Taking time out at Sportsmans bar

JAKARTA (JP): There is a bar called Sportsmans; it may be grammatically incorrect, but there are so many other things that are right about the place.

This is a bar for people who like bars, in the true sense of the word. It's not for those who wear their Prada when they want to go casual and gather in sterile cafes and bistros, or whatever prissy name they call themselves, who think lack of character is the same thing as modern chic. Enough said.

When you walk into the Sportsmans in the middle of the day, standing on the threshold with the harsh sunlight burning up the street behind you, the cool dimness greets you like an old friend, and the hours pass unnoticed and unmissed.

Location: Sportsmans (tel. 720-4731) is in Blok M, just around the corner from Pasaraya and down the way from National Police Headquarters in South Jakarta. It's on Jl. Palatehan, a dirty little street, lined with seedy bars and a few places selling souvenirs and art.

Hours: The bar is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m.

What's it got: You can get domestic and imported beers, including Boddingtons, Corona and Heineken. Also serves spirits, cocktails, mixed drinks and wine.

If your belly's empty, you can fill it with sandwiches, pizzas, steak, chicken, ribs, or you can order breakfast. The food may not look fancy, but it's good and does its job of filling your stomach and sopping up the alcohol.

Bill, please: You won't have to dig too far into your wallet for a good time here. Draft beer is Rp 14,000 and other drinks are as reasonably priced. The food is good value for the money, too. Two beers and a sandwich will cost you about Rp 70,000. And there aren't too many better ways to spend that much money.

Here's looking at you: Sportsmans has two floors, connected by a stairway that seems somewhat more rickety on your way down than on the way up. Downstairs are two bars, one of which is good sized, and tables. There's a pool table and a couple of TVs in the corners, usually showing a game. Upstairs is another bar, more tables, a pool table and a foozball table.

The whole place is cool and dim, which tends to draw you in and hold you. You can be sitting by yourself at the bar nursing a beer and watching the TV or playing a raucous game of pool with your mates, and you get the same sense of quiet. Bars like this, where you can hide away from the brightness and the heat outside, have an otherworldly quality to them that take hold of you. The outside is forgotten and in return, so you hope, it has forgotten you.

Odds and ends: Sportsmans can be called a sports bar. It has about four or five TVs, though not of the big-screen variety. They show a whole range of sports, from soccer and rugby to basketball and cricket. They post schedules in the bar of upcoming games and sporting events, so you can make sure you don't miss the big match.

The Sportsmans is located in an area that enjoys a bad reputation. But the Sportsmans is not that kind of bar, so if that's what you want don't bother (although you can probably find that a few steps away, just across the street).

The staff is prompt in their service and friendly, but not intrusive. all in all very professional.

Last call: Sportsmans is not the fanciest bar, it doesn't have the biggest TVs if you want to watch a game and its located on a dingy street. But what it doesn't have is nominal compared to what it does.

It is a pleasure to spend a quiet afternoon there -- and the nights aren't bad, either. (Penn Dawson)