Football season is upon us. The weather is cooling down and the preseason is coming to an end. Your team is getting ready for the opening kickoff of the 2016 season and you are probably gearing up, too. Watching the games at home is great. It’s the only place where it’s completely acceptable to scream at an inanimate object without getting some strange looks. But, watching a game on Sunday at a place where you can grab a frosty drink and nosh on some tasty bar food is an experience a lot of people wait for all year. There’s a ton of great places to do it in the Queen City. Here’s our list of the best places to watch football in Springfield.

Owner and Murney Agent Scott Morris refers to Falstaff’s as the number one hockey bar in Springfield. A huge Blues fan, Morris has really carved out a niche for fellow fans in downtown Springfield. But when football comes around each year, Falstaff’s Local turns into one of the best spots in Springfield to watch the Chiefs.

This spot has tons of great drink specials and lots of awesome food. We recommend the Cutter, a fried chicken breast sandwich, named after another Murney Agent, Cutter Gale. It has two kinds of cheeses, marinara and garlic on a buttery kaiser roll.

Best known for its baseball-themed decor and menus, Ebbet’s is also a great place to watch some football. It’s a two story bar and grille on Historic Walnut Street in Downtown Springfield with plenty of televisions and even more great food. Ebbett’s menu harkens back to the golden era of baseball in the 1940s and 1950s, and while it primarily hints to the Brooklyn Dodger greats of that time, it’s still a local joint through and through.

Ebbet’s can be reserved for private, or not so private parties and features a large outside seating are as well.

Once the premier location for sporting goods in the city, Harbell’s was turned into a sports bar back in 2011 by Jerry and Derek Bumgarner. Since it’s re-inception, Harbell’s has been raking in the awards. It has been named the Best Sports Bar in Town by 417 Magazine, Best Shot at the Bartender’s Bash, Best Place to Watch Cardinals Baseball by MSU, and an award for best rookie chili at the Sertoma Chili Cook Off. There’s plenty of screens to watch and Harbell’s says they’re the largest in the city.

If you’re hungry, have a salad.

You didn’t think we meant one of those piles of lettuce did you? This is the smoked brisket salad at Harbell’s and it’s just as filling as it looks!

Home of one of the most prolific burger menus we’ve ever seen, Bair’s slings out 50 different kinds of burgers at each of its four locations. With its expansive menu and drinks list, it’s a sports fan’s dream. They plenty more than just burgers, but if you’re going to Bair’s you gotta try one. We suggest the Fried Egg and Bacon burger. It combines the two best food groups there are: burgers and breakfast!

There are 5 Big Whiskey’s in the Ozarks right now, but pretty soon they’ll be sprouting up all over the country. The owners recently decided to franchise the beloved Springfield Bar all across the US. There’s a good reason for it, too. The environment at a Big Whiskey’s is unmatched. There’s the usual things you’d expect in a sports bar; big TVs, great pub food and signature drinks, but there is an indescribable quality to the energy. If you haven’t been to one yet, you’ve got to check it out. Try the fish tacos while you’re at it!



The wing kings of Southwest Missouri. Coyote’s Adobe Cafe has won tons of awards at Springfield’s biggest wing competition, Sertoma’s Wingapalooza. It’s kind of their thing, and they do it well. They have 23 original recipes for hot wings with a bunch of different ways to order. They’ve also got a giant screen in the back room at the location on Glenstone that would be perfect for taking in a Monday Night Football game. Watch out though, because when they say a wing is spicy, they mean it!

The Roost is as DIY as you can get. They make all their own stuff. Chicken tenders cut every day. Burger patty formed every day. Onions cut every day for onion rings. They don’t do reheated frozen stuff. Plus, they get all their meat from a local butcher. The Roost has one goal: “Make People Happy.” They do a pretty darn good job of that on Saturdays and Sunday during football season.

Wingstop



Wingstop is a great place to watch football, sure, but you’re going there for the food. Bone in or bone out, Wingstop wings are some of the best in the city. If you like fries and you haven’t had fries here, you’re missing out. There’s got to be a secret ingredient in these, they’re addicting! Swing by here any Saturday or Sunday and you’re bound to find the Chiefs game on. We happen to know the owners are pretty serious fans!