasn't much to know about anyway.

Fish and Chips at the Gahanna location is more or less on par with the rest of the chain, which is to say it's yummy.

Overall I would still recommend to Worthington location as the best Old Bag in town, but there are probably not many better options for beer and pub grub in Gahanna.
Sep 26, 2008
Photo of beveritt
Reviewed by beveritt from Ohio

3.65/5  rDev -1.4%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 2.5 | food: 3.5
Went to the Old Bag of nails in Gahanna today for lunch. It is located downtown, along the water and has plenty of seating both outside and in. We sat inside.

The interior of the pub has a mix of booths and tables on one side and a bar on the other. There is a lot of wood, dark colors, and a tin-style ceiling. It has pretty good feel overall, but still feels a little forced at times.

The service was very attentive and professional. I ordered the famous fish sandwich and was pleased.

I have to agree with what some other reviewers have said. I am not sure why this is listed on Beer Advocate. The beer selection is mainly pseudo-craft beers. Things like Bass, Guinness, etc. I only saw 2 or 3 beers not made by the big boys.

All in all, not a bad place, but not a beer destination.
Sep 09, 2008
Photo of olegv40
Reviewed by olegv40 from Ohio

3.98/5  rDev +7.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3 | food: 4.5
Apparently something had changed since some of the other reviews, but when I went there today the beer selection was average at best, Just the average Irish pub fare. Only a few beers on tap, one being Great Lakes Brewing Seasonal. The thing that kind of put me off was the larger selection of combined beer, starting plainly enough with a Black and Tan, but quickly progressing to mixing Guinness with all sorts of terrible stuff, not the least of which was Mikes Hard Lemonade and Smirnoff raspberry

The food was outstanding though. The fish and chips is fantastic, the servings were massive, and for desert, deep fried Snickers bars. Good bar in a great location, would be almost perfect if it had a greater selection.
Jan 20, 2007
Photo of ndekke39
Reviewed by ndekke39 from Ohio

4.2/5  rDev +13.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
My personal favorite of the Old Bag of Nails pubs around Columbus. It's a nice addition to "downtown" Gahanna, sitting right on the river. Inside is decorated with typical pub fare - lots of wood accents and Guiness signs. Very cozy place for lunch, dinner, or just drinks. The back deck overlooks the river, and is very quaint in the best possible way. Great to enjoy a meal out there in the summer. Wait staff is very knowledgeable and friendly.

Beer selection is very good. A large number of bottles, including your standard American macrobrews, plus selections like Red Stripe, Boddington's, Belhaven, and Hoegaarden. They have some standard European drafts like Harp, Guiness, and Stella Artois, plus some good American microbrews like Sam Adams, Bell's, and Great Lakes.

Food has always been great pub fare: I suggest their fish and chips or their Fisherman's Platter. Never been disappointed.

Overall, great value for the money, nice place to be, popular but never too crowded. A nice addition around Columbus.
Jun 01, 2006
Photo of marcobrau
Reviewed by marcobrau from Illinois

3.7/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 3.5
I have to agree with and add to some of the other comments about the Bag of Nails in Gahanna. It's a very welcoming place (if that's a word) and I really liked the creekside location. The fish and chips are quite tasy and perfectly portioned.I'm told I need to go back and try the fried pickles. I would disagree with one of the other reviewers and say that I prefer Leinie Red over the original. I had a Bass with my fish and chips and it was a pretty good pairing. The waitstaff were very attentive, too. All in all very cozy, friendly pub. It was wonderul home away from home.
May 11, 2006
Photo of beerserker
Reviewed by beerserker from Ohio

4.05/5  rDev +9.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
The Bag of Nails are multiplying like rabbits around town and I would be put off by the blatant commercial expansion except they seem to maintain a friendly neighborhood pub feel wherever they pop up. The Gahanna outpost is the closest to my house, and is a great location with a comfortable deck overlooking the nicely landscaped Creekside section of Big Walnut creek. This branch is mainly a restaurant with a two story dining section, and a small bar area which is usually full of diners waiting on tables. Large doors open onto the deck in warm weather & the fireplace should make an inviting area during the colder months. The bar has a vaguely hunting lodge feel, with a mounted deer head & some sportsmen knicknacs, but a hodge-podge of other decorator accessories feels kind of thrown together overall. The same beers seem to be available at all the Bagga Nails, with the draft selection of the Guinness-Harp variety. I do like the draft Double Diamond, and they also have the underrated Leinenkugel on tap, however I would prefer the regular over the Leinie Red. The food is very good at all the Bagga Nails, the fish & chips the best I've had in town. This is a great place for a casual dinner, but the bar area is too small and crowded for a barfly to hang out. For the true Bag of Nails experience you really need to visit the original on High Street in Old Worthington.
Dec 29, 2004
Photo of Ahhdball
Reviewed by Ahhdball from Ohio

4.05/5  rDev +9.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4
One of the good out of many "Old Bags" to come out of Gahanna. I like this one because it sits right on the water and is larger than most of the others. Old world style with pub paraphinalia addorning the walls. The brew selection is decent but I like the Worthington location better (they've got Dogfish 90 Minute on tap!). The wait staff was excellent. She was friendly, knowledgeable in beer, and liked to joke around more than most average servers. Food, was good as usual - Fish and Chips, the usual.

It seems as though the proprieters of "The Bag" have got a good thing going. They've got a few links around town but none of them feel like chains. There's even a tale about an opening of a BOP in Gahanna. -Correct me if I'm wrong.
Jun 02, 2004
Photo of Bierguy5
Reviewed by Bierguy5 from Ohio

4.03/5  rDev +8.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
I found this Old Bag to be cozy, despite being 2 stories. The woodwork and paneling inside was very nice, along with the fireplace downstairs across from the bar. The outside is landscaped rather nicely, with a large deck. I wish it would have been warm outside... The staff was friendly, knowledgeable and eager to please. We came on a pub crawl, and they treated us to a free buffet of their fish. This was the best fish I have had in a long time. The draft selection could have been better. The bottle selection was decent, leaning towards English-style beers, but with some others thrown in. Very enjoyable.
Feb 25, 2004
The Old Bag of Nails Pub in Gahanna, OH
Place rating: 3.7 out of 5 with 13 ratings