Sports Bars: A Place Where Everyone Knows Your Game

Where to go to watch the Ms? A sports bar, of course.

The first sports bars were basically places where men drank and argued about sports, favorite teams or told lies about their own glory days. The best were usually near sport arenas or stadiums, a lot still are. As technology advanced, patrons could listen to games on the radio as they argued and drank. Television added a whole new dimension and with big-screen television - well, you were practically in the park and the beer was generally a lot cheaper.

Now a great many sports bars are places where you can actually participate, and not just at pool and darts, but basketball and even golf. Of course, you usually have to sign a release, just in case the sport, drink and arguing kill you.

Seattle, being the indoor town it is, has always been at the forefront of sports-bar activities, from the introduction of air hockey and video games to the more serious contact sports. Of course, to be a good sports bar doesn't really require hands on activity as long as it's a place where you can whet your whistle, grab a little food and corner someone with an endless diatribe on the merits of your favorite gang of gland cases - and watch those Mariners!

Here's a selection of bars for watching sports, and some offer sports-like activities, too. We expect sportsmanlike argument over these as well:

Seattle

Belltown Billiards, 90 Blanchard St., 448-6779. Primarily built for pool, also has an impressive bar and sports on the tube.

Bogey's Sports Bar & Grill, 1540 Eastlake Ave. E., 325-1702. An Eastlake institution, roomy, good sized screens, pool.

Brooklyn Seafood Steak and Oyster House, 1212 Second Ave. Televisions, tasteful. The attitude surely has some thing to do with those oysters. 224-7000.

Clubhouse Sports Bar, 170 S. King St., 682-9424. Big screen, cheap beer, Kingdome close.

F.X. McRory's Steak, Chop & Oyster House, 419 Occidental Ave. S., 623-4800. Right across the parking lot from the Kingdome, it had no choice but to be a major spillover spot.

J&M Cafe, 201 First Ave. S., 292-0663. No actual games, but certainly a sports spot in spirit. Always crowded and loud.

Jersey's All American Sports Bar, 700 Virginia St., 343-9377. Hands-on sports activity.

Jillian's Billiard Club & Cafe, 731 Westlake Ave. N., 223-0300. Upscale pool hall with plenty of other sporting distractions.

Legend's Sports Bar & Grill, 4433 35th S.W., 938-3598. Self-explanatory.

Mac's Smokehouse, 1006 First Ave. S., 628-0880. It's right around the corner from the Dome and it's a barbecue joint. No other qualifications are necessary.

Name of the Game Tavern, 17529 15th Ave. N.E., 362-0389.

The Rocksport, 4209 S.W. Alaska, West Seattle, 935-5838. A combo spot: music and big screen cable sport viewing.

The Shark, 52 Lakeshore Plaza, Kirkland. 803-3003. Pool tables, weekend music, a Seahawk favorite.

Sneakers, 538 First Ave. S. or 567 Occidental Ave. S., 625-1340. It has two entrances because it stretches from one block to the next. A classic sports bar, lots of memorabilia, screens to watch and fellow sports fans to debate.

The University Sports Bar & Grill, 5260 University Way N.E. Popular college spot. Music on the weekends. 526-1489.

Victors, 75 Marion St., 622-1969. Big sports place, big dance place.

North

Bickfords, 23025 100th Ave. W., Edmonds, 775-4363. They take their sport seriously at this neighborhood watering hole.

Charlie Macs, 17001 Aurora Ave. N., 542-9491. Formerly Parker's, much like its South End sister, but with disco dancing, too. A really popular zoo.

Goldies Sports Pub and Eatery, 2609 196th St. S.W., Lynnwood, 771-7784; and Goldies in Edmonds, 180 Sunset Ave., Edmonds, 778-7466. Maybe it's the cheap eats. Maybe it's the selection of brews. Maybe it's the faded tight jeans that seem to be the standard uniform. Or maybe it's those obnoxious "Cheers" ripoff commercials on local cable outlets. Whatever the reason, Goldie's is a popular spot to watch - or play - games.

