Shelley Taylor

 

It’s easy to miss … tucked into the back corner of a small shopping center.

 

Small on the outside, but huge on the inside, the Oasis Sports Bar & Grill is one-stop shopping for grub, spirits and entertainment.

 

Dale and Janice Dunning bought the place about three years ago and they’re having a ball — especially when it comes to fun and games!

 

The Oasis definitely has a “man cave” atmosphere; the place is peppered with tables and chairs, of course, and the requisite TV screens and sports memorabilia. But the joint is filled with pool tables, dart boards, an electronic gambling machine, a stage and a long friendly bar. (So friendly, our server Caron said when she sees regular patrons arriving in the parking lot … they’ll find their drinks waiting for them at their table!)

 

Greg and I happened to arrive during Happy Hour (3-6 p.m. daily) and a group of regulars were at the bar. At least on this night, Happy Hour attracted mostly seniors — but Oasis appeals to young and old.

 

Drop by and take a look at their Event Board or check out the Oasis website “Exciting Events” tab to see what’s scheduled for the month; fill out the online form and you’ll be notified automatically and also receive “Preferred Customer” coupons.

 

There’s something going on every day of the week.

 

There’s free pool on Sundays and a pool league on Thursday. A just-for-fun dart league meets on Wednesday nights. Wednesdays and Friday nights are band nights mainly featuring a revolving roster of local bands. (Wouldn’t it be great if they could get Emblem3!)

 

Also on Sunday evenings it’s Full Contact Trivia at 6 p.m. helmed by owner Dale who delights in coming up with topics. That sure sounds like a cheap way to impress my friends since I consider myself a font of useless information. Gift cards are given for first-third place ($5-$15). I hear one group won enough to fund a huge Christmas party.

 

All this and absolutely great food.

 

On the menu are appetizers (try the Onion Battered Green Beans, $4.95, or the Red Hook Shrimp breaded in beer batter and go with the Sweet Hot Chili Sauce, $7.75); salads from $6.99 for their Caesar to $11.99 for their sirloin steak salad; soup of the day (upcoming possibly Cream of Asparagus); entrées including a 10-ounce rib eye ($17.95) and Garlic Prawns ($13.99) each served with your choice of Yukon gold mashed or baked potatoes, rice pilaf, veggies, soup or salad. On the Sandwich menu try The Oasis Clubhouse, “a ginormous pile of hickory-smoked shaved ham, turkey breast, cheddar and Swiss cheeses, lettuce, tomatoes and (their) special house bacon served on toasted sourdough,” a Prime Rib Philly Cheese Steak ($11.50) or Pulled Pork BBQ ($9.50).

 

And, of course, (hand-packed) burgers; both build your own and featured including the Hawaiian and Chipotle Bacon Cheese Burger ($9.75 and $9.99).

 

And made-from-scratch desserts, which goes for nearly all the food including most dressings and sauces.

On a budget … and who isn’t these days?! Well, there’s a special to be had at the Oasis nearly every day of the week.

 

On Mondays it’s a $5 burger and skin-on fries. On Taco Tuesdays you can get all-you-can-eat $1 beef tacos and $1.50 chicken tacos. Wednesday is “Wing Night.” Thursdays it’s $5.99 steak and fries and a dollar off their Famous Clubhouse sandwich (regular $9.95).

 

Every third Thursday night you can enjoy a four-course dining experience: “Beer Tasting Dinners” featuring different breweries (reservations required!). Want to impress your date? Take him or her to Oasis’ Friday Prime Rib Night (“the best prime rib on the planet!”). On Saturdays you’ll enjoy a two-course meal for only $12.

 

It was Monday night so I wanted to take advantage of their $5 burger & fries. It’s a no-frills burger with lettuce, tomato, onion and pickle on a fresh Pane d’Amore roll. I wanted to make sure the Angus beef they used on their Gourmet burgers was the same meat and weight … and it was.

 

And when I did my Meg Ryan routine with special instructions for serving my diet cola, our server Caron brought a pitcher. Greg ordered a Mac & Jack beer and said it was the coldest he’d ever been served on the peninsula. So if you like a good cold one, dis is da place! Greg ordered their homemade lasagna which comes with soup or salad and since he also was eyeing the Prime Rib Chili, he took that as his soup choice. Both were bull’s-eyes and that goes for me, too.

 

And for dessert I let Greg share my “original by Janice” Sticky Toffee Cake with Dulce Ice Cream and Toffee Sauce. Killer!

 

After our dinner, we played a friendly game of darts. Lots of fun. I lost.

 

Shelley Taylor and her husband relocated to the peninsula from California. By her own admission, Taylor likes to eat. Reach her at columnists@sequimgazette.com.