Category Archives: Sports Bars

Siena Tavern

Posted on by

**** (4 stars)

Despite its name, Siena Tavern doesn’t really come across as either Italian or a tavern. True, there is a list of pizzas, and they serve drinks, but it seems more like  a Hillstone concept to me.

The decor is open and modern, with a few too many hard surfaces to control the noise level when it’s busy (which seems to be most of the time).

We went for Sunday brunch/lunch, and I was pleased to find that while there were some very tasty looking brunch items, there were also lots of non-breakfast choices.

The chopped salad was an interesting conglomeration of vegetables, cheese and meat, and had enough juice from the artichoke hearts and other veggies that it didn’t really need the accompanying honey mustard dressing, so I’m glad I had that on the side.

The “burnt crust” pepperoni pizza wasn’t quite as charred as I would have liked, but it did have a very thin crust and good flavor.

Service was efficient, a necessity given how busy they were.

I’m not sure what would draw me back for a revisit (maybe some of the breakfast items, which looked really delicious and really bad for you) but my visit was fine.

Siena Tavern
51 W Kinzie St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 595-1322
http://www.yelp.com/biz/siena-tavern-chicago

Dewey’s Indoor Golf & Sports Grill

Posted on by

*** (3 stars)

Dewey’s is an interesting combination of golf practice center and restaurant/bar. I’m not really much of a golfer, but I did accept their free swing for a chance to win $1000. I landed in the water.

But I was there for the food, and it was pretty good. They offer the usual sports bar combination of burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, pizza and a few pasta dishes and salads. We tried the Lime shrimp, which has a nice lime flavor, and the veggie burger, an excellent, crusty black bean burger that came with some nicely crisped battered fries.

Other guests has the beer brat (a hot dog served with sautéed peppers) and the turkey club, which was huge. The all enjoyed their choices.

The atmosphere is pretty neat, a fairly dark space with strategic spotlights, surrounded by computer-generated golf course images from the golf games. The price for the golf games ranges up to $72 per hour, which seems absurdly high to me, but the food prices are reasonable.

Dewey’s Indoor Golf & Sports Grill
7720 Turkey Lake Rd
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 279-3311
http://www.yelp.com/biz/deweys-indoor-golf-and-sports-grill-orlando

Miller’s Ale House Restaurants

Posted on by

**** (4 stars)

I’m not completely in tune with the whole sports bar thing, probably because I’m not a sport fan. But Miller’s Ale House is certainly the most successful chain of them in Orlando. This location, on Kirkman, is packed every day, and the food is good (just don’t check the calorie counts on their website).

Burgers and salads are good bets here, and I also like the chicken fajitas, one of the healthier choices (they are lower in calories than many of the salads).

Service is decent, but it’s pretty much impossible to have lunch here in less than an hour, so don’t go if you’re tight on time.

Miller’s Ale House Restaurants
5573 S Kirkman Rd
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 248-0000
http://www.yelp.com/biz/millers-ale-house-restaurants-orlando-6

Kings Bowl Orlando

Posted on by

***** (5 stars)

This is a really nice bowling center with amazingly good food, certainly as good as any sports bar in town. Their wine and beer selections are also very well thought out.

It’s especially a great place for groups, as they will close off a section of lanes with a curtain and you can have a wonderful private party for the whole evening.

You don’t need to be even mediocre at bowling in order to enjoy this place, which in my case is a very fortunate thing indeed.

Kings Bowl Orlando
8255 S International Dr
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 363-0200
http://www.yelp.com/biz/kings-bowl-orlando-orlando

Teak Neighborhood Grill

Posted on by

***** (5 stars)

This comfortable neighborhood bar offers a great environment for drinks, lunch, or casual dinner. The extensive menu takes a gesture pub approach, with a variety of offerings, but the stars of the show are the burgers.

What’s great about the burger selection here is that every burger is distinctly different, with a true range of flavors from spicy to beer-glazed to caramelized and even peanut butter and jelly! All burgers are a half pound, cooked any way you like, and most come on a pretzel bun, accompanied by your choice of side item. My favorites are the Drunken Monk and the Crone burger (which comes on a cinnamon dusted croissant/donut and is pictured above).

The bistro fries, with a strong rosemary flavor, and the sweet potato tater tots are two good choices.

Definitely in the running for best burger in Orlando.

Teak Neighborhood Grill
6400 Times Square Ave
Orlando, FL 32835
(407) 313-5111
http://www.yelp.com/biz/teak-neighborhood-grill-orlando

J.T’s Bar & Grill

Posted on by

*** (3 stars)

This place has a pleasant outside eating area. Inside the atmosphere is more sportsbar-ish. The menu is weighted towards burgers, and there didn’t seem to be any salads. The veggie burger I had on a pretzel bun was delicious. The Greek fries were soggy. So, one for two.

Although it’s called a bar and grill, half the menu is breakfast, so I’d return to try that.

Service was friendly.

J.T’s Bar & Grill
1639 Orrington Ave
Evanston, IL 60201
(847) 328-6200
http://www.yelp.com/biz/j-ts-bar-and-grill-evanston

Bloodhound Brew Pub & Eatery

Posted on by

*** (3 stars)

This place has one of the better outside eating areas in Orlando. It’s expansive, far enough from the street to not have a lot of traffic noise, and open enough that even the slightest breeze wafts through. The menu is a fairly broad array of sports bar food, plus a good selection of beers. Prices aren’t low, but the lunch specials are a good deal, and can include a salad instead of fries. We tried the kielbasa and the sloppy joe with chicken, and both were good. The accompanying salad was actually really good. If you’re in the mood for sports bar food, but want to sit outside, I’d check it out.

Bloodhound Brew Pub & Eatery
5801 Conroy Windermere Rd
Orlando, FL 32835
(407) 578-5711
http://www.yelp.com/biz/bloodhound-brew-pub-and-eatery-orlando

Gator’s Dockside

Posted on by

***** (5 stars)

This is Orlando’s best sports bar. It has all the TVs and atmosphere you expect in a sports bar, plus excellent food and service. Gators offers “grilled” buffalo chicken wings, which are prepped the normal way (with your choice of about a dozen sauces), but are then grilled, which makes them much less fatty than most wings. They also have great burgers, monte cristo sandwiches, and — surprisingly for a sports bar — excellent salads. It’s also a very good place for large groups. We have our company birthday parties here. Highly recommended.

Gator’s Dockside
5142 Dr Phillips Blvd
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 392-4669
http://www.yelp.com/biz/gators-dockside-orlando-3