Avalon Avalon is located at 15 Lansdowne St. and is a popular spot for dancing with various themes depending on the night. People dress casual for Avalon.

The Black Rose 160 State St. Big Irish pub featuring traditional tunes and lots and lots of Guiness.

Bull and Finch Pub 84 Beacon St, Beacon Hill. Its status as the original setting of TV's Cheers makes this place totally touristy, but at least it's central and lively.

Chaps 100 Warrenton St, off Stuart S. A gay club filled with hip, classy young men.

Commonwealth Brewery Company 138 Portland St. A nice brewpub located by the Fleet Center, which serves great food along with their own beers.

J J Foley's 21 Kingston St. A blue-collar Irish bar in the heart of downtown, with decent food, sports on TV and a great jukebox. Around since 1909.

Other Side Cosmic Café 407 Newbury St . Nice cafe serving food, beer, wine, coffee, and great salads. The cafe is located near Tower Records and stays open late.

Sevens Ale House 77 Charles St, Beacon Hill . A small neighborhood watering hole, which doesn't look like much, but isn't that the point?

The Cellar 991 Massachusetts Ave. An eclectic mix of students and locals gather in this laid-back niche between Harvard and Central squares. Two stories, two bars and some live entertainment on weekends.

Club Passim 47 Palomar St., Harvard Square. This coffee house has been around for four decades and has been associated with being a blues place after Joan Baez performed there as a teen.

House of Blues 96 Winthrop St, Harvard Square. The original, surprisingly small branch of this popular chain of live music venues features high-quality blues nightly. There's also a decent Cajun-themed restaurant and a heaving bar.

Man Ray 21 Brookline Ave, Central Square . Nightly themes draw very different crowds to Cambridge's most popular dance club. Wed is gothic/industrial, Thurs and Sat (when the club is known as Campus ) draw a lively gay crowd, and Fri is reserved for the fetish/bondage scene.

Middle East 472/480 Massachusetts Ave, Central Square . Cambridge's best alternative music venue with three stages and a good, inexpensive Arabic restaurant. Some famous musical acts that have played here are Buffalo Tom, Tracy Bonham, and Morphine.

Phoenix Landing 512 Massachusetts Ave, Central Square. Affable neighborhood bar and restaurant with soccer beamed in from Europe and a down-to-earth mix of music at weekends.

Ryles Jazz Club 212 Hampshire St. Eclectic jazz and world music club charging $10-20 covers.

Plough & Stars 912 Massachusetts Ave, between Harvard and Central squares. Time-worn Irish pub with music most nights. Cover free or up to $8.

Western Front 343 Western Ave, Once a blues/jazz club, the Western Front caters to reggae with live music Friday and Saturday nights.