Missoula has plenty of places to watch sports. For Green Bay Packers fans, the Top Hat Lounge might be the best.
Owner Nick Checota, who is from Wisconsin, made the decision to only show Packers games in his bar, and said it’s a slightly different approach from how other venues show sports. At other bars, he said, there will be multiple smaller screens, each showing different games, with the audio either overlapping each other or muted.
Instead, Packers fans can come to the Top Hat to enjoy its 17-foot projection screen and house sound system, part of the same system used for live concerts.
“People like one big TV, with one sound system, and sitting and watching it all together,” he said.
Sunday’s game didn’t fill the bar, although most of the tables, and the two rows of chairs put up in front of the screen were occupied. Checota said the busiest games are the ones in the evenings on Thursday or Monday nights, or the games that don’t get televised for most people to be able to watch at home.
“Then we have a full house,” he said.
When the Packers games are on, the Top Hat also puts together a special menu for the fans the come out to watch, in addition to a bloody Mary bar. Checota calls the selection of fried cheese curds, bratwurst and German potato salad “traditional Wisconsin food.”
“Another fun thing we do is when the Packers score a touchdown, we give away a special green Packers-themed shot,” he said.
Cody Berglind was the lone Dolphin jersey in a crowd of green and yellow. He’d come to watch the game with his friend Gage Rouane, who had an Aaron Rodgers Green Bay jersey on. Berglind wore a jersey for Ryan Tannehill, Miami’s quarterback.
“I’m trying to get myself ready, I’m going to go see a Dolphins game later this year when they play Denver at Mile High Stadium,” Berglind said.
Rouane said he’s come to the Top Hat for Packers games before, and loves that it’s the only NFL they show.
“When another game is on, they don’t open,” he said.
Midway through the first quarter, the Dolphins blocked a punt and began to move the ball downfield, to boos from the Top Hat patrons. Then Green Bay’s defense stopped them at the 1 yard line, and the crowd erupted.
“Yeah, that hurt a little bit,” Berglind said.
This is the second year the Top Hat has been showing Green Bay games, and Checota said especially for the Sunday morning games, lots of people bring their kids with them and make watching football a family experience.
“We did the same thing for the World Cup. It’s a great way to watch, it’s almost like you’re there,” Checota said.
Green Bay ended up winning in the finals seconds 27-24. Next week, the Packers play the Carolina Panthers on Sunday at 11 a.m.
