Sports, by way of Bistro

Athletics have a way of bringing people together: famously fractious Spain united when their country won the World Cup, and people-person Walt Weiss is what Malcolm Gladwell would call a "connector". Bringing bistro food and jocks together at last: Varsity.

Opening tomorrow in the former Life space on Wilshire, Varsity's using the elements that Life did well (i.e., cushy furniture, a cabana-heavy outdoor patio, bistro-style entrees) and sports-bar-ing them up with vintage memorabilia (old cloth football helmets, antique lacrosse sticks), locker room-ish shelving, two movie-theater-sized projection screens, and a dozen HD plasmas, but not HD ectoplasmas, since those would only show a pre-diet Jerry O'Connell in Slimers. Food-wise, they've kept some Life staples (filet mignon w/ red wine reduction, grilled salmon w/ citrus butter) but mostly bar-classic'd it up with pubby newness like "Super Nachos" (w/ pico de gallo, black beans, guac, and jalapeno), beer-battered fish & chips, and wings w/ a slew of home made sauces including honey BBQ, garlic parm, and lemon pepper, which is much messier than just playing it with a regular baseball. As far as booze, they've added 8 standard taps (Sierra, etc.), and upped their single-malt ante (Macallan 12 year, Lagavulin 16); for big games, they're also planning on having bottle service, and have near-daily specials, including $2 tacos on Tuesday, $4 beers on Thursday, and, on Sundays, $10 bottomless Bloodys, which might seem like a lot of money to spend just to hear a bunch of British people use weak-ass curse words, but ultimately it's worth it.

For their opening this weekend, the big screens are on lock with the Kings and Lakers games Fri, UFC fight on Sat, and all day Sunday NFL action, which would be a lot more exciting if the Rams and the Raiders hadn't already reached their Dipping Point.