A group of kids was once spotted tailgating in the Athletic Center parking lot before a Bears basketball game. But that was it. Students will pre-game, but never tailgate before any University event of any kind, including sports.
It should come as no surprise to incoming freshmen that Washington University isn’t exactly an athletic powerhouse. After all, we play in the University Athletic Association, Division III’s answer to the Ivy League. And it should also come as no surprise that students don’t flock to every home football game, despite the bribes of free pizza and raffles to win miniature iPods.
What should the college sports fan do? First, realize you won’t be spending the next four years of your life destroying your liver before and after every home game. Second, if you don’t already have one, find a team and cheer for it. And third, create your own game day experience.
To do that, we suggest spending your Saturday afternoon in one of St. Louis’s many fine sports bars. We’ve listed some of our favorites below.
Plush Pig BBQ
7814 Forsyth
Clayton
Full disclosure here – Plush Pig isn’t a sports bar and we’ve never tried to drink there. If you’re looking for big screens and leather couches, this is the wrong place for you. As if the name didn’t give it away, Plush Pig is best known around Clayton for its reasonably priced barbecue sandwiches, which taste like they’re homemade, except unlike most home cooking, they’re actually delicious. The cheap wooden floorboards and patio furniture give Plush Pig the feel of a country smorgasbord. Another downside: there are only two televisions in the joint. Make sure you don’t go there for the Saturday night games, because Plush Pig closes at 8 p.m.
Mike Duffy’s
6662 Clayton Road
Richmond Heights
Duffy’s is considered to be a great place to take a study break midweek. Tuesday is especially popular, when upperclassmen pack the place for karaoke night and cheap pitchers. But that doesn’t mean you can’t go on Saturday. If you can get over the tacky interior – which looks like it was the inspiration for just about every TGI Friday’s, Ruby Tuesday’s, and every other lame chain restaurant in the country – you’ll find this a great place to eat some cheap pub grub and take in a football game being played by the big-name school you wished you had attended.
Barrister’s
15 N. Meremac Avenue
Clayton
You won’t find too many college kids here. In fact, when a few friends and I went to Barrister’s for dinner Saturday night, we were surrounded by poorly-dressed, slick-haired schmucks who had no business getting with the tight-stomached, faux blonde beauties who sat across from them (but if they’re offering you a free meal, why not take it?). All ranting aside, this place managed to combine upscale dining with a casual atmosphere in a way few others can. The walls are lined with soccer jerseys and the televisions were showing the British Premier League football-or as we call it soccer-games. The food, which runs the gamut from chops to seafood to Italian, is good, but will cost you a few more shekels than the other places on the list. They have a varied selection of beers, from big time beers such as Blue Moon to the full array of Schlafly microbrews. Barrister’s has a live cover band play on Saturday nights. They’re not very good, but their mediocrity is good for a few laughs- although I must admit we were pretty annoyed when they refused to play “Freebird.”
Tom’s Bar and Grille
20 South Euclid
Central West End
With its exposed brick walls and creaky wooden floors, this place looks like it came straight from Boston. If you need any more proof, we even saw two, pot-bellied Irish guys having a spirited conversation over a pitcher. In fact, most of the clientele seems to be working class, only reinforcing that “Cheers” feel. The burgers and sandwiches are okay – nothing spectacular, but nothing tantalizingly mouthwatering either. The wings, however, are another story. Marinated in hot and spicy deep burgundy sauce, these wings, according to one taste tester, are some of the most “legit” he’s ever put in his mouth. On the back wall there are a bunch of televisions with ESPN always on.
J. McGraugh’s
8405 Maryland Ave.
Clayton
According to its Web site, this quaint bar and tavern hosts viewing parties every Saturday during the football season for Nebraska fans (apparently, there are a lot of Cornhusker fans in Missouri). When we went there one Saturday afternoon last fall, we saw no such thing. The interior is surprisingly airy for a tavern, almost atrium-like. The soups and sandwiches are good if you’re looking for a light Saturday lunch. What we really like about this is place is that it carries ESPN U, something that apparently a lot of other bars near Clayton do not. ESPN U allows geographic transplants to view games they’d like to see but can’t because of ABC’s regional coverage. (For instance, we watched the Miami-Duke game to see a friend play on the Blue Devil’s offensive line). The wait staff is friendly and the location to school is close by. We’re not sure if the Cornhuskers had a bye week or what. Either way, it’s not a bad place to spend a Saturday afternoon with your friends.