By Sarah Knott
The Cincinnati Enquirer
for Cincinnati.Com

The Pub at Rookwood Mews. (Photo by Sarah Knott)

I F   Y O U  G O

What: The Pub at Rookwood Mews Where: 2692 Madison Rd., Norwood. (513) 841-1764. When: Monday-Friday, 4 to 2 a.m. Saturday, noon to 2 a.m. Sunday, noon to 10 p.m.

Come to the Pub at Rookwood Mews for a spot of tea...or...something...like that.

Apparently, everyone east of Vine Street has heard the call: Rookwood Commons' newest addition attracts patrons with a cozy British pub theme. One a recent Tuesday evening, the place was packed with men in suits, young chaps in black leather jackets and tables full of girlfriends out for a drink. A line winds out the door on weekends.

Opened over the 2001 holiday season by Tavern Restaurant Group owner Nick Sanders (who also runs Nicholson's Tavern & Pub and deSha's American tavern at Harper's Point), the Pub at Rookwood Mews gets you in the mood before you even open the door: A red telephone booth, like those in London, stands in front. Walk inside, and be greeted with warm, dim lighting and British knickknacks and maps on the walls. The room has a very inviting feel, much of it created by the din of excited conversation. The bar sits as an island in the middle; your eyes will be dazzled from the shiny layers of liquor bottles stacked atop it.

There's no juke box, no Bud Light in bottles. No live music or dance space. Instead, the Pub offers lots of alcohol: international draught beers, single malt scotches, wines, coffee drinks, martinis, cognacs and ports. Three televisions show the latest games, and dinner is available. Tables, bar stools and mini-booths beckon patrons to sit down and relax.

The drink menu seems to be a positioning point for the Pub's attitude. Bits of culture are interspersed with pages and pages of drink choices. A British-to-English glossary, for example, lets patrons know that across the pond, a "flirt" is called a "slapper." To "throw a tantrum" is called "to throw a wobbler." Another page offers some drinking songs for later in the evening. Several quotes from British "pub wisdom" are included--complete with a quote from Yeats (yes, I'm aware he's Irish. That's the point). American "pub wisdom" is also included--complete with a quote from Homer Simpson.

The Pub is spacious and feels friendly enough for a night out. It does seem like a Cincinnati bar placed in England, though, or maybe a chain trying to attract wealthy Hyde Parkers as regulars. I wondered where all of these people would be if the Pub had not opened. It's not the Pilot--Pilot people don't like to frequent places with beers priced $4.50 and up. It's not Arthur's--Arthur's regulars are too in love with Burger Madness. Teller's, however, might be a little slow these days.