This Place Is The Sports Fan's Heaven

, 3561 53^rd Ave. W., was built for watching sports.

Consider: It features more than 20 televisions with crisp, quality pictures along with a 20-foot projection screen for the big game of the day. It has 18 beers on tap, a variety of chicken wings, lots of tables and more than 30 stools at the horseshoe-shaped bar. Its game-day atmosphere of sights and sounds rivals ESPN Club.

If you’re still not convinced, visit Scores on a Sunday afternoon during the football season. On your typical Sunday afternoon, all 21 televisions are broadcasting games across the NFL while the giant projection screen plays the game of the day, usually reserved for the Bucs or Steelers. Scores attracts a lot of Bucs fans, not surprising because of Bradenton’s location, but also lets it be known that Steelers fans are more than welcome.

“There are all kinds of football fans in here and we’ll play all the games,” said waitress Sarah Owen. “But we do get a lot of Bucs and Steelers fans.”

Scores draws a diverse enough crowd to broadcast every game, and each television is marked with the games it will carry that day. Very helpful when you arrive at 3 p.m. for a specific 4:15 p.m. game and you’re trying to decide which TV to sit near.

Scores certainly has a wide enough range of meals for a Sunday dinner. But if you’re looking for a quiet meal with the family after church then this isn’t the place, especially during football season. It's not raunchy or dangerous, but it’s safe to say that 100% of the patrons on a Sunday afternoon come there to watch football. And they don't hold their emotions inside. So be prepared. You wouldn’t want to be sipping a hot spoonful of soup when the Bucs make a touchdown.

Scores has all the makings of a veteran sports bar - plenty of beer (all the popular domestics and an admirable array of crafts like Stone IPA, Rogue American Amber Ale, Oskar Blues Dales Pale Ale, Anchor Porter, Magic Hat No. 9, Dogfish Head Midas Touch, Sierra Nevada) deluxe video games, pool, a basketball net and a PSI tester. There are also plenty of Sunday NFL food and drink specials ($6 domestic pitchers, $1.50 12 oz. Bud Light drafts, 3-for-$10 Patriot Missiles and 20 wings, a pitcher and fries for $20) and, of course, 21 flat-screen televisions - but is relatively young. It hosted its grand opening celebration in January.

Football isn’t the only sport Scores broadcasts. In addition to the NFL Sunday Ticket, other sports packages it subscribes to include Nascar, MLS DirectKick, Fox Soccer Plus, MLB Extra Innings, NHL Center Ice, NBA League Pass, ESPN College Game Day, UFC Pay Per View events and BuzzTime Trivia.

Scores serves a full menu so smoking is prohibited. However, it has plenty of outdoor seating.

IF YOU GO

Scores is located in the Northwest Commons shopping plaza that also includes Subway, Smoothie King, UPS, Amscott and a few others. Visit its website at www.scorestaproom.com.