Where to Watch the Super Bowl By Fritz Hahn washingtonpost.com Staff Writer Updated Friday, January 24, 2003

	NFL MVP Rich Gannon leads the Oakland Raiders against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. (Photo by Elaine Thompson/AP)

Find your point of view in Washington, Maryland or Virginia.

Washington

ESPN Zone
With more than 230 televisions -- including a video wall that has a 16-foot screen and six 36-inch screens -- ESPN Zone is always a great place to watch a game. As of Tuesday, the sports haven was planning to be open for the Super Bowl on a first-come, first-served basis. If you want to sit at the bar or at a table in front of the giant screens, though, you have to spend a certain amount on food and drink each hour. Dozens of interactive sports games are available in the basement.

The Front Page
It's open season -- okay, open bar -- at the Front Page's Super Bowl party, with all the Budweiser, Bud Light, Michelob and rail drinks you want, as well as an all-you-can-eat buffet. The bar sports several big screens and will have raffles and door prizes throughout the night. Admission is $30 at the door.

Grand Slam Sports Bar
All 200 seats at the Grand Hyatt Hotel's sports bar are first-come, first-served. There are 27 televisions, three large screens and two plasma screens scattered throughout the room to make viewing easy. Representatives from Budweiser and Miller Lite will be on hand to give out door prizes, and the bar will be offering beer specials. Want to guess which brands? There's a $10 cover charge at the door.

Hard Rock Cafe
Attention, available football fans: The Learning Escapes group is hosting a "singles only" Super Bowl party at the Hard Rock Cafe. There will be multiple buffet stations (including hot dogs, nachos, wings and veggies) and a number of televisions in a private party room. Tickets are $36. Call 301-299-0941 for more information.

Ortanique
Ortanique's 12-foot projection screen usually gives diners an up-close view of the restaurant's massive fish tank. On Sunday, it will be showing the Super Bowl. Tickets are $50, which includes an open buffet and several of the bar's draft beers. Doors open at 5; reservations are recommended.

MVP's Sports Bar
The cozy Chinatown sports bar is keeping things low-key, although it is offering a free appetizer buffet and beer specials without a cover charge. There are 13 television screens showing the action, and you can hit the pool tables at halftime.

Sign of the Whale
From 5 until closing, the Sign of the Whale is offering half-price burgers and $2 pints of Budweiser and Bud Light. The bar has seven televisions for watching the game.

Stetson's
A favorite with the Capitol Hill crowd, Stetson's is showing the game on its giant 92-inch screen as well as four other televisions in the bar. There's no cover, and Miller Lite drafts, Miller High Life drafts and rail drinks are $2.50 all day.

Tom Tom
Tom Tom has seven large televisions over its two levels, and game-day specials include $3 beers and a free buffet. Admission is free, and doors open at 11 a.m.

Vida
There are other sports on Super Bowl Sunday, you know. And after the New York Rangers finish their game with the Washington Capitals at the MCI Center, they're heading for Vida. Doors open at 5, and the $40 cover charge gets you five hours of open bar, an all-you-can-eat buffet and DJs and dancing after the final whistle. The bar will have six screens -- all at least 36 inches -- set up for viewing.

Visions Cinema
If you want to watch the big game on a big screen, head to Visions Cinema, where you can see the Super Bowl in the movie theater as well as in the Bistro Lounge. There's no cover, and beers are $2 per pint and $8 per pitcher, and popcorn and nachos will be available.

Maryland

Broadfording Bible Brethren Church (13523 Broadfording Church Rd., Hagerstown, Md.; 301-797-8886)
For something completely different, head for Hagerstown's Broadfording Bible Brethren Church, where you can watch the Super Bowl from a front-row pew. There's a pregame sermon, followed by a potluck buffet. Just before kickoff, a big-screen TV replaces the pulpit. No alcohol is allowed at this party, and commercials are subject to muting if they're objectionable.

Jokes on Us Comedy Club
A movie theater before it was comedy club, Jokes on Us still has a 25-foot screen that it uses for major sporting events. The club's Super Bowl party features hip-hop by DJ Celo, drink specials and more. Doors open at 4.

Lewie's
The D.C. Society of Young Professionals is hosting its annual party at Lewie's, with a large screen television and a variety of drink, appetizer and entree specials. As the name suggests, this event usually attracts a good number of people under 35. Tickets are $12 at the door, or $10 if you e-mail your name to vip@dcyoungpro.com by 4 p.m. on the day of the Super Bowl. Doors open at 6.

