The Short List: Best sports bars

Welcome to The Short List, where each week we'll pick a topic and share our favorite - or, in some cases, maybe our least favorite - things about the Bay area.

With the start of the NFL season just days away, we're looking forward to those Sunday afternoons when we get off the couch and head out to catch some games with fellow fans in places that offer a great game-day atmosphere.

The choices listed below, mind you, are more than your typical sports bars.

Granted, we still have our favorite chain restaurants that dish up great wings, abundant nachos and bottomless pitchers of domestic beer. What we're talking here about are those places that take it to another level -- whether it's the ambiance, the amenities or a menu that goes far beyond a burger and fries.

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1. Brick House Tavern and Tap: Of course, patrons of this "man cave" are greeted by waitresses in short denim skirts and crop tops. This relatively new location on North Dale Mabry (just south of I-275) features more than 30 flat-screen TVs - even outside - tons of beers on draft, beer bongs, and an area with recliners set around a big-screen TV. But the diverse menu offers such variety as meatloaf sliders, "drunken" pork chops, a prime rib sandwich and breakfast options throughout the day. Man up and check it out.

2. Courtside Grille: There's plenty of space here to stretch out and catch any number of games on the 31 high-definition television sets. The 8,100 square-foot restaurant (pictured at right), which opened in mid-June and is co-owned by former NBA player Matt Geiger, includes two bars, a 3,500 square-foot patio, and plenty of sports memorabilia and decor to give it that sports bar feel. But the folks at this Westchase-area location regard the food as the main draw - and we won't argue, with offerings such as a seared sesame tuna appetizer, Thai chicken pasta and glazed salmon and shrimp.

3. Champps: It's hard not to think "upscale" when you have the option to have your car valet-parked before catching the pregame show. Flanked by such hip nightspots as Bar Louie and Blue Martini along International Plaza's Bay Street, Champps' menu includes standard-yet-delicious sports bar fare (mozzarella sticks, chicken sandwiches and burgers) and multiple screens on which to catch your favorite games. The difference here is the casually elegant decor and the menu specialties (walnut-crusted chicken, sizzling Kung Pao chicken, roasted artichoke and grilled chicken penne) befitting a location that also houses a Nordstrom, Michael Kors and Tiffany & Co.

4. Shamrock's Ale House: This family-friendly Temple Terrace location offers football - featured on 15 big-screen TVs - with a little bit of Irish flair. In addition to the beer varieties normally associated with an Irish pub, executive chef Tony Pellicone, who learned his craft at the New York Restaurant School in Manhattan, dishes up such favorites as homemade potato soup, shepherd's pie and seared Ahi tuna, along with menu items devoted to kids.

5. Eddie's Bar and Grill: Who needs chicken wings and Bud Light when you can have all-you-can-eat snow crabs and a Purple Haze? Eddie's, within a short trip down the Pinellas Trail from downtown Dunedin, offers all the usual sports bar bacchanalia with dozens of televisions, including two projection TVs, an arcade-style game room and a newly renovated outdoor porch. What sets this place apart, though, is the extensive menu that features items such as prime rib, stuffed sole and gourmet deli sandwiches along with more than 40 taps of assorted microbrews and specialty beers.