Bar: Monk’s Cove

Address: 1104 St. Gregory St, Cincinnati OH 45202

Score: 8.9/10

Look, let me just start off by saying this was a throw away bar when I visited Cincinnati. Meaning, nobody recommended this place and I just so happened to walk by and the Lime green entrance caught my attention. Boy, am I glad I made this pit stop during my Cincinnati bar crawl. I truly despise themed bars, because most of the time they suck and are poorly executed. This could not be further from the truth at Monk’s Cove as the bar is beach themed. You walk in from the gloomy Cincinnati streets and are instantly teleported to a beach bar in Florida. The theme made absolutely no sense, considering the location, which is why it was great and well loved by many locals. Walking into the bar you notice the multi-colored light strands and the vibrant colors on the walls with palm trees painted upon them. 

Once we sat at the bar, the experience kept getting better as the bartender and owner was as nice as can be. We ordered a Miller Lite which was dirt cheap and then I even opted for a Summer Shandy draft which was $5. Great value if you ask me. Drinking that summer shandy in the beach bar, tricked my brain and made me think I was in sunny Florida. An important thing to note, this bar puts every beer in a frosted mug. I cannot stress how important this is. Truly makes the beer drinking experience so much better. From here, our experience kept getting better as we were greeted by the owners Golden Retriever, Schnuckums. Unreal name and even better dog, this dog was so well behaved and just chilling amongst the patrons. This bar is also dog friendly too, which is a huge plus in my book. 

One unique thing about this bar was the shot wheel that they had. It was not your typical shot wheel with shitty mainstream options, but creative mixed shots that the owner came up with. Spin the wheel and you could be lucky enough to get a drunk munk, purple Gatorade, or Jimmy Buffet. The patio of this bar was also unique. The patio was gigantic. Once of the biggest ones I have seen. A great spot for a sunny afternoon.

In the back of the bar they had a nice pool table separate from the main bar. While nobody was occupying it, I definitely would have played if my stay was longer. When I walked back to the pool table I noticed advertisements on the wall for some of the deals that they have and my god I was amazed. $2.50 PBR, High Life, and Busch cans everyday. The deal that really impressed me was the first Friday of every month you can get 6 wells or 8 drafts for $12 from 5:30-9. I’d be camped out at 5:29 for this deal and hit the ground running. Definitely a place where beer goes down easy because of the welcoming environment.

Decor: Beached themed, can’t beat it. 

Price: Cheap draft and can beer.

Service: Very friendly bartenders and fast service.

Atmosphere: Was fairly busy on a Friday afternoon.

High Life Bottle?: Only had can.

Bonus Points: Yes, Free Popcorn