‘Sports grille’ opens at Hillel

Freshman David Solkowitz cheered with 20 other IU students in a new, all-ages sports bar as he watched Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton score a touchdown Sunday.

In early September, the Helene G. Simon Hillel Center converted its dining room into the Third Street Sports Grille — the first and only kosher sports bar on campus.

The grille is now open on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays for football games and offers six new flat screen televisions with space for at least 50 students to sit and watch, Solkowitz said.

He is the student manager of the grille. 

“It opens up sports viewing to the entire campus,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what religion — we’re just all here to enjoy sports together.”

The grille offers menu items including hamburgers, barbecue sandwiches on pita bread and soda — but no alcohol.

“As the semester progressed we realized that we should open up to all students,” he said. “This may be a Jewish building, but anyone is welcome.”

He said the whole idea was pretty spontaneous.

“There isn’t really anywhere they can go to watch these games because you can’t go into anywhere on Kirkwood,” Solkowitz said. “If you’re under 21 they wont let you. It’s a nice place for students of all ages.”

Rabbi Sue Silberberg said she drew inspiration for the grille from a Hillel center in Florida.

“It was difficult for a lot of students to watch their home teams on TVs in their residence halls,” she said. “We had the resources and thought this would be perfect at IU.”

She said she wanted to expand on the idea with more kosher food options and the addition of Bloomington’s first Jewish Athlete Hall of Fame.

The new Hall of Fame will feature famous athletes such as Olympic swimmer Mark Spitz, as well as current IU diver Cassidy Kahn and football player Nathaniel Hoff.

Benjamin Brasch is the grille’s head chef.

“It’s a great place to chill out — especially if you’re under 21 and you can’t get into a bar,” Brasch said. “Yes, there’s no alcohol, but I have all my friends here. We’re making it a new tradition to come here every Sunday.”

Solkowitz said he plans to show every major football game at the bar and hopes to also show IU basketball games.

“The best part is that I don’t see this as work or a job,” Solkowitz said. “I see this as me being required to watch sports, which is what I love.”

Follow reporter Matt Bloom on Twitter @matthew_bloom.