Sports Depot

This place is huge! One of the best places to go watch the NBA finals. It had plenty of seating.
A ton of TVs and the volume was perfect.
They have 2.50 Coors Light pints.

I have to give this place five stars because they take the sports bar theme and somehow make it unique! And here’s how they do it… Sports Depot has the obligatory bar area with multiple televisions playing multiple games in multiple cities. Ok typical, but they also have a large dining room area that is separate from the bar and could even come off as being family friendly. The dining area is very clean and is beer-​smell free. Now for the kicker… the bathrooms are absolutely spotless! A clean bathroom is remarkably rare for a Boston sports bar, especially one in Allston! A fun bar area with a respectable dining room and clean bathrooms gets five stars every time.
My buddy and I were in here on a Saturday afternoon for a little pregaming and playoff hockey. I absolutely recommend the double fried chicken wings! Yes, it’s a heart attack on a plate but they taste damn good! They have many different styles of beer on tap and the tap lines are very clean. In fact this may be the first bar in Allston that I’ve been to where the Harpoon IPA actually tastes like it’s supposed to! As me and my buddy were leaving to check out some other establishments, Bob Ryan walked in with some friends and they sat at the bar for a drink. If this place is good enough for one of Boston’s most famous sports writers then it’s alright with me.

3.5 stars. I like this place. It is what it is, and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else. It’s a sports bar, plain and simple. It’s big, it’s got a full bar and a solid draft list that includes several local beers (outside the typical Sam). Best thing about this place, though, is happy hour. $ 1 appetizers? Yes please! $ 2 Buds? Well, I’m not really a fan of Bud… but what the hell, for $ 2 I will crush Bud like it’s my full-​time job. I can’t spend all my time being a beer snob (which I usually am, by the way), or else I’d be broke.
Great place to watch games– TV’s EVERYWHERE. Great place to meet up with a large group. Always plenty of space. Service is decent, although slow at times when you’re at the bar. Parking can be difficult if the lots are full, but public transit is close enough. Food isn’t anything to write home about, but I don’t go there for a culinary experience anyway. Overall, a great place for drinking beer, getting some typical solid munchies, and especially watching sports.

I thought this was a pretty good sports bar. It’s a higher class of sports bar than what I’m used to. They have a nice atmosphere that definitely shouldn’t put off women and would just be a bar if not for all the TVs. I only went here cuz they show UFC events and cover for the event was $ 10. Their drink prices are average ($ 4.50 for a draft) and they offer a decent selection of beers (draft and bottle). They had two parking lots so it wasn’t a problem. Service was good.

Where do you go on the day of the «Big Game»? Well, if you’re in Allston or Cambridge, that place is THE Sports Depot. New Year’s Day is one of the best days in College Sports if it’s not March Madness, so we headed to the Sports Depot, where I counted 50 small flat screens to add to the one huge projection screen.
The bar looked like a fun place to hang out while watching the games, but we grabbed a table in order to hunker down with some food. The boneless wings were niiiiiice, and spicy for a starter. The burger menu is extensive but I skipped it for the California Salad. We were watching the Rose Bowl, afterall. A mixed greens salad with loads of goat cheese, and a creamy vinaigrette, I was happy to be eating a little healthier after punishing my body with drink the night before.
Our server was great! The Harpoon IPA, on the other hand, tasted more like an amber beer. I think it’s time to clean that tap, Depot!
The first time a rumbling train sped by the Depot, I thought it was a commercial on the many TV’s, and that they had the sub woofer cranked! Loved that trains go by at full speed! There are a few small rooms to reserve if you have a group of 20 or less. And there were a few families enjoying the Rose Bowl, so this place is fairly kid-​friendly, as far as bars go.

