Game time!

Pigskin fans have a few more options for watching the Super Bowl today, thanks to a recent trend in the bar industry to cater directly to sports lovers.

The sports-bar concept certainly isn’t a new one, but it seems to be experiencing a resurgence in Kalispell as bar owners look to attract a wider clientele during down economic times.

“When the economy first started taking a nose dive, I think a lot of businesses started re-evaluating,” said Annie Wildebour, manager of Los Caporales on Montana 35 in Kalispell. A Mexican-American fixture in the area with five locations, Los Caporales chose the east Kalispell location to test the sports theme. The idea had been tossed around for more than a year when a slow tourist season in 2009 convinced owners to make some changes.

The actual bar itself was completely rebuilt, topped with galvanized steel and shifted to another wall. Fresh paint was added along with new big-screen TVs and gaming machines. Wildebour said owners wanted to shift from the traditional Western Montana feel to an edgier space that would draw in a larger crowd for games. The new look debuted in September, just weeks before the state smoking ban took effect.

“You want to appeal to as many people as you can,” she said.

Because the smoking ban hit at about the same time as the unveiling, it has been difficult to judge whether the switch has increased business, she said.

“It’s helped a little bit, but not as much as we would have liked,” Wildebour maintained. Still in its test phase, the sports theme may show up at other Los Caporales locations as well if the numbers pull through.

“There’s a lot of excitement about sports. It’s just a fun thing to do with friends,” Bill Goodman said of his idea to open Red’s Roost as a complement to his popular nightclub, Red’s Wines & Blues. He says it’s the synergy between the two bars — which are connected by a common walkway — that really brings customers in.

“People are constantly swinging between the two,” he said.

“Kalispell is a casual kind of town and sports bars are casual. It just fits who we are,” he added.

Goodman had never been in a sports bar before opening Red’s Roost, but when he saw the space behind his other bar, he envisioned tables lined with fans rooting for their team.

Goodman gave a nod to the trend to go sports-centric, acknowledging that the transition of Los Caporales to the sports theme and the opening of the KB Sports Bar & Grille have upped the ante a bit. But he also said it’s good for the community to have more choices.

Following the trend within the sports-bar industry of ditching traditional fried foods for more upscale dining, Red’s Roost will feature a big barbecue buffet dinner with smoked prime rib today as the Colts and Saints pass the pigskin.

“When people come in for a game, they’re here for three to four hours. We need to feed them,” Goodman said.

Food is a big focus for the KB Sports Bar & Grille as well. Located in the former Painted Horse Grille space, a kitchen was already set up when the bar opened on Oct. 20. Serving Italian pastas alongside nachos and burgers, manager Jeff Epperly hopes to appeal to a broader part of the market.

Epperly said part of the reason owners Janet and Butch Clark decided to open the KB as a sports bar was that the concept appeals to such a broad audience. With WiFi and clean, cushioned seating, the bar appeals to more than just the typical male sports fan. It’s a place guys can bring their wives and children to enjoy a family dinner while catching all the big games on the KB’s 13 flat panel televisions.

“It gave us the most flexibility,” he said.

So far, business has been steady. Epperly says he’s starting to gain some “regulars,” reliable repeat customers.

“We’ve nabbed a little bit of the market out there and it’s good,” he said.

Even Whitefish’s Crush Wine Bar is reaching for the market with it’s “Man Cave” located at the back of the bar. The room features a big-screen TV, leather couches, Nintendo WII, board games and an informal Monday night dart league.

“It was more or less a joke,” manager Kaycee Mohl said of the idea to host a dart league, but the idea has really caught on.

“You never know who’s going to come in to play,” she said.

And just down the street in Whitefish is the Bulldog Saloon, one of the Flathead’s longtime sports bars, where patrons not only get a chance to watch sports but also can take a trip down memory lane with walls full of photographs of past local sports teams.

Chris Gillette of Fatt Boys, a sports bar on U.S. 2 West that’s reigned for nine years in Kalispell, isn’t nervous about the sudden addition of three other sports bars in the area.

“It’s a compliment to see more bars opening as sports bars,” he said. “We’ve set the mark on sports around the valley.”

A mainstay for University of Montana Griz fans, the bar often features up to 10 games at a time and draws a consistent crowd of repeat guests.

“Football seasons are my bread and butter,” Gillette said.

A former Division I college baseball player, Gillette said he loves sports and the interaction with his patrons during games.

He said his bar was the first in Montana to feature UFC fighting. Due to customer demand, he plans to add NASCAR racing soon in conjunction with Raceway Park and will introduce some new promotions to bring people in during college basketball for March Madness.

But Fatt Boys isn’t just a sports bar. Gillette recently introduced open-mic Thursdays and has started bringing in bands on Fridays and Saturdays in his quest to broaden appeal. He’s also introduced a new menu featuring five different burgers and 50-cent wings.

Epperly also noted that he uses alternative ways to drum up business, dropping menus off at local businesses and pushing word-of-mouth praise.

The slackened economy has caused hesitation and conservatism across the industry, but Kalispell bar managers hope for a change soon, and hope their attempts to appeal to the entire community will make a difference.

Reporter Erika Hoefer may be reached at 758-4439 or by e-mail at ehoefer@dailyinterlake.com