dallas nightlife

Dallas NightlifeHaving trouble deciding where to see and be seen in Dallas? Just cruise along McKinney Avenue, the main drag in the hip Uptown neighborhood, to find the city's most sizzling hot spots. For an upscale meal paired with a few late-night cocktails, several establishments fit the bill, including Sambuca , 2120 McKinney Ave., a small chain founded in Dallas in 1991. Playing everything from alternative country to jazz and blues, live bands keep hips swaying and toes tapping at the sultry dinner club; phone (214) 744-0820.

Two other Uptown mainstays—both cozy nighttime haunts loved by locals—are The Quarter Bar , 3301 McKinney Ave., and The Ginger Man , 2718 Boll St. Part of Bread Winners Cafe & Bakery, the former oozes New Orleans French Quarter charm and has a rooftop terrace overlooking McKinney. The latter features a handsome beer garden where you can sip cocktails al fresco. Phone (214) 754-4941 for The Quarter Bar or (214) 754-8771 for The Ginger Man.

Greenville Avenue is a commercial thoroughfare with casual eateries, stores and watering holes galore. Pockets of low-key taverns—many offering rooftop lounges—dot Lower Greenville, which runs between Ross Avenue and Mockingbird Lane. Snack and swig at The Libertine Bar , 2101 Greenville Ave., (214) 824-7900; or groove in vintage Art Deco style at The Granada Theater , 3524 Greenville Ave., (214) 824-9933. In Upper Greenville, the bars are more spread out, though there's a small concentration of Southern Methodist University hangouts just north of Mockingbird Lane. Thirsty revelers settle in for cold pitchers and darts at dives like Milo Butterfingers , 5645 SMU Blvd., and The Green Elephant , 5627 Dyer St., both of which are near the intersection of Greenville and SMU Boulevard. Phone (214) 368-9212 for Milo Butterfingers or (214) 265-1338 for The Green Elephant.

SMU undergrads also party in the trendy Knox-Henderson area, named for two streets that meet at the North Central Expressway (from Ross Avenue in Lower Greenville, Henderson Avenue juts in a northwesterly direction toward Knox Street). Mingle with Ms. Pac-Man and Skee-Ball aficionados in retro-paradise Barcadia , 1917 N. Henderson Ave., or sip some sweet tea-infused vodka at The Porch , 2912 N. Henderson Ave. If beer is more your thing, try The Old Monk , 2847 N. Henderson Ave. Chock-full of antiques, the seemingly age-old pub has been a local favorite since it opened in 1998. Phone (214) 821-7300 for Barcadia, (214) 828-2916 for The Porch or (214) 821-1880 for The Old Monk.

In the Victory Park area, The Living Room is just off the lobby of the W Dallas Victory Hotel & Residences, 2440 Victory Park Ln. The chic and comfy lounge has an outdoor patio, DJ music nightly and live jazz on Wednesday evenings; phone (214) 397-4100.

Near Continental Avenue and Houston Street in Victory Park, a handful of familiar bar/restaurants — Hooters , 2201 N. Lamar St.; and House of Blues , 2200 N. Lamar St. — stay open late Friday and Saturday evenings. Another fun pit stop when it's well past your bedtime is Dick's Last Resort , 2211 N. Lamar St., where bad behavior is rewarded. Smart-aleck servers take pride in ridiculing customers at the Dallas-based chain. Phone (214) 979-9464 for Hooters, (214) 978-2583 for House of Blues or (214) 747-0001 for Dick's Last Resort.

Deep Ellum's seen it all—from flapper do's and fedoras to Mohawks and metal piercings. Settled by freed slaves in the late 1800s, the neighborhood (east of downtown Dallas and centering on Main, Commerce and Elm streets) emerged as a hub for jazz and blues in the 1920s, with such entertainers as Bessie Smith and Robert Johnson packing ‘em in nightly. Decades later, resourceful impresarios transformed the then-rundown district, turning empty warehouses into venues for punk rock bands like Black Flag and the Dead Kennedys.

Crowded with tattoo parlors, homespun eateries and nightclubs by the 1990s, Deep Ellum had found its calling again. But then, the scene, as most do, died. These days, you'll largely find shuttered remnants from the entertainment district's most recent heyday; however, by many accounts, Deep Ellum stands poised for a comeback. In the meantime, lingering stalwarts like down-home Adair's Saloon , 2624 Commerce St.; Angry Dog , 2726 Commerce St., a bar and grill said to serve up the meanest, tastiest frankfurter in Dallas; and Trees , 2709 Elm St., known for “live, loud music” since Deep Ellum's glory days, remain popular with those who like to walk on the wild side. Phone (214) 939-9900 for Adair's Saloon, (214) 741-4406 for the Angry Dog or (214) 741-1122 for Trees.