Hattricks Sports Bar Beats Chains with Fresh, Made-to-Order Food

I walked into Hattricks expecting to be bombarded with loud music and television screens.  Instead I was pleasantly surprised to find a warm atmosphere. Although TVs played sports games and jerseys were scattered on the walls, Hattricks didn’t have the usual in-your-face aggression like many chain restaurants and sports bars.

Instead of being greeted by an overeager waiter in khakis and a bright polo, I was waited on by Kenzie Dohner, a sophomore government and world affairs and history major at UT. Dohner wore a tasteful black dress and explained that the management of Hattricks wants the customers to feel comfortable with the waitresses and vice versa, so there are no uniforms required. As time went on and the bar got busier, the waitresses and bartenders impressively kept their cool and made time for each and every customer without seemingly breaking a sweat.

Soft rock played quietly in the background as my suitemate, junior psychology major Rachel Van Kirk, and I were seated. As a sports bar, Hattricks has better ambiance than most restaurants where the noise and the loud music prevent one from even hearing themselves chew.

According to Dohner, the shake and bake wings are a favorite among UT students at Hattricks. But if you’re looking to try something different, order Nic’s famous Italian egg rolls as suggested by Dohner. Instead of veggies and shrimp with duck sauce on the side, these egg rolls are filled with Italian sausage and ground beef, served with marinara. As if that doesn’t sound delicious enough, Hattricks donates 100 percent of the sales from its egg rolls to the Vincent Lecavalier Pediatric Cancer Center at All Children’s Hospital.

If you’re tired of getting the usual Spartan Club burger patties and want to try something new, Hattricks offers some amazing burger options. Before we ordered, Dohner explained that the burgers are 100 percent hormone and preservative free and that they are cooked fresh in the restaurant instead of ordered frozen.

In fact, none of the food at Hattricks is ever precooked or frozen. Everything on the menu is made-to-order. The fish is especially fresh, as the grouper is brought off of a boat five days a week.

I ordered the Hattricks burger while my suitemate, Van Kirk, ordered the grouper sandwich. Not only were our meals extremely deliciously fresh, but they were also quite affordable. Both of our meals averaged out to around $10 each.

The Hattricks burger was absolutely perfect, and after eating it, I’ll never go back to settling for the burgers in the cafeteria again. Unlike most sports bar burgers, I was able to take a bite without it being the size of my head. A patty that’s not paper thin but doesn’t require jaw dislocation means quite a lot in the burger world.

Another plus was that Hattricks knew exactly what I meant when I said I wanted my burger done medium well. There have been many times that I’ve gotten my food and been so excited to enjoy it only left to deal with a dripping mess of a burger. Nobody wants their food to leak, and I’m glad I could sit down and enjoy my burger at Hattricks without ending up with a plate of sad, soggy fries.

My suitemate let me have a bite of her grouper sandwich, and despite my desire to down the whole thing, I refrained. But we both agreed that it was phenomenal.

Generally, fish sandwiches are very plain and I tend to stay away from them at restaurants, but the peppery cajun spices that Hattricks used made their fish burst with flavor without burning my mouth. I never thought I’d see the day that I would consider grouper exciting. As a Maryland native, I know my seafood and I know my spices and it looks like Hattricks does too.

Even if you’re not old enough to stop in at Hattricks to have a drink, the food is more than enough reason to make the half-mile trip. Give yourself a break from the typical college fare and try some real, hearty bar food.

Critic’s Rating: 4 out of 5

Selene SanFelice can be reached at selene.sanfelice@spartans.ut.edu