Restaurant Review:

This might sound peculiar, but one of my joys while dining is people-watching. Nothing brings me more enjoyment while eating than observing the drunken football fan at a sports bar.

It is fascinating that a grown man or woman would wear a sports jersey, consume pitcher after pitcher of beer and act like a complete knucklehead while they groan and contort on every play, regardless of how meaningless it is. When you are yelling at the television because a punt went 40 yards and you think that was substandard, it’s probably time to throttle it down a notch.

Of course, I don’t want them to stop. Please keep up the histrionics; it is most amusing to me and my guests.

The problem is that the food is never as good as the entertainment. Westside Bar and Grill is trying to change that, and has succeeded from what I have tasted thus far.

The self-proclaimed “nicest dive bar” is much better than that label. The inside of the former pizza place has been cleaned up and features black padded chairs, speckled brown tables and three elevated booths.

The stage is a holdover from the previous regime, and a stained brown carpet is testament to its age. But the new owners have brought quality music to the restaurant.

The food is also much improved from what used to be there. The menu is extensive, with entrees such as chicken Alfredo and a flat-iron steak alongside pizzas, burgers and sandwiches.

The appetizer menu has the usual suspects found at sports bars: potato skins, zucchini sticks and chicken fingers. There are some intriguing items, like a ground beef quesadilla or a carne asada plate.

We started with Buffalo wings. There are six in a half order and 12 in a full, but we were told they come in only one spice, which was described as “kinda hot.”

It’s not that tough to provide mild, medium and hot, just the amount of hot sauce you put in it, so that might be disappointing to some. The wings were good and were best categorized as medium hot.

The Philly cheesesteak was good as well. The meat was of good quality and chopped up along with bell peppers and onions. I wanted a little more mozzarella cheese.

The sandwiches come with either a dinner salad or French fries, but I would skip those and get the onion rings for an additional dollar. The rings are thick, beer-battered and really tasty.

We couldn’t leave without trying the pizza. The restaurant has seven signature pies, and uses generous amounts of garlic in three of them. I was a bit surprised that the veggie pizza didn’t have garlic but was told it could be added.

My preference is to build my own pizza, and they had more than enough toppings to keep us busy. Roma tomatoes, fresh spinach, artichoke hearts and anchovies were some of the more exotic options.

We went traditional and had pepperoni and sausage, and we were very impressed. The pizza had a good, chewy crust. The sauce was light — another plus in my opinion. There was also plenty of cheese.

The only downside of the meal was the service. There was one waitress for the whole room, and she was overwhelmed.

We asked for water that we never got, and when my guest finished her first drink she never was asked if she wanted another. When our meal was finished, we had to nearly tackle her to get the check.

That problem is fixable. The food would be a tougher solution if it was bad. Fortunately it is not, and if you are looking for a neighborhood sports bar, this is certainly worthy of a visit.

Westside Bar and Grill

Address: 512 W. 19th St., Costa Mesa

Phone: (949) 646-5615

Website: www.westsidebarandgrill.com

Cuisine: Pub food

Specialty dish: Pizza

Alcohol served: Full bar

Entrée price range: $4.95 to $23.95

Family friendly: no

Credit cards accepted: MasterCard and Visa

Rating: ***

JOHN REGER reviews local restaurants and may be contacted at [email protected] or P.O. Box 2984, Seal Beach, CA 90740.