Football Heaven at Bradenton's Gecko's

Consider Gecko’s Grill & Pub one-stop shopping for all your NFL needs.

Chicken wings? Got ‘em in all flavors including Buffalo, barbeque, Jack Daniels and teriyaki.

Beer? Plenty to go around. Everything from good ole Anheuser-Busch products to Guinness, Strongbow, Jale House Light and Sam Adams. Wine and liquor, too, if that’s your thing, including an assortment of cocktails, margaritas and martinis.

Burgers? Oh, yeah. And not just from the cow. Check out Gecko’s bison burger for a healthier take on the lunchtime tradition.

And, of course, football.

Gecko’s broadcasts football games, right?

Most definitely. All Gecko's locations are subscribed to the NFL Sunday Ticket and all have enough televisions for every game.

There are five Gecko’s total. Two in Manatee County and three in Sarasota County. The original Gecko’s opened in 1992 at 4870 South Tamiami Trail in Sarasota and its success led to four more. Read the Gecko’s story here.

Manatee County’s Gecko’s are in and . (Bar Tab visited the Braden River Plaza location last Sunday.)

On any given Sunday, Gecko’s is filled with football fans of varying loyalties huddled at a table or perched on a bar stool in front of one of the restaurant’s dozen flat-screen televisions.

Food + drinks + NFL Sunday Ticket = a virtual melting pot of cheering, happy football fans wearing jerseys of their favorite players from Dallas, Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and so on. And that was just last Sunday.

A Baltimore Ravens jersey is the most common jersey at the Braden River Plaza Gecko’s. For years, Ravens fans have made this spot their local football headquarters, said bartender Barry Bittner. A dozen of them gathered around a broadcast of the Ravens vs. Steelers game and, like any good group of football fans, they were loyal, loud and appeared to enjoy ribbing Bittner – a Steelers fan - whenever something went the Ravens’ way.

“They’re always nice about it,” Bittner said. “They support their team just like I support mine. I’ll mess with them a bit and they’ll mess with me, but it’s all about having fun.”

Gecko’s has all the makings of a bar, but it serves food and has ample dining tables where families of all ages are welcome. Smoking is prohibited.

Father and son Randy Lee and Randy Lee II, both clad in Cincinnati Bengals jerseys and enjoying wings and beer, sat at a middle table in front of high-def broadcast of the Bengals vs Cleveland Browns game. At the bar, Thomas “TJ” Nevadom, Jr., and his dad, Tom, adorned in jerseys bearing the name of former Eagles star Brian Westbrook, watched their team crush the St. Louis Rams.

Another Philly fan, bartender Janine West, sported an Eagles jersey. And a family of Chicago Bears fans huddled in the dining area to watch da Bears take out the Atlanta Falcons while another family of Dallas Cowboy fans dined at a lengthy table opposite the bar.

Chances are not everyone knew each other. But for one Sunday afternoon at Gecko’s they were members of one diverse family, all in the name of football, wings, burgers and beer.

IF YOU GO

Both Gecko’s in Manatee County are open Sunday through Wednesday 11 a.m. until midnight and Thursday through Saturday 11 a.m. until 1 a.m.