James’ Third Base Is Designed To Work For EVERYONE.
Written By: The Gnarly Gnome
Photography By: The Gnarly Gnome
I love a good bar in the suburbs, and that’s exactly what James’ Third Base is. It won’t knock your socks off with some crazy food menu or overly complicated cocktail menu. What it will do is give you an excellent meal and a good drink, and all of it will come without a hefty price tag. This is the type of spot that you look to when you wanna grab a quick meal with your friends, watch a game, or maybe hang out with some live music, karaoke, or trivia night.
In short, this is where you go when you just want a bar.
The Experience
The bar, which opened its doors in January of 2011, is tucked into a shopping plaza off of Reading rd in Mason, Ohio – the bar is what I’d call “unassuming.” A small patio sits along the front windows, which showcase all the bar’s specials. The whole thing makes it very tempting to just stop quickly while you’re on the way home. In fact – the tagline under the bar’s name reinforces that, telling you that they’re the “last stop before home.”
When you finally enter the building, you’re immediately greeted by the big, u-shaped bar. The other side of the room is split into two sides, filled with various tables for groups of every size imaginable. If that wasn’t enough, there’s a whole second room behind the bar to spread out even more when things get a little busy.
With lots of windows along the whole front of the space, it feels bright, open, and a lot more friendly than some other bars that I’ve been in. It feels like the kind of place where you can swing in during the afternoon and snag some lunch without feeling like you’re hanging out at a bar.
What Are You Eating And Drinking?
I mentioned earlier that this is a bit of a “no frills” type of experience, which means that you’re going to find a menu of standard bar food: burgers, wings, sandwiches, and pizzas. It’s all good food at a reasonable price.
The drink selection follows that exact blueprint. They have plenty of beer taps (16, I believe), which means that while there’s a pretty extensive macro selection, you’ll always find a few craft options as well if that’s what you’re looking for.
It’s a model that is built to please as many people as possible, and I think they do a great job with it.
If you want to check out James’ Third Base, you can find them at 1079 Reading Road in Mason, Ohio