Plenty of Fun Is Aloud at Pierce Street Annex

Before I started going to Pierce Street Annex, I couldn’t play backgammon. Now I can. I’ve also added to my dance repertoire by learning the Texas 10-step.

The Annex is more than a bar. It’s kind of like school for folks who don’t like to work too hard, who just like to have fun.

For almost 15 years, it’s been a great place to meet people--or re-meet the ones you met last week. And there is never a cover.

The club has plenty of seating around a bar or in front of the stage, which features some fairly good and varied bands from week to week that play a range from oldies rock ‘n’ roll to Top 40. The Dough Boys, the Works, Local Tourist, No Exit and Boomers are some of the local bands that play here on a regular basis. And no matter who’s on stage, the room features good views of the performers, with easy access to a dance floor that is roomy enough to twist and shout on but cozy enough so that you don’t feel like your steps are being scrutinized by those on the sidelines.

Tuesdays feature a “Starmaker” show, in which patrons with the guts to face an always-cheering crowd can sing their own song to prerecorded background music and receive a cassette for their efforts.

The bartenders proudly hang their name tags as shingles over their stations. I was quick to adopt Buzz as my bartender--Buzz remembers my name and my drink. And, although he does not always have a dry handshake, he always has a handshake.

On tap are Molson, Miller Lite and Bud, plus several brands of bottled beers. The full-service bar offers reasonably priced drinks, and if none of the old favorites suit your fancy, the bartenders will usually be glad to mix whatever you want to try.

If you are not on a strict liquid diet, I recommend the half-pound burger. For $2.75, you get to cook it yourself on an open-pit grill on the patio, just the way you would if you were at home.

In fact, I think of Pierce Street Annex as my bar.

But you all are welcome.

Pierce Street Annex, 330 E. 17th St., Costa Mesa. Open daily, noon to 2 a.m. (714) 646-8500.