New CT sports pub has local beer on tap, gourmet pizza pies and that ‘everybody knows your name’ feel

Iron Horse Sports Pub in West Hartford – with locally brewed beer on tap, pizza, wings, sports memorabilia and plenty of seating and bar space – aims to be a place much like the 1980s TV bar Cheers, ‘where everybody knows your name.’

The sports pub and restaurant, located at 14 Oakwood Ave., opened in the former Park Road Pasta Kitchen space earlier this month. Owners Bob Mercier and Rob Bylykbashi celebrated the opening along with the West Hartford chamber of commerce and several town officials. Mercier’s wife Christine manages the West Hartford restaurant.

Mercier said he hopes the bar is a “Cheers” type establishment – where people can gather much like in the popular TV show – and become regulars within a community atmosphere.

“I was a member of the Manchester Country Club and I loved hanging out over there after a round of golf,” Mercier said. “I knew the name of the bartender, everyone was friendly, there was no rowdiness. I just wanted a place to go where everyone has a good time. That’s what I wanted to bring here. We already have regulars. People already come in and know the bartender. That’s the vibe I’m going for here.”

The bar and restaurant, which has only been open for a few weeks, is already popular.

“The place has been packed,” Mercier said. “Our main focus at the beginning was delivery but we haven’t done much of that yet. We thought our delivery business would be much more busy, but with word of mouth and foot traffic, we’ve been getting customers in the door nonstop.”

The new location joins existing Iron Horse Sports Pubs in Simsbury and Unionville. Bylykbashi, the president of People’s Choice Pizza, said the business expanded to include the first Iron Horse in Simsbury in 2017. Mercier became one of the pizza delivery company’s first franchise owners in 2005 with locations in Manchester, East Hartford and formerly in Vernon.

The new pub will be very similar to the Simsbury location, featuring the same drink and food menu.

“We have been looking to get into West Hartford as just a pizza delivery place for probably 20 years now,” Mercier said. “The rent is just not good for a pizza place. We never could find a place that worked out. But the rent is good for this type of establishment and we just thought now is the time. We always wanted to be in West Hartford.”

People’s Choice Pizza opened in 2004 and now has seven locations across Hartford County including in the sports pub in West Hartford. Mercier said the location just put out its first People’s Choice mailing last week with delivery now set up.

Iron Horse, one of the first dedicated sports pubs in West Hartford, is approximately 3,000 square feet with seating for up to 50 guests. Sports memorabilia from jerseys to photos of well-known athletes lines the walls. Mercier, a self-proclaimed sports fan, said that most of the collection is his own, with items from the Yankees, Red Sox, Celtics, Patriots, Giants and the Hartford Whalers.

“My wife’s mother got an insurance policy from 1920 that Babe Ruth signed himself as ‘George’ from The Hartford,” Mercier said. “The funny thing is we might have thrown that out because my wife said ‘what should we do with this?’ And I said this is probably worth something, so we threw it up on the wall. It’s now nailed to the wall behind glass.”

Eleven TV’s scattered throughout the pub provide wrap-around views of sporting events so guests never miss a moment regardless of where they are sitting. Guests can also play a game of pool or foosball.a here.”

Pizza, wings and classic pub fare

“The biggest draw is the pizza,” Mercier said. “It’s our most popular offering.”

People’s Choice pies come in 8, 12, or 16 inches with varieties including gourmet vegetarian, bacon cheeseburger, pepperoni margherita, and famous white with garlic, oil, ricotta and mozzarella. Specialty pizzas including a lasagna pie can be ordered with marinara, ricotta and meatballs and a Piggly Wiggly with pepperoni, bacon, sausage and extra cheese. Gluten-free pizza is also offered.

“We’ve always had good pizza. But the cooler in West Hartford is a different system and pizza making is a science. Little differences in the dough-making process can change flavor. The cooler we have found makes the dough better, so the pizza really tastes amazing. It’s been a huge hit so far.”

Other popular options include standard pub fare like chicken wings with over a dozen flavor options including Buffalo blue, garlic parmesan, sweet and sour, honey BBQ, classic BBQ, teriyaki, medium, hot, really hot, nuclear, insanity, boom boom, wasabi cucumber, cajun rub and lemon pepper.

“My favorites are the boneless wings, because they are a little different than what we do at People’s Choice,” Mercier said. “Because instead of freezing them first and selling them, because that’s what you need to do with pizza delivery, we’re making them fresh to order and they are so good. I’ve been eating them quite a bit lately. They have incredible flavor.”

A variety of sandwiches and salads are also available including signature “bar bites” appetizers like fried cheese curds served with chipotle ranch, loaded tater tots with cheddar, bacon, green onion and boom boom sauce (a sweet and spicy mayonnaise-based sauce) and poutine with house fries, short rib, cheddar cheese curds and house gravy drizzled on top.

The rotating tap list includes a beer brewed only for Iron Horse Sports Pub –  Out of Your League Lager – and several local brews and ciders including Back East Brewing’s Ice Cream Man, Fat Orange Cat Brewing’s Baby Kittens, and New England Brewing’s Fuzzy Baby Ducks. Out of Your League is brewed by Back East in Bloomfield.

“It’s a pretty neat partnership we have, it’s been a good seller for us so far,” Mercier said. “You can only find it at Iron Horse so a lot of people come in asking for it.”

Iron Horse Sports Pub in West Hartford is open Monday through Thursday and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to midnight. On Fridays and Saturdays the pub is open from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. For more information on menu options visit ironhorsesportspub.com

Stephen Underwood can be reached at sunderwood@courant.com