They’ve got game

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/06/2017 (2500 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeggers love an underdog. So what about Underdogs, a buzzy sports bar/resto/arcade spot in St. James?

The sporty theme is signalled from the get-go by lockers near the front door and the massive space includes a ping-pong table in an area that looks like an equipment cage. There are punning sports-themed names for drinks and dishes and old-time blue, red and white sports-logo graphics on the menu.

You can watch sports. There are so many screens in the main bar area it looks like an electronics shop — every seat has a clear view — plus a giant projection screen in a back-room area.

You can also engage in sports, or at least sports-type activities. Along with the ping-pong table, there is foosball and arcade basketball and other games in a back area, making Underdogs a hybrid bar and arcade.

And there were, at least on the nights I was there, several sports teams enjoying the easygoing atmosphere and constant contests and specials. These include Sangria Sundays, Wine Wednesdays, Monday Adult Happy Meals (a beer, burger and fries for $10) and Tuesday Rally Nights, among other catchy come-ons.

Clearly, Underdogs is a whole experience. So what about the food and drink?

The bar menu features “Dad’s Beer” (I’m sure that’s meant affectionately), including Budweiser and Old Style Pilsner. There are several local brews on rotating tap — from Torque to Barn Hammer, Little Brown Jug, Fort Garry and Peg Beer — along with domestic and international offerings.

Mixed drinks are of the go-down-easy variety, such as the white wine sangria, which is sweet and fruity and frankly a bit goofy with coconut vodka, pineapple and ginger ale. Or the “Adult Slurpees” — a natural, perhaps, for Winnipeg, the slushie capital of the world — combining that frosty 7-Eleven feel with booze.

The food is not exactly nuanced, but it’s mostly tasty and, for bar fare, offers quite a range.

The ownership team at Underdogs includes a Nuburger connection and the fresh-made burgers are a good bet here, as are the yam fries, which possess the spicy sweetness of the Nuburger version.

There are good, crisp, fresh-cut plain fries, as well as tater tots, if you’re feeling retro. The hotdogs are basically decent ballpark franks dressed up with extras such as caramelized onion and bacon.

The Reuben sandwich, called, inevitably, the “Reuben” Hurricane Carter after the middleweight boxer, is wonderfully packed and messy with Montreal smoked meat, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and sriracha thousand island dressing on good marble rye. Sweet potato soup, available one night, is overloaded with curry powder, while beef chili is hearty but oversalted (a common problem here).

There are lots of dishes that work well as shares, like fat potato-cheese perogies, topped with bacon and green onions, or lumpia, those crackly Filipino spring rolls. Macaroni and cheese, with a sharp cheddar sauce and crisp gratin, is served in a metal pot for dishing out.

The wings are done well and come in 20 varieties, divided into dry, saucy and spicy categories (the latter including “Stupid Hot,” if that’s something you want to do). The Chicken Parm is tender and rather delicately seasoned, while the Honey Garlic variety is suitably sticky-sweet.

You can cut your carbolicious fare with some well-dressed salads, including the Lambeau Field (with avocado, goat cheese and the sweetness of candied walnuts and dried cranberry) and the Green Monster (which includes crumbled feta and crisp, toasted chickpeas).

Desserts are of the sweet and gooey variety, including a nice loaded-up brownie and doughnut holes — hot, fresh and sugary and served with Nutella dip.

The casual but competent and friendly service can slow a bit at rush hour, and there were a few minor glitches. (On one night, desserts were delivered before the mess of dinner dishes was cleared.)

And you should know going in that Underdogs is a little loud and a bit dark and the TVs really are omnipresent. On one night, there were several screens completely devoted to viral videos (bike wipeouts! cute puppies!), which you will either find diverting or distracting, probably depending on your demographic.

alison.gillmor@freepress.mb.ca