By Coral Marshall - AngelsWin.com Columnist
Every year the baseball offseason is filled with general questions that seem overbearing to fans who have no control. Who will fill the hole left in the lineup by the veteran slugger retiring? Who will replace last year’s all-star pitcher? And this year, where is the best place in Orange County to watch Angels’ games?
While I can’t tell you what Tony Reagins is going to do. Or how much money Arte Moreno will shell out. I can help find the best sports bar in Orange County so that this upcoming baseball season you can have the best baseball viewing experience next to being at the game.
The first stop on my quest to find the best sports bar in Orange County was the OC Sports Bar. My dad and I went on during week 15 of the NFL season for the morning games. Upon walking in we were told to seat ourselves at which point we looked around and noticed three projection screens each displaying a different game. There were large crowds of Saints, Dolphins and Cowboys fans around their respective televisions- if any of those were my team this would be the place to be.
My dad and I were looking for a view of the Colts, Giants, and Chiefs games, and we were not disappointed. Multiple flat screens are hung over the fully stocked bar and each game was labeled to make it easy to find, even during commercials.
After waiting a few minutes we were greeted by our waitress who took our drink order. My dad ordered a beer from their reasonably wide selection and I got a Shirley temple. The beers on tap come out of a new machine called the blizzard, which keeps them at approximately 29 degrees, obviously cold beer is the best kind of beer, and my Dad said his stayed frosty for the entire time he was consuming it.
After waiting a few minutes we were greeted by our waitress who took our drink order. My dad ordered a beer from their reasonably wide selection and I got a Shirley temple. The beers on tap come out of a new machine called the blizzard, which keeps them at approximately 29 degrees, obviously cold beer is the best kind of beer, and my Dad said his stayed frosty for the entire time he was consuming it.
Shortly thereafter we decided to order some onion rings as an appetizer, we had smelled them all the way from outside and they seemed too good to pass up. After a wait that was far too long for just onion rings they were finally brought to us by a different waitress. The onion rings were average, at best. Moreover, our waitress had, eventually, taken my cup to give me a refill, and hadn’t brought it back for over 20 minutes, so perhaps my poor opinion of the onion rings was due in part that I had to eat them without a drink.
By the time I received my drink it was too late in the games to order an entrée and expect to get it, and eat it before the games were over, based on the lengthy time the onion rings had taken. However, every thing that was brought past our table looked delicious, but alas our waitress wasn’t prompt enough for us to try anything.
The waitresses at the surrounding tables seemed on top of things, and our fellow fans were joyful, inebriated, and pleasant to talk sports with. While the TVs were plentiful, I must say that the best part of OC Sports Bar was, by far, the fans surrounding us. These fans were jovial and knew their football, something of great importance to me when I sit down to watch a game with strangers. By the end of the day statistics and high fives were being exchanged by everyone in our section.
One further complaint, the tvs above the bar are not conducive for those sitting at the tables behind the bar to watch. While the tables are high tops for that very purpose, they are not high enough to see over the inevitable people who stand up around their friends at the bar.
If OC Sports Bar had better service, this could be the best sports bar in Orange County, but the lack of attentiveness and the inherent inability to eat the food served there makes it a mere smudge in my memory, which is truly too bad considering the abundance of seating, televisions, and great fan atmosphere.
The OC Sports Bar and Grill is located on 450 North State College Boulevard in Orange, CA a block away from Angel Stadium (formally Nationals Sports Bar).
Stay tuned for my next review as I plan on visiting Throwbacks Sports Bar in Anaheim, CA.