Sports Bar

So many taverns/sports bars serve the same popular menu within the same quality range — from palatable in a pinch to decent comfort food — that you can describe the kitchen as "good enough" and go on to the other attractions. Drink specials and big-screen TVs draw the target clientele. If the chow is presentable and familiar, that's enough. Frank & Nic's West End Grille serves wings and all the popular tavern fare. But it isn't your typical sports bar. Billed as a "casual restaurant and sports bar" and located more or less in the shadow of Camden Yards on Pratt and Paca streets, the vibe suggests it intends to take the flip-flops out of casual and the excess out of sports bar. Not only could you take your mom here, you could take a client.

The following is compiled from police reports. It is the Baltimore Messenger's policy to include descriptions only when there is enough information to make identification possible. If you have any information about these crimes, call the Baltimore City Police Department's Northern District at 410-396-2455. North Calvert Street 2500 block at 3:50 p.m. May 9. Pedestrian knocked down and robbed of back pack, two rings, passport, iPad, clothing, medications. Cedarcroft Road 700 block at 4 p.m. May 5. White iPod stolen from vehicle.

Baltimore Original Sports BarWhere: 34 Market Place.Hours: 4 p.m.-2 a.m. Mondays to Fridays, noon-2 a.m. Saturdays, noon-midnight Sundays.Menu: Nachos, soft pretzels, Buffalo wings, pizza, onion rings, hot dogs, burgers and other stadium fare.Credit cards: AE, MC, V.Call: 244-0135.Unlike many theme bars, where the owners' wacky imagination is limited by modest square footage, the Baltimore Original Sports Bar has never been limited in either sports mania or floor space.Able to accommodate almost 1,000 patrons, this Market Place sports mecca has held its own while larger neighbors -- like the Power Plant and the Fish Market -- went belly up.The sports bar recently decided that after nearly four years of heavy-duty use, it was time for some renovations to take it "away from the warehouse look and make it look more like a clubhouse at home," according to promotions director Brian Taylor.

A shave and a haircut of yesteryear cost the proverbial two bits, 25 cents. A shave alone at The Old Bank Barbers, a soon-to-open barber shop on The Avenue in Hampden, will cost $25. It won't be any old shave, though. Owner Daniel Wells promises an old-fashioned, full-face, straight-edge shave, complete with hot lather, in a leather chair with a headrest that leans back. "It's an old-school barber shop with the tile floors," said Wells, who hopes to open this month at 1100 W. 36th St., the former site of Sixteen Tons, a men's clothing store.

At the risk of getting too existential for our own good, we pose this question: When is a bar officially a sports bar? If it serves beer and the grainy 27-inch Sylvania in the corner is turned to the Ravens even though there are only three people watching -- whoops, make that two, since one of them just passed out (but still gripping his Bud Light!) -- is that a sports bar? FYI -- For more Baltimore-area sports bar listings, go online to baltimoresun.com/sportsbars.

Video games couldn't totally kill it off, nor could Nintendo.Foosball -- a game in which little plastic men lined up on manually operated rods are made to play soccer -- is staging a comeback, according to aficionados.Some 200 of them will compete this weekend at a foosball championship at the Baltimore Original Sports Bar at 34 Market Place."It used to be real popular, and there were a lot of places you could play, but then video games came along," said Brian Dahlheimer, a 29-year-old engineer who lives in Annapolis and will be competing this weekend.

An Anne Arundel County judge pulled the plug Thursday on the gambling operation at a Chesapeake Beach bar, but said the Crooked I Sports Bar & Grill can try to restore its mini-casino when the case goes to trial. Judge Philip T. Caroom denied the Crooked I's request for a preliminary injunction that would have allowed its 105 slots-like machines to continue operating until its case is tried. Caroom said he will file an opinion Friday. The business is challenging a new state law that would end its lucrative gambling business.

The owners of the Playbook Sports Bar and Grill built up interest in their venture before it opened in October by holding an online "name that bar" contest. They choose Playbook over several options not suitable for publication. The sports bar, in a concrete building off Dundalk Avenue, doesn't look like much from the outside, and the name, which sounds like it belongs on The Block, doesn't boost appeal. But the interior, with plenty of sleek black and gray, could pass for a Federal Hill or Canton establishment.

A World Wrestling Federation former champion known as "Animal" is being sued in Baltimore Circuit Court by a man who says he was attacked by the wrestler during an ugly scene at the Original Sports Bar.The lawsuit contends that Animal -- whose legal name has been kept a secret -- beat a 28-year-old bar patron, Ralph E. Kloetzli Jr., in a manner that was "extreme, outrageous and beyond the bounds of decency in society."The incident is alleged to have occurred at the popular Market Place bar on the night of April 30, 1989.