Orange Ball Billiards and Cafe
Former Redskin Gary Clark is the guest of honor at this party, giving his views on the game and signing autographs. Orange Ball has 44 televisions and one big screen for viewing the game and 31 pool tables for after the final whistle. There's a $10 cover, which includes a buffet, half-price pool, drink specials and more. Doors open at 4.

Santa Fe Cafe
Pity the poor college student. Well, Santa Fe Cafe does. In College Park, the bar offers five-cent (yes, $0.05) Budweiser and Bud Light drafts, an all-you-can-eat buffet with hot dogs, wings, chili and nachos. During the game -- which you can watch on 16 televisions, including a giant 160-inch screen -- there will be even more specials. There is a cover charge, though: Tickets are $25 in advance or $35 at the door. If you aren't drinking, it's $7 and includes the buffet.

Strike Bethesda
Strike Bethesda is throwing a tailgate party, with plenty of pregame specials. From 4 until kickoff, an appetizer buffet and open bar are available for a $25 cover. During the game, the action will be shown on the seven large video screens that hang over the 34 bowling lanes; bowling costs $3 per person, per game. The buffet will be available until the final whistle. At halftime, five people will be chosen to bowl for a $250 cash prize -- they only need to bowl three strikes in a row.

Virginia

Capitol City Brewing Company - Arlington
The award-winning microbrewery doesn't have as many televisions as other Arlington spots, but Cap City is offering $3 pints of its tasty beers and an all-you-can-eat buffet from 5 until halftime. There's no cover charge.

Champps Americana
While the bar at Champps is open as usual, the real attraction will be the "VIP section" on the bar's glassed-in patio. Admission is $50, but it includes an all-you-can-eat buffet with prime rib and turkey in addition to the usual chicken fingers and mozzarella sticks. VIPs also have their own 62-inch television screens. The door prize is a La-Z-Boy recliner -- perfect for any football fan -- and that's only part of the prize: The recliner is in a prime spot in front of Champps' television. Also included is a $100 drink tab, a personal server for the game and home delivery of the chair that evening. Only 53 tickets are available for the VIP section, and reservations are required.

Crystal City Sports Pub
Popular with college alumni groups, Crystal City Sports Pub has 50 television screens, including four large flat-screen monitors. While the pub is not offering any specials for the Super Bowl, you do have to call ahead to reserve a table. This requires a $25 deposit per person, which is deducted from the tab at the end.

Dr. Dremo's
Dr. Dremo's is showing the game on its 9-by-12-foot projection screen. There's no cover, and specials include discounted beers and two-for-one wings. (For example, order a dozen and get 24.) If your team is losing, there are multiple pool tables to get your mind off football.

Grevey's
One of the finest sports bars in Northern Virginia, Grevey's has 60 televisions and is packed for most major sporting events. True to form, there's no cover for the Super Bowl, and a number of beer and food specials will be available all day. Reservations are currently being taken for tables, but the bar area will be first-come, first-served.

Joe Theismann's Restaurant - Alexandria
Joe Theismann was 1-1 in the Super Bowl as a starting quarterback for the Redskins, but his bar has a great atmosphere every January. All seats are first-come, first-served. A buffet with roasted pulled pork sandwiches, chicken and other appetizers will be available from 5 until halftime, at $14.95 per person.

Mister Days
There will be plenty of burgundy and gold at this party, as six Washington Redskins cheerleaders will be performing before the game and at halftime. Among the other incentives are more than 60 televisions (several big screens), a free pregame buffet, food specials during the game and a list of door prizes (the best include Redskins tickets and Dewey Beach vacations). Tickets are being pre-sold for $20, and the bar's capacity is limited to 289.

The State Theatre
Before it became one of Northern Virginia's best music venues, the State Theatre was a popular movie theater. During the NFL season, the bar shows games on its 24-foot screen, serving up discounted food and drinks with no cover charge. That's the game plan for the Super Bowl, with half-price drinks, cheap appetizers and various $1 specials. Doors open at 4.

Sterling Cinema Draft
Cinema Draft is throwing a huge football viewing party, with the game projected on all three of its 25-foot movie screens as well as the building's other televisions. Doors open at noon, and the theater opens at 3. The afternoon features a taping of Comcast Cable's "Just Another Sports Show" program, with trivia contests, games and more entertainment before kickoff. Seating is limited to 285, so early arrival is suggested.