While the sign is perhaps Round Corner’s best overall feature, an equal second is its location a few blocks removed from any real business density. Instead, as all great neighborhood dive bars, Round Corner is simply a piece of the residential community that surrounds it, not an anchor to some stretch of retail options but rather an organic piece that has grown up with the homes next door. Opaque glass blocks provide the only real source of natural light, mixing with two-tone white and blue out front that gives off a very fresh, beach-like look.
The front door uses its diagonal disposition to angle new entrants directly toward the bar, naturally, that runs along the nearby wall. The L-shaped bar is home to a string of bar stools that provide the best seating inside as well as proximity to the Round Corner kitchen that features a limited menu and rolling specials. Taco Tuesday was on tap during my visit, meaning a handful of taco varieties at a reasonable price kicked out of a small kitchen in plastic baskets. Natural light does exist thanks to the glass blocks out front but in true dive bar fashion, even this filtered light is subjected to blinds in places to keep the place pleasantly dim.
A few tables can be found just inside the front door as well, low square style tables that can be found throughout the space. Most of them rest on the edges of the Round Tavern interior, most of them pushed away from the real center point of activity in the two pool tables just off the bar itself. Round Tavern has had a reputation over the years as a more serious pool destination than the typical dive bar, a fact supported on my visit in the sighting of more than one pool cue case carried through the front door. All of that is not to paint a picture of an intimidating pool scene but rather a few regulars mixed in with the normal set of pool players with drink in hand.