When considering where to watch a Ravens playoff game, Harbor East doesn't come immediately to mind - or really at all. It's a place for fancy dinners and shopping sprees, not for cheap beer and bar food. Townhouse Kitchen and Bar is an exception, even if the industrial-chic bar doesn't look it. With its modern artwork, open space and touch-screen taps at select tables, it's a bar that certainly feels as if it belongs in Harbor East. But on Saturday, it will likely be a sea of purple, and many of those fans will be enjoying reasonably priced food and drinks, thanks to Townhouse's surprisingly good gameday offers.

In mid-January, Jim Burger took a routine stroll around his neighborhood, Remington. The freelance photographer walked along the same streets and passed the same buildings he normally does. Then, out of the corner of his eye, Burger watched someone walk into a building he had long considered vacant. He knew of the corner rowhouse for its previous failures as bars: Joe's Tavern, Molly's Public House and, most recently, the Kitty Kat Bar. Curious, he followed. Without a sign outside, Burger had no idea he had entered WC Harlan, a wonderfully quaint, dimly lit bar that seemed plucked from the Prohibition era. From the black-and-white photos on the wall to the crank-to-open cash register, every well-placed detail helped transport him to a forgotten time.

During this year's AFC championship game, patrons of Fells Point staple John Steven Ltd. were mesmerized by more than Joe Flacco's command of the offense. "Customers couldn't stop talking about the smell from the shrimp and the Old Bay," manager Cortland Leggio said. "The smell in there is very unique. " A longtime spot for fresh seafood, John Steven Ltd. keeps its bartenders busy by not only serving drinks, but also steaming mussels, clams and shrimp behind the wooden bar. It's an old-school Baltimore touch not often seen anymore.

Harbor East's Lancaster Street has seen some welcome additions recently. Ouzo Bay's seafood program has impressed many Baltimore diners. Townhouse Kitchen and Bar has settled in as an upscale sports bar with a notable selection of beer. Both of these new restaurants have filled voids in the flashy neighborhood. So what does latest newcomer Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant add? It was a question I kept circling back to during a recent happy-hour trip, with no clear answer. The atmosphere was amiable, our servers were attentive and the beer selection was adequate.

Sometimes, a typical sports bar can turn into too much of a party scene to truly enjoy a football game. The raucous atmosphere can distract more than entertain: Swamped bartenders and overzealous (or too tipsy) fans spilling beer can dampen even a Ravens blowout win. Constantly craning your neck to get a good view of a TV quickly gets old, too. When Federal Hill's Pub Dog Pizza & Drafthouse expanded to Columbia in 2007, its managers were aware of its surroundings - namely Nottingham's and the Greene Turtle , two well-established sports bars in the area.

Once in a while, a new bar comes up with a gimmick intriguing enough to merit a trip. Townhouse Kitchen and Bar, which opened next to Ra in Harbor East in late May, is one of those places, thanks to its touch-screen "table tap technology," which dispenses beer and vodka at four of its dining tables. Given Townhouse's prime corner location, huge size and sleek presentation, this ultra-modern amenity just adds to its allure. While it's not the only bar to offer such an experience (Leinenkugel's Beer Garden at Power Plant Live has patrons playing bartender at a couple of its tables, too)

I have a buddy of mine that calls every now and then and starts the conversation with this phrase, “Do you believe yet?” I only laugh. I'm not paid to buy into this team - or not to buy in, for that matter. That's the job of the knowledgeable and passionate Oriole fan. I'm paid to look at this club objectively, put aside my Baltimore roots, and tell you what I honestly think. What I honestly think is that these Orioles should not be seven games over .500 on August 7. They should not be right in the thick of the wild-card race.

The brew pub and restaurants planned for Westminster's century-old Main Street firehouse will include the area's first sports bar -- showcasing memorabilia from the extensive collection of local broadcaster Ted Patterson.Grading began last week on John Street for construction of the new station for the Westminster Fire Engine and Hose Company No. 1, which is expected to move next fall.After the move, restoration of the vacated firehouse at 66 E. Main St. should be a matter of months, because the work will be almost entirely cosmetic, said Dr. Kenneth Crawford, a retired physician who heads C&C Restaurant Group of Bel Air.He said the beer-brewing equipment will take up one of the three bays, while the other two will become a more formal restaurant.

If you own a downtown sports bar, how do you bring in customers on nongame days? That's the eternal question for most of the pubs within walking distance of Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium. It's almost impossible to survive on home games alone - especially when the Orioles haven't had a winning season in more than a decade. Many have tried. Some (Pickles Pub, Slider's, Camden Pub) have succeeded. Others (Max's at Camden Yards) have failed. The latest to give it a go is The Nest, a new incarnation of the Downtown Sports Exchange.