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Publication Date: Friday, October 11, 2002

Suds, pub grub and 20 TVs

By Kelsey Lane

Crisp autumn days, with the sun setting earlier, are great for bundling up, eating comfort food and cavorting with good friends.

Then, of course, there's the end of baseball and the beginning of football.

To usher in the season, I headed to the Old Pro. According to co-owner Steve Sinchek, the Pro is Palo Alto's oldest bar-restaurant combination, serving suds and pub grub for more than 35 years.

Owners Sinchek and Dan Brown have been on the scene since 1994 and they've made it their goal to clean up the image of the landmark pub (the duo, along with an investment group, also owns Moe's in downtown Palo Alto).

I admit, as a somewhat sheltered female, that the outside of the place was a bit daunting for me. Darkened windows on the face of the tinny, hut-like structure radiate neon-light beer advertisements.

But once I stepped inside my fears were assuaged. People of every stripe were laughing, eating and imbibing. Men are the primary customers at this watering hole, but they aren't the only ones. I saw several groups of women, presumably on "girls' night out" jaunts, yucking it up as well.

"It's a most eclectic place," Sinchek said. "Guys working construction will be sitting next to a lawyer or a guy from Intuit."

We made our way through the dimly lit, L-shaped seating area. From floor to ceiling, sports memorabilia such as old Sports Illustrated covers, pennants, trophies and photos line the walls. Adding to the bar ambience was the noise, which I had to shout over to talk to my companion. Long, wood-plank bar tables with stools called for sitting alongside strangers. We jockeyed ourselves into a spot at a table.

Though food takes a back seat to sports, most patrons order something off the pub's menu, according to Sinchek. I saw the food as a convenience, tacked on to a fun sports and libation venue. Translation: for around $35 for two, I can think of other places I'd rather go for dinner. But when making an evening of it at a sports bar, it's sure nice not to have to go somewhere else first.

During my first visit there, we kept one eye on the big screen featuring atheGiants game and the other on our generous platters of food. A cumin-spiced slow-smoked chicken quesadilla contained tasty shredded chicken; unfortunately, the bottom was a bit soggy ($6.95). And my starter bowl of chili ($3.95), chock full of ground beef, was lukewarm but the busy server was more than happy to heat it up.

Our tri-tip sandwich with blue cheese ($11.75) and pulled pork sandwich platters ($8.95) were both hearty and delicious. The former was made by the Old Pro's new barbecue chef, Ken Williams, brother of Tom Williams, one of Stanford's new football coaches this year. They both moved here from Texas, where their family owned a traditional barbecue restaurant for 60 years.

The Old Pro recently added a new hickory smoker to its kitchen equipment, and Williams uses it to prepare barbecued and smoked chicken, andouille sausage, brisket, turkey breast and ribs.

The second time I popped into the Old Pro I sampled Williams' hickory pork ribs ($12.95 for a small order). The bone-gnawing meat was not tough, and the vinegar in the orange-colored barbecue sauce made it quite tangy. Lots of patrons were scarfing down the ribs, and the server said they're very popular. I found them adequate.

A solid cheeseburger ($6.95) came complete with all the fixings, most notably thick-cut garlic fries. These were lightly coated with a crispy batter on the outside, plus minced parsley and more garlic than you'd want to ingest on an important date. But if you're not trying to impress anybody, go for it. I could smell the garlic two tables away as the server brought the fries to us, piping hot and crispy.

The small house salad with mixed greens ($4) was anything but small and exceeded my expectations. Since I adore blue cheese, I was thrilled to find it topping the salad greens. Tossed in a sweet balsamic vinaigrette, it went great with the pint of Wyder's pear cider ($4.25).

I had wanted to try one of the Old Pro's hand-tossed pizzas, but the server told me "they suck." When I later asked Sinchek about it, he said they also recently purchased a new pizza oven and are having their Moe's chef train the staff at the Old Pro.

Sinchek has revamped the menu to highlight the new pizzas and a broader selection of smoked, barbecued items. The bar will still serve starters such as nachos ($6.99), wings ($6.95), salads ($4-$8.95) and White Castle-style sliders ($4.95/2) and mains such as cheeseburgers and fish and chips ($8.95).

On our visits, servers were often a bit hard to track down. If you're concerned about this, then Monday night during football season is a poor time to visit, as the place was hopping and servers were running ragged.

Televisions broadcasting sporting events are unmistakably the focal point here, with professional and college games aired regularly. The Pro features 20 TVs, in fact, and plans to add more next spring (I don't know where they'll squeeze them in).

"Every sporting event there is, we get it," Sinchek said of the Old Pro's satellite reception.

Although I was on sensory overload, I knew instinctively that The Old Pro is a place where real life is in full swing. It beseeches you to take a break from work, fill a table with some pals and lose yourself in the moment. For tomorrow, it's back to the grindstone.

Old Pro, 2865 El Camino Real (corner of Page Mill Road), Palo Alto; (650)-325-2070

Hours: Mon.-Fri. 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sat. & Sun. (breakfast served) 9:30 a.m. -11 p.m.

Atmosphere: A dimly-lit, large sports bar with long wooden-plank tables and high stools. Pennants, photos and trophies share every square inch of the walls, along with 20 television sets broadcasting sporting events.

Highlights: Food is a convenience at the Old Pro, not a focus. That said, most customers order something from the menu while they're hooting and hollering. I recommend sampling some of the new smoked, barbecued items. My favorite was the pulled pork sandwich ($8.95) and the cheeseburger with garlic fries ($6.95).

Draft offerings: Bud and Bud Light ($3.25/pint); Old Pro Pale Ale, Widmer Hefeweizen, Gordon Biersch ($3.75/pint); Wyder's Pear Cider, Spaten ($4.25/pint); Guinness ($4.50/pint). A full bottle and can selection also offered from $2 to $4.25.

Price Range: Starters $4-$13.95; pizzas $7.95-$19.50; Entrees $6.95-$16.95 Reservations: No (Yes for parties of 10 or more) Credit Cards: Yes Valet Parking: No, small lot and street parking Alcohol: Yes Takeout: Yes Highchairs: Yes Wheelchair Access: Yes Banquet: No Catering: Yes Outdoor seating: No Noise Level: High