Home Plate Bar and Deli, 9317 State Ave., Marysville 653-9308. With a name like that, what better place to catch the games? Big-screen and a couple other TVs, darts, pool tables, pulltabs and a more-than-reasonable selection of microbrews and domestics.

The Inn Sports Bar and Grill, 16716 Highway 99, Lynnwood. 743-0700. You want TV? Try two big screens, five "small" 25-inch tubes. Throw in seven pool tables (we counted), a half-dozen or so dart boards, pulltabs and enough video games to make Pac Man blush. Oh, there are also 21 beers on tap and a fairly fair menu.

Outabounz Sports Pub, 4308 198th St. S.W., Lynnwood. 744-1111. Folks can enjoy hot food from a full menu while viewing a big-screen TV or playing a game of darts and pinball. The big draw: drunken volleyball. Really! The place has a full-size fenced-in sand volleyball court right outside.

13th Avenue Pub & Eatery, 1233 164th St. S.W., Lynnwood, 742-7871. Low on ambience (it's in a strip mall!), but high on amenities: pool tables, TVs galore (including big screen), darts, pulltabs, well-stocked CD jukebox. Great place for drinking and stinking.

East

Factoria Pub, 3720 128th Ave. S.E.; 643-4228. Has an 8-foot sports screen with satellite dish.

Hector's, 112 Lake St. S., Kirkland, 827-4811. One of the oldest and longest running sports spots in the area. Frequented by actual jocks.

Joker's Pub & Grill, 5614 E. Lake Sammamish Way, Issaquah; 392-1225. Ordinary strip-mall tavern.

Sam Malone's Pub & Eatery, 1025 N.W. Gilman Blvd., Issaquah; 392-6356. Basic strip-mall tavern. Always packed.

Mustard Seed, 10253 Main St., Bellevue; 454-8848. Big-screen TV and satellite dish.

Mustard Seed Too, 1428 156th Ave. N.E., Bellevue; 746-8852. An improvement on the latter: two big-screen TVs with a satellite dish.

Rollin Log Tavern, 50 E. Sunset Way, Issaquah; 392-2964. Biker bar with lotsa Harleys parked out front.

The Roost, 120 N.W. Gilman Blvd., Issaquah; 392-5550. Huge restaurant bar stacked high with liquor, with a TV in each corner. Mixed crowd. Casual. The F.X. McRory's of Issaquah.

The Venue, 10833 N.E. Eighth St., Bellevue. Quite the tony pool hall, dance spot and eatery with two bars and plenty of sports screens.

South

Charlie Mac's, 15221 Pacific Hwy., SeaTac, 242-9999. Everything but a rifle range. Hands on pool, B-ball, darts, golf, volley ball, pingpong and video games.

HD Hotspurs, 315 S. Washington Ave., Kent. 854-5653. Something for everyone, including dance. A major testosterone catch-all as well.

Jake's Ales, 2318 S.W. 336th St., Federal Way, 927-1288. Homeplate of the diehard sports fans, Jake's sometimes has standing-room only when the games play on the 10 TVs. Here you'll find homemade potato chips, 46 beers on tap and it's smoke-free.

Lolli's Broiler & Pub, 32925 First Ave S., Federal Way, 838-5929. The Land of Microbrews meets the Land of Bud. Burgers can be of beef or chicken and the customers come in collars of all shades of blue or white. After hours you'll find cops, clergy, council members and cowgirls gathered around the big screen in one of the most popular neighborhood pubs in town.

Milton Tavern, 7320 Pacific Hwy. E., Milton. (360) 922-3340. Eight years ago it was a biker bar. But hold your Harleys! Today the smoke-free Milton, with its 32 microbrews, deck with tables and flowers, is more into nachos than machos. Laughter and animated conversation dominates. And sports fans gather around two TVs.

Staffers of The Seattle Times' North, East and South bureaus contributed to this report.