Over the bridge to RJ's

And you know what? It wasn't so bad. Seriously. It seems like the kind of place that the regulars dominate, but when I walked in with my crew I didn't get the what-the-hell-are-you-doing-in-this-territory look. I got the hey-there-are-new-people-here look.

During my usual bartender inquiries I met Alabama, a regular who disclosed his name but I forget because, well, he said he was from Alabama and I had just been at this wine tasting event at the Holiday Inn by the Bay. I also met Clem, the short-spoken bartender; and Kat and Kevin, a mismatched couple who celebrated their wedding reception at the small local bar.

(Sidenote: You can show up in sweat pants or your wedding gown.)

You walk in and find the bar just ahead and a few tables to the right and a pool table to the left. There's sports memorabilia on the walls and bar stools, accompanied by random pictures and stickers and even a noosed-up Barney plush. There was a Steelers banner, which will win me over every time.

Really, there isn't much room inside for anything to happen other than drinking and a pool or dart game. But somehow they have bands on Fridays and Saturdays. This weekend you can hear Ken Grimsley (March 27) and the Wayouts (March 28).

It's a cash-only establishment, an important detail when heading out for the night. Luckily there are a couple banks nearby with MACs in the drive-thru. Yes, I'm talking about Money Access Centers or ATMs (Automated Teller Machines) if you must.

Draft beers are few and include Busch for $1.50, Geary's for $3 and Budweiser for $2.50. Bottled beers are $2.75-3.50 and include the Budweiser family, Michelob Light, Heineken, Coors Light, Miller Lite, PBR, Corona, Sam Adams and Twisted Teas. There's also a moderate bar. Beer specials are determined by the bartender and vary by day, except for Thursday when you can purchase a Captain Morgan mixed drink for $3.75.

There's no food except when the owner, Randy Aspiras, decides to cook up some free food on the weekends or after a local game. Otherwise you can snack on potato chips, Slim Jims and M&Ms from the vending machine. I threw down at least $2 worth during a rancid round of darts.

In addition to darts you can play Golden Tee, Mega Touch or pool or watch the game on any of the three TVs. Pool tournaments are every Monday and Wednesday. Alabama said something about golf tournaments on weekends. I guess the boys (and girls?) play some golf nearby and head to RJs for beers after.

Why do you want to go to a South Portland sports-ish bar? The crowd is local and friendly, the beer is cheap, it doesn't feel stuffy and the place has real character. And there's a kick ass juke box. Go head, rock out to whatever song you want. I went with Flogging Molly, Johnny Cash, Michael Jackson and The Cult, you know, the song list every one has blasting on their iPods.

Amy Martin is a freelance writer.