New sports bar with pool tables coming to Palatine

A new sports bar serving food and featuring pool tables, dart boards, air hockey and arcade games is planned for the Century Plaza shopping center in Palatine.

The new venue at 365 W. Northwest Hwy. will be called Hot Pockets Sports Bar, said owner and operator Manny Rafidia, who also owns the shopping center.

"It's going to be a nice hangout place for a younger crowd, between 21 and 35," Rafidia said. "If I am fortunate, my goal is to open Dec. 1."

The village council on Tuesday approved a special use permit and liquor license for the venue. The space is 6,400 square feet, combining a currently empty space plus the existing Physicians Management Solutions, which will move out.

The floor plan includes 52 seats. There will be 25 to 30 TVs showing all major sports, UFC fights and more, 12 to 16 pool tables, and about six dart boards, Rafidia said. Pool and dart leagues will be welcome, he said.

There will be a kitchen within the bar area, so patrons can watch burgers and other pub fare being cooked in front of them, Rafidia said.

"It's a cool concept," he added.

Rafidia also owns Pop's Pizza & Sports Bar in Roselle. "Pop's is about 14,000 square feet. This is half the space - so it's going to be like a mini Pop's," he said.

Meanwhile, Physicians Management Solutions, a physicians' billing service, will move to an office space on the first floor of One North Arlington, 1500 W. Shure Drive in Arlington Heights.

Nancy Biernacki, who co-owns Physicians Management Solutions with Dr. Randall Kahan, said she's excited to move into the new space, which will be more secure for her employees and a bit closer to her home in Palatine.

"Manny's great. He's been a good friend for over 20 years," Biernacki said. "Our lease ends at the end of July but Manny is being cool by letting me stay. We are moving by the end of August, but we are hoping to be out before."