New sports bar Tom’s Watch opens in downtown Indianapolis – Indianapolis Business Journal

A new sports entertainment concept is hoping to enhance Indianapolis’ growing sports scene by providing another place for fans to gather.

Tom’s Watch Bar opened Dec. 2 at 140 S. Illinois St., just north of Georgia Street and less than two blocks from the Indiana Convention Center. IBJ first reported on Tom’s plans to open an Indianapolis franchise in June.

The space in the base of a Circle Center Mall garage opened in 1997 as a Planet Hollywood location, followed in 2000 by Ram Restaurant & Brewery and in 2021 by Goodwood Brewing & Spirits.

The 10,000-square-foot space features 135 screens as well as a full food and drink menu. Tom’s Watch Bar’s menu includes a variety of options from nachos to an ahi tuna tower and lobster and shrimp mac and cheese.

“We realized that the status quo of most sports bars were really kind of old and dated,” Tom’s Watch Bar co-founder Tom Ryan said. “You know, lots of pennants, lots of sticky floors, lots of $3 beers … we decided to kind of recreate sports bars for the next generation of sports enthusiasts. We view ourselves as a viewing-based sports entertainment concept that does elevated food and drink but really caters to very social occasions for people.”

Indianapolis is the 13th Tom’s Watch Bar location. Visitors can tune in to a variety of games or attend a “screen takeover” event in which each screen will show a major sporting event. Ryan told Inside INdiana Business his team took note of Indianapolis’ strong sports enthusiasm and fan base.

“We think Indianapolis is going to be a great spot for us given the Fever and given the Pacers and given the Colts…[and] the affinity for key colleges in and around the Indianapolis area, whether they’re Big Ten or not. All of that richness is there, and we’re aware of it,” Ryan said.

The Indiana Sports Corp unveiled its 2050 Vision earlier this year, and one of its goals is to be among the top three sports event host cities in the U.S.

Ryan says he hopes Tom’s Watch Bar will be a space for fans to gather when they don’t get a ticket for an event but still want a gameday experience. The restaurant hopes to partner with universities, teams and alumni associations who can use the private event space.

In 2025, Indiana will welcome WWE’s Royal Rumble, the men’s and women’s Big Ten Conference basketball tournaments and more.