Lots of big TVs, but they are in weird places. I came here to watch one of the NBA finals games last year. It was pretty crowded, in think i was a wednesday night or somethin too. Food was bad from what i remember. Jarred salsa and stale chips, i forget what else we had.
I didn’t think it was very comfortable at the bar. The bar should be a comfortable place when you are there to watch a game, because you’re gonna be parked there for a while. I found it cramped, and the way the tv’s are set up there were some seats with really inconvenient viewing angles.
I will not be back.

Hi, my name is Jason, and I’m an addict.
It started as a casual thing. You know, one at a time, just at the office. Something to help get me through the day. It really felt good, and honestly helped me, you know, power through the rough spots.
Of course, on the weekend it just got more intense. Several times in an hour sometimes. Sundays are always the worst.
Before long, I was running them two, even three at a time. I had to use different names so I could keep everything straight!
Yes, folks. I’m talking about Fantasy Football.
It’s an ugly habit, akin to spitting tobacco into baby strollers, or smoking teak cabinetry. But once you start, you’re not going to have an easy time stopping.
The Sports Depot is my favorite place to indulge the most sinful habit of the wastrel, and I don’t care who knows it. The staff, during my many visits, have failed to be anything but utterly kind and welcoming. The food has met every (admittedly low) standard of bar food I have held it to. The beer selection is robust and many-​splendored. Their pitcher prices on domestic draft is very reasonable (11 bucks for High Life? OK.) And best of all…
…NFL Sunday Ticket. Which means I can watch Schaub toss 4 TDs against Cincy, two of them to Owen Daniels! I can watch Warner hook Fitzy up with two end-​zone grabs, while also watching Westbrook get his share of touches against a surprisingly robust Oakland D. I don’t have to wait for James Brown’s irritating «Game Breaks» to find out what 42 points from my starting QB looks like, i can see it all around me!
I also love that this place is host to such a huge variety of ofther football fans! Hearing the J-​E-​T-​S Jets! Jets! Jets! thing is kind of hilarious, especially because Sanchez is such a turd burglar — it makes me smile. I love seeing everyone at the Sports Depot decked out in their team colors, rooting for the boys back home.
I mean, I’m a huge Pats fan, but I’m not one of THOSE Pats fans. You know the kind — they light orphanages on fire and throw poop at hospitals when the Pats win a playoff game, and they CERTAINLY will shout obscenities at a Jets fan.
I say being a Jets fan is its own punishment. They don’t need me to remind them what the score is.
Anyway. The bottom line is, I like this place a lot, I watched about six hours of football here on Sunday, and I am looking forward to going back. It was enjoyable!
Ahem — PS, Go Pats!

I happened to come here on country night. In my opinion, that’s a good thing since I love country. I was also happy about the dollar beer specials they were running, no it wasn’t the best beer I’ve ever had, but it was cheap, and I’m a broke college student.
There is something incredibly refreshing about dancing the Cotton Eyed Joe in a bar with other 20-​somethings while just a little drunk. I also somehow ended up going home with a free cowboy hat! All around good place, excellent for sports viewing as the name suggests, a very fun atmosphere too. They had a large round of musical chairs to win Rascal Flatts tickets, I lost but it was so much fun.
All around a great night of dancing to country and cheap beer, a good Friday in my opinion!

Francine, are you serious? IT’S A SPORTS BAR. SPORTS DEPOT. It couldn’t be more obvious what you should expect.
The Beer Garden has better TV’s but this place has better energy during games.
People go there to watch sports with friends. But it could be a lot better.

Food is good, beer is cheap, building has history, a billion TVs, and yes they have Sunday Ticket. Awesome fun place to grab a bite and watch a game. Also the service staff is very proactive and nice (young ladies working their way through college).
I like that the train comes by, it is kind of exciting and reminds you of the history of the place. It was an old train depot. They re-​did the place about two years ago and everything is new. Food is surprisingly good too.
Look this is a sports bar, and men watch sports. The bathroom is very nice for this type of place. I definitely recommend it.
They also show all the big pay-​per-​view fights and events.

