Bar/Club

The Loft is not themed or postmodern or anything at all, really. It has no indigenous crowd, serves no foofie drinks and has no murals on its painted cinder-block walls. It's just a meat-and-fries neighborhood sports bar with a couple of pool tables, eight greatest-hits beer taps and a raft of flat-screens tuned to ESPN.

In its way, the Loft is as much a working man's joint as the Smoke Shop and the People's Pub, and I could easily imagine regulars from those bars wandering down to the Loft if there are more than two must-see games on TV. This is the kind of place that grows on you over time.