10 select sports bars to see the Super Bowl

The Patriots in the Super Bowl. It's enough to make most New Englanders weep with pride - then let loose a string of boastful and disparaging threats aimed squarely at our poor football-loving comrades in New York.

The smack talk is inevitable. As is the logo flaunting, the pots of chili con queso, and the never-ending pitchers of beer. After all, it's the Super Bowl.

You can be there in person to watch the Patriots take on the Giants in Indianapolis, so long as you're willing to drop the $2,500 for a ticket, $1,000 on airfare, and another $500 or so for a place to sleep that doesn't require you to prop your head on a bathroom stall door (those costs according to this story on boston.com).

Or you can lay claim to a bar stool in close proximity to an HD flat screen, order some wings, and start yelling at the TV with the same brazen gusto usually reserved for ticket holders. To help you out, here are a few select sports bars to see the Super Bowl.

Jimmy the Greeks in OOB
215 Saco Ave. | 207.934.7499 | www.jimmygreeks.com
Your friends can keep their 60-inch televisions. Jimmy's has a projector screen. It's huge. They have other TVs too, but the projector screen! Plus they're offering an all-you-can-eat-and-drink special for only $20, starting at 6 p.m. (That includes Bud products only.)

Rivalries Sports Pub and Grill, Portland
10 Cotton St. | 207.774.6044 | rivalriesportland.com
Maybe it's the 30 HD televisions. Maybe it's the loft-like upstairs that lets you spy on the people below. Or maybe it's because they make a good turkey Reuben. Whatever the lure, sports fans just naturally flock there. That said, plan to get there an hour or two before the game if you want a chance at getting a table.

Binga's Stadium Smokehouse and Sports Bar, Portland
77 Free St. 207.347.6072 | www.bingasstadium.com
The TVs are in abundance. Also in abundance: $5 Bud and Bud Light personal pitchers and $16 Bud and Bud Light towers. What's a tower you ask? One hundred ounces, that's what. And seeing as Binga's Stadium is a popular place to watch the game, plan on an early arrival to secure a table.

The Brunswick Ocean Side Grill, Old Orchard Beach
39 West Grand Ave. | 207.934.4873
www.thebrunswick.com
The 22 HD plasma TVs, plus a 60-inch, plus a 10-foot big screen should keep the game in easy view at all times, at every angle, even when you're pretending to listen to your friend's story but are really looking over his shoulder. But then there's the tailgate party starting at 2 p.m. featuring wings, burgers and hot dogs on the grill. The grilling goes on throughout the game - and possibly some giveaways too.

Asylum Sports Bar and Grill, Portland
121 Center St. | 207.772.8274 | www.portlandasylum.com
The Asylum Sports Bar, opening at 2 p.m., is planning a sweet $5 buffet, complete with wings, tacos, pizza, and pasta. They'll also have $7.50 Rolling Rock, Bud, and Coors pitchers. They're $5 Sweet ans Spicy Stoli Bloody Mary is another draw, made in house with BBQ and Buffalo sauces. The lounge area will also be open for those super-classy football fans.

Buffalo Wild Wings, South Portland
85 Western Ave. | 207.541.9464 | www.buffalowildwings.com
They don't do pitchers - I know, I know, it seems weird at first. But what they lack in multiple-serving beer containers they make up for in selection. They have over 30 beers on tap - $3.50 for a tall - and most are local. And on Super Bowl Sunday, they're giving away a cool Bud Light package that includes chairs, a grill, a cooler, a jersey and other Bud Light-logoed stuff you can use.

Dock Fore, Portland
336 Fore St. | 207.772.8619
Dock Fore is opening at noon for the Bruins and Celtics games, so Super Bowlers can get started early on those $2.95 mimosas and $3.95 Bloody Marys until 7 p.m. A 20-ounce PBR will cost you only $1.95 from 3 p.m. until close. The official tailgate party begins at 4 p.m. with free food, lots of prizes, jellos shots and free peanuts.

Fore Play Sports Pub, Portland
436 Fore St. | 207.780.1111 | Fore Play on Facebook
Catch the game and partake in some Jello shots. And if the half-time show doesn't appeal to you, get on the air hockey.

The Frosty Pint, Portland
965 Forest Ave. | 207.221.0709 | www.thefrostypint.com
The Frosty Pint has 10 TVs, so every seat in the house should have a good view - probably a few good views. They also have free wi-fi, so you can post all your game musings to Facebook AND send an email to your cousin in New York to offer your condolences.

Federal Jacks, Kennebunk
8 Western Av. | 207.967.4322 | www.federaljacks.com/
They've got the drink specials and the 13 TVs. They've also got a giant projection screen so the game will look life-size...or close enough, anyway. Federal Jacks is also offering a complimentary buffet with chips and dips, meatballs, ribs, bratwurst, ham salad sliders, enchiladas, a dessert bar and more.