Once again, I think Unilocal’s demographic comes down on a sports bar a little harder than it deserves.
Someone below mentions that it might be more fun to come here when major sports are on the TVs. What else would you come here for? The ambience? The location (right next to the commuter rail and the MassPike, in the heart of lower Allston)? You come here to watch the biggest games; that’s it.
Scads of TVs, distributed at calculated angles so that anyone, anywhere in the bar can see one. I’ve been here for a couple of big events now — Sox games, Pats games and most recently UFC 100 — and had fun every time. The bar gets packed to the rafters but it’s always a fun clientele. People get loud, sure, but nobody throws beer or starts a fight. And think about the last time you assembled two hundred drunk guys from Brighton and a fight didn’t break out.
Protip: for really big events, like playoff games or PPV matches, get there an hour before kickoff if you want a table. Otherwise, good luck.

I have to agree with Meg. Sports Depot has quite possibly the worst bathroom pee smell I’ve smelt in the Boston area. You walk in, and boom! it’s just bad. That sort of smell is something someone should be cleaning up, not letting linger. I should point out that this smell was prevalent at 7:30 PM. This wasn’t some late-​night thing (which most every Boston bar eventually gets due to the massive amounts of late-​night traffic).
Beyond that, prices were okay on beer, but not great (I think I ended up paying about $ 4.75 per Heineken Light, which isn’t too bad). They also ran my card twice for some reason (probably mixed up which card was getting what), so I had the fun of waiting to see if I would be double charged.
The only redeeming factor is the games. That, plus the not terrible beer prices, gives it the second star. But for the most part, it’s not really all that great or remarkable.

Waitress? Anywhere?
Yup. Still waiting.
(It’s big. Apparently, get beer that is popular because otherwise it will be yucky. My screwdriver was kind of expensive but strong so it was worth it.)
Lots of TVs. Lots. When all of the major sports are going I bet it would be more happening and more fun. Otherwise, make sure you have good company or just go somewhere else.

This place is kind of ‘Meh’ for me, but my expectations for most depots are pretty low, so in that sense it slightly exceeded them. This should really be a 2.5 star review, about the average.
Yes, there are many, many TVs (probably this place’s main draw). No, they are not all in HD, as advertised. I went there for a Celts playoff game last year and was annoyed to see that not only were some of the TVs in standard def (I could tell cause they were plugged into a standard cable box even though they were flat screens), but a handful of TVs were straight-​up staticky. What the shit?
I got parked between a good and bad TV cause it was packed in there, and the crappy one became aggravating in my perifs. Sorry, but if I’m going to the sports depot to watch a big game, I’d rather you turn the bad TV off than insist on having as many running as possible. Also, if you have an HD flat screen, pay the extra couple box on the already astronomical cable bill and pop for HD converter boxes all around. This is too simple not to do.
Haven’t eaten here, but my buddy was there last week and for a UFC fight and said his burger was good. Unless I was watching a game or event, though I really wouldn’t go to this place, buried down at the far end of Harvard Ave.

We went Sunday 5.10.09. The appetizer sampler and the buffalo chicken sandwhich were both just mailed in. This is the way I remembered the place, but it had been a while so we gave it another shot. There are too many other places to go in this neck of the woods to put up with «blah».
The SeaDog BlueBerry draft was the highlight of the experience.

I was here for the first time last night and I have to say, I don’t understand all the negative reviews. Yes it’s a crowded bar that serves mediocre bar food. If that’s not what you wanted, why come here?
I’m the kind of person who enjoys a place for what it is. When I go to a sports bar, I’m looking for cheap beer and greasy food. Major bonus points for massive TVs showing important sports games. And that’s exactly what I found here.
There were 10 of us shoved into a back room of sorts, right next to the commuter line train track. I mean about 3 foot clearance. Once you got past that unnerving quality, it was a lot of fun. We had about 6 TVs showing the Sox game in easy viewing distance. The service was friendly and never pushy. The beer was cheap and the food was served fast. I recommend the chicken fingers and fries, very tasty. The potato skins were a bit lacking, but still good. This isn’t the type of place where you would order the strip steak.
I’ll be back soon, perhaps Sunday actually. They were advertising a yummy brunch for only $ 8. Sounds like football food to me…

