Gridskipper

When we wrote about downtown's Trifecta we were like "sure they're douchebags but at least they're douchebags running a sports bar in downtown LA." And then when we wrote about the Grand Sports Bar we were like "they kind of suck but at least they're running a sports bars in downtown LA." And then both of them went out of business. And then the Flower Sports Bar went out of business. And now downtown is more or less bereft of watering holes servicing both man's need for alcoholic nourishment and his need to drunkenly declare that he's about to fight that out-of-town sports fan over there. Luckily downtown still has a few bars and restaurants where you can catch the occasional game. If you show up at just the right time. If they happen to be open that day. If they haven't closed early. If you're lucky. Fuck. (photo)

Casey's Bar & Grill
613 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90017
Jake Tringali from Casey's has taken to trolling Chowhound threads telling people that the establishment is not so much a sports bar as an Irish pub. And yet sports fans of all kinds — but USC fans especially — camp out at this place during football games. Some people would suggest that this is because of Casey's surprisingly good bar food or the comfortable divey atmosphere. Fair enough. But it probably has at least something to do with the frat boys' memories of college-era parties at Casey's that involved school buses full of sorority girls, doctor-themed costume parties, and test tubes filled with glowing alcoholic shots. And they return again and again. (photo)

ESPN Zone
Figueroa at 11th, Los Angeles, CA, 90015
This part of LA Live isn't actually open yet. As such. Nor has LA Live even officially had its grand opening yet. As such. The Nokia Theater has already opened — and that's been a real treat because someone forgot to widen the 110 and half of Fig is still shut down for loft construction — but that's more or less it. So when the ESPN studios open in fall 2008, with this bar and restaurant attached to the front, there's going to be a little experiment in applied economics. To wit: is the Downtown Renaissance sufficiently advanced that it can sustain a 30,000 sq. ft sports bar — to say nothing of the rest of the complex? In other words, will the vast majority of LA residents say "you know what, let's go; fuck the fact that I'm going to have to wait an hour and 15 minutes to get to another bathroom stall" (hint: no). But at least the studios attached to the ESPN Zone "will be home to SportsCenter and a number of live shows and original programming broadcast on ESPN and its affiliate networks including ABC Sports." And at least the bar will provide a veritable cloud of plasma TVs, comfortable seats, and sweet, sweet liquor. So there's that.

Fox Sports Sky Box
1111 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90015
Some people criticize this place for having exorbitant prices, chain restaurant food, and an aggravating mix of trust-fund coeds, career sports fans, and drunk VIPs. In fairness to the establishment, though, they keep obnoxiously irregular hours so it's not like you have to put up with that stuff with any consistency. All of that said, it's currently downtown's only large, legitimate sports bar. And it does pull off its mainstream LA sports bar ethos fairly job well — the female servers are sufficiently flirtatious, the male servers have adequately frosted hair, and the bevy of TVs display the proper amount of sporting events. But no happy hour? Really?

McCormick & Schmick's Downtown LA
633 W 5th St, 4th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90071
They don't really want your kind in here. This is decidedly not a sports bar. For most of the day it's a high-class establishment with white tablecloths, expensive seafood, and snotty waiters who are exquisitely aware of both. But during McCormick's best-in-downtown happy hour - 3pm-7pm and 9pm-10:30pm M-Th and 3pm-10:30pm Fridays — you can take advantage of the gigantic dining room TV and of the multiple smaller TVs in the bar area. They show sports. Mostly basketball, sometimes baseball, and rarely football (so hoi polloi). But still — sports. Happy hour also allows you to avail yourself of $1.95 burgers, fried zucchinis, hot wings, quesadillas, bruschetta, and an assortment of other absurdly priced goodies. Also worth mentioning: $5 oysters on the half shell, a restaurant specialty. The happy hour waitresses, moreover, are classy cute-as-button servers who bring you your food warm and your drinks well-poured. Ask for Stephanie — who is quite simply spectacular — and tell her I sent you. Then watch while she demurely pretends that she doesn't know what you're talking about. Like I said: these ones actually have some class.

Royal Clayton's
1855 Industrial St. Los Angeles, CA 90021
This place is kind of surreal. It's a mix of loft-dwelling hipsters, soul-deadened corporate drones, and — shock of all shocks — people looking for a decent sports bar. The downside about walking to this place is that you have to walk through Skid Row. The downside about driving to this place is that you have to park your car right next to Skid Row. But if you live across the street — or if you have a really shitty car — you can come here for a startlingly good combination of solid food, interesting people, and TVs conveying sporting events requiring skill, talent, and the kind of dedication that only heart can provide. If you can get past the college dropouts and the professional students, then it's quite the place to watch events that neither college dropouts nor professional students can aspire to.

Weiland Brewery Restaurant Downtown
505 S Flower Street, Suite B-410, Los Angeles 90071
A nearly perfect example of downtown's sports bar plight: whatever's on the variously placed TVs — the locations of which have already been decided with only minimal consideration for sports fans' needs — are merely an accessory to happy hour. Unfortunate, certainly. But the upshot is that there is in fact happy hour food and drink. And that's not nothing given the derelict state of downtown's sports bar scene. This location is an offshoot of its better-known Little Tokyo parent establishment. But it still has the same solid menu of steak strips, battered shrimp, and all manner of fried health food. You might have to crane your neck a little bit to see the game, but on the plus side they're open until 2am during the week. Happy hour goes from 3 to 7 and then from 10 until closing time. But you cannot come here on weekends since, like the rest of downtown, they're naturally closed.