Centerfield Sports Bar

As a landlocked suburb, Windsor Heights businesses can’t just plow up valuable Iowa farmland and construct a shiny new building. Business owners require creativity to repurpose existing buildings. 

That’s the case with the Centerfield Sports Bar located at 6555 University Ave. The building previously housed a Hawkeye bar, the Front Row. Dates are sketchy, but prior to that, it was called Gigi’s for decades. According to long-time residents, the place also housed the volunteer fire department in the 1950s and early 60s.

It’s an old building but revamped on the inside. Centerfield is aptly named as a sports bar. There’s plenty of Chicago Cubs memorabilia, including a wall-size mural of the Cubs stadium by the pool tables. 

There’s nearly a dozen televisions, with different teams and sports playing on the tube. One evening we caught NFL football, the baseball playoffs and a soccer match. Got a team you want to watch? Ask the friendly bartender who will gladly switch channels for you. 

NFL season means Sunday funday football. Co-owner Anthony Hameister brings a slow cooker full of “whatever is cooking,” and patrons are encouraged to bring their own food.

There’s no kitchen, but Wednesday nights are steak nights on the grill. A roaster full of taco meat provides Thursday late night tacos for $2.50, starting at 8 p.m. You can also grab a Pasquales pizza or some chips if you have the munchies.

The full bar means drinks that won’t bust your budget. Happy hour Monday through Friday starting at 3 p.m. gets you $3 well drinks, $2.50 domestic bottles and $3 tallboys. The prices are decent, with $10 for a Tito’s and club soda and a can of Guinness. Speaking of Guinness beer, did you know there’s a tiny plastic ball at the bottom of a Guinness beer can? When you open it, the Guinness widget releases a surge of bubbles. Check it out the next time and shake that can. Who knew writing a Belly Up could be educational? 

A large patio outside is wedged between two brick walls. The pergola, twinkling lights and live plants offer a cozy breath of fresh air.

The bar offers karaoke on Friday and Saturday nights. Mondays include trivia, Tuesdays are bingo night and Thursdays are pool and darts games. Play a couple video games or grab from a stack of board games. 

Centerfield Sports, which has only been open two years, has established itself as a neighborhood bar. “We get a lot of regulars,” says Hameister. “Once they come in, they always come back. We get a lot of people attending events at Colby Park, which is only a few blocks away.” 

It’s hard to classify this bar. It’s not a dive bar and not an upscale bar serving pricy drinks to pay for a new building. Rather, it’s right in between. If it’s your turn to pay, suggest to your friends a jaunt to Windsor Heights for a satisfying neighborhood vibe. ♦