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Barfly Jason Genegabus |
Plenty pupus, no pompoms
IS IT too unreasonable to expect truth in advertising when you visit a bar on this rock?
That was the question that kept going through my head earlier this week while I did my research for this column at Cheerleaders Bar and Grill.
Were there girls in bikinis, serving drinks, when I visited another establishment that used that word in its name? Nope.
Cheerleaders Sports Bar and Grill
Hours: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Mondays through
Saturdays; noon to midnight Sundays
Location: 1072 Valkenburgh St.
(Moanalua Shopping Center)
Phone: 422-2242
Did I see women that lived up to the Hooters name when I visited Aloha Tower Marketplace earlier this month? Not really -- there might have been a few candidates for an "Apple Bottoms" restaurant working that night (if Nelly were to take his clothing line and apply the concept to food service), but it definitely says something when the best-looking girl there wasn't even an employee.
Thank goodness for the Coors Light girl who stopped by that night.
RANTING ASIDE, Cheerleaders actually has a lot going for it once you get past the attire of its employees.
Located in the Moanalua Shopping Center across from Long John Silver's, the bar is spacious enough to accommodate large groups of customers. Walk in the front door and you're given two choices when it comes to seating -- hang a right and kick it at one of the tables if you want a little peace and quiet while you drink. Take a left, and you've got a choice between sitting at the bar or cruising with the karaoke crew.
On the night the Barfly landed here, over three dozen customers were in the place, with a majority of them singing karaoke. And what I've noticed during my travels over the last year or so is that if you're looking for friendly faces, make a conscious effort to get away from town when looking for a bar to visit.
That's not to say that townies are meaner, or there aren't any worthwhile destinations in neighborhoods like McCully, Waikiki, Mapunapuna or Kalihi. But for whatever reason, I've always found it easier to chat up a neighboring table when visiting the Leeward and Windward sides of the island. The North Shore is the same way.
ALONG WITH an easygoing clientele, a diverse and definitely affordable pupu menu also adds points for Cheerleaders on my scorecard. The ahi poke ($7.95) I ordered was a good value, and larger groups will definitely want to check out one of the three platters that are available. The Mexican Platter ($15, with nachos, potato skins, beef taquitos, chicken quesadillas and jalapeno poppers), Seafood Platter ($18, with popcorn shrimp, calamari rings, mahi sticks and fried oysters) and Local Platter ($15, with chicken katsu, mozzarella sticks, potato skins, zucchini sticks and popcorn shrimp) all offer a good variety of choices from the menu without having to spend too much money.
Other items worth ordering include garlic fried chicken ($5.95), teriyaki or barbecue meatballs ($5.50), potato skins ($5.50-$5.75) and the New York steak with onions ($8.50).
THROW IN happy hour until 8 p.m. daily, nearly a dozen dart machines, pool tables, video games and even a foosball table, and you can easily forgive management for the lack of actual cheerleading uniforms at Cheerleaders Sports Bar and Grill. Then again, I'm not sure I would have really wanted to see any of the bar's employees dressed up like that anyway.
One thing to keep in mind if you visit, however -- once inside, you've entered a dead zone as far as your cell phone is concerned. A lack of signal strength means you'll have to go outside to make a call or check your messages.
How much for a Bud Light?
The Barfly drank $10 pitchers of Bud Light during his visit. Stop by during happy hour, and you can take advantage of $2.50 domestic bottles before 8 p.m.Get things to do?
In addition to darts, pool and foosball, a row of video games also occupies space at Cheerleaders. Take a shot at "Golden Tee," or relive the '80s with "Ms. Pac Man" or "Galaga." There are also television sets spread throughout, including a couple of big screens.What about the grinds?
Bring an appetite if you decide to check out this place -- along with the more expensive stuff, you can always fill up on pupus like chips and salsa ($2.95), tacos ($4.95 for two), french fries ($2.95) or even spam musubi ($1.50) without breaking the bank.And the help?
While the two servers on duty were polite and attentive to individual customers, the overall crowd size seemed to overwhelm them. We never ran out of beer during our stay, but did have to wait pretty long to both order and receive pupus, and it took a while to settle our bill at the end of the night. Patience is a virtue here when it starts to get busy.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Barfly appears every Friday in Star-Bulletin Weekend.
E-mail Jason Genegabus at jason@starbulletin.com with suggestions of neighborhood bars to visit.