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Business & Tech

JT Straws: Neighborhood Bar Covers all the Bases

J.T. Straws offers up good food, plenty of TVs, and a lively bar atmosphere.

September means the end of summer. With that comes a drastic change in Sunday planning.  Long, warm days spent at the beach are gone. Brisk afternoons dedicated to football are here. For those who have yet to indulge in a shiny plasma T.V., Port Chester has you covered for the game.

J.T. Straws Bar and Grill on North Main Street gives bar-goers and sports fans a common ground for indulgence. Screens hang throughout - situated over the bar, near tables, and up high in corners in case you are shooting a game of pool and need to catch an important 3rd down. After the game, and into the night, the bar comes alive with a different crowd more interested in dancing and socializing than touchdowns and cheering.

I arrived at the bar and grill a little before 10 p.m. on a Friday night. It was scarcely crowded. Drinkers sat at the bar with glass-in-hand watching Baseball Tonight on ESPN, and chatting during commercials. Another group hovered around a table and played a game of pool while catching up with friends and family. People of all ages enjoyed the atmosphere. At one point, generations of families from college students to parents were eating and drinking together among the hard-core sports enthusiasts.

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We sat at one of five booths that wrap around the walls. Like the long list of beers on tap, the menu is no small piece of paper. If you are undecided when you sit down, you will be handed a black laminated folder. Inside contains seven double-sided pages of pub grub ranging from signature Penne alla vodka pizza to calamari platters.

Specials at J.T. Straws are frequent and changing so always check the chalk boards on the walls, their website, or ask a waitress/waiter for advice.  We started with Cajun chips (a special of the night), before digging into the rest of our meal.

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The awning draped over the entrance to J.T. Straws reads “Wood Fired Brick Oven Pizza.” Never one to pass up the incomparable food produced from a brick oven, we ordered both a traditional margarita pizza, and beef quesadilla forged from the huge red oven. In addition, we got sliders (small hamburgers) for the table, and an order of chicken fingers soaked in thai chili sauce.

The pizza was delicious – up there with Michaels Famous Pan Pizza on Midland Avenue for the many who hold that in high regard. The beef quesadilla had a nice crispy crust produced from the brick oven, but some of the pieces of beef wedged inside remained cold. The same thing happened to the sliders’ hamburger meat – a bit rubbery and undercooked. If you like thai chilli sauce the chicken fingers were a must.

Nobody at our table were wing eaters, which I hear is a cardinal sin in some establishments, but those who love the finger food will find what they are looking for. Over 12 sauces ranging from mild to hot, and specials such as “the bayou” may make it a difficult choice. According to our waitress, thai chilli is the most popular. In addition, wings are free during happy hour. (The previous sentence is not a typo).

By the time we were done with our meal the music got louder and the bar more crowded. More and more people filed in to grab a drink and chat with a friend. The kitchen is open until 3am, so in the event you find yourself with a case of the munchies while drinking you are in safe hands. The only drawback to the night was that there was one bartender who doubled as the waitress. She was handling her job well, as were the kitchen staff, but there was some lag time when it came to waiting for food and the check.

Whether you want to eat, drink, or catch a game, J.T. Straws can accomodate.

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