I’d give this place 2.5 stars… because I’ve def experienced better, but I don’t feel it’s down to only 2 stars…
This place loses a bit of it’s appeal for me because of how long it takes me to get there from the Dot. If I’m just going to check out a game, I’d go somewhere in the Dot or Southie. That being said, however, I know that this place plays Virginia Tech games. Now, I didn’t go to Tech, but a lot of my friends from home/​my father did… so if there’s a big game on, and I want to be able to communicate with any of them, I have to go to this place in order to be in the know.
Food was ok, drinks were ok… prices were high for what you got IMHO… and during game time it took the waitress awhile to get our orders/​bring the food/​check/​etc.
All things considered, this place gets 2.5 stars… and if I was living closer, I’d have given it 3 stars. :-)

For amusement The Sports Depot has Big Buck Hunter, Golden T, Hoop Fever, Box Club, Karaōke, and an interesting mix of customers.
The food is average, the onion rings are good and the Sunday Brunch Buffet is only $ 7.99.
Also, you can walk away with a free treasure, after every meal, you just have to know where to look. If you already know about the Treasure Chest, then you’re all right. If not, all is not lost, your treasure still awaits you. Just follow this riddle…
To find the treasure, you must look upon land. To get even closer, look near the hostess stand. Where in a chest you will find your booty, you’ll get to play and maybe even fulfill your dreams like Rudy.

I’ve seen World Series games, Boston College football games, and entire afternoons of college basketball at the Sports Depot, and it is always a great experience. In fact, I’d go as far as to say it’s one of the best sports bars I’ve ever been to. There are televisions everywhere, and no matter where you look you can see at least a few games you’re interested in. The service, for a bar of that size, is excellent and responsive. The food is far better than most sports bar food you’ll eat — try the meatballs and sandwiches.
It is my first choice for day long baseball/​football/​basketball watching excursions.
That said, to get the most out of it, you need to follow a few key steps:
–Show up early and with your party together (they only seat full parties). The Sports Depot gets packed, but only just before the tipoff/​kickoff/​first pitch/​puck drops. If the game starts at 6, show up at 4:30. You’ll have your run of the place.
–Order food in waves. You can spend five or six hours at the Sports Depot, hogging a table with your buddies and watching games as they come on. The trick is to just keep ordering. Get a round of drinks, then fifteen minutes later a round of appetizers, then 45 minutes after that another round of appetizers, then an hour after that some dinner, and some drinks after that. The wait staff will keep checking in on you, and thankfully not in that «you’ve been here for a quarter of a day, please leave» kind of way.
–Be prepared for rival fans. The «problem» with a bar this large and popular is that it is recommended to out of towners looking to catch the game. I saw BC play Virginia Tech and half the bar had VT colors. You’ll find Jets fans, Rangers fans and folks from the U of Texas. Just something to keep in mind.
–If the parking lot is full, there are side streets immediately next to it that are usually open. Again, the earlier you get there, the better.
It’s a great place to watch a game, or twenty games. I recommend it, and I recommend that you all recommend it to others.

I was here the night the Red Sox won the World Series in 2007. We settled in at about 1PM to catch the Patriots that day and sat on our duffs all night eating and drinking until the Sox brought it home around 11PM. It was a full day’s work, but pretty awesome.
That said, here’s a quick run down…
Pros: Good food, perfect for groups, attentive waitstaff, TONS of TVs, bathrooms were clean, tucked away location, parking lot.
Cons: It’s SO freaking loud in this place, the zillion TVs can get distracting, parking is hit or miss, it gets really crowded on game days so get there early.