Eagle Street Grille is clean place with a nice urban décor and decent menu that hearkens back to St. Paul’s notorious '20s and '30s, when bars were filled with gangsters and mob bosses. Today, the only mobs you’ll see will be the Wild jersey–wearing kind, as the bar sits kitty-corner across Kellogg Avenue from the Xcel. It’s a fine place to grab a brew or two before the game. Continue Reading

Small and hardly singular, Eli’s is your vanilla nightlife spot—and that’s not such a bad thing. While the low-key atmosphere makes it a good place for mom and dad, or the right spot for a business lunch, Eli’s is first and foremost a place to relax. The beer selection might be standard and the fare American, but a cocktail and the “Black and Blue” burger are tough to beat, especially outside in the summer. Continue Reading

Never let it be said that Elsie’s doesn’t have something for everyone. One of the few places where you can eat, drink, bowl, and sing karaoke in a single night, this Nordeast stalwart has a kind of irreducible authenticity, mainly because of it unaffected style, or lack thereof. Inside, Elsie’s is a time machine of sorts, which is why it’s not uncommon to be rubbing elbows with boomers, students, and scenesters all singing “Summer of ’69” on a Friday night in the twenty-first century. Glow-in-the-dark bowling is always a hoot, and everything is reasonably priced, so a lot of fun can be had for relatively little money. Continue Reading

Dance and techno beats keep the crowd happy at this fairly upscale dance club on First Avenue. Young professionals gravitate here, with women in heels and guys in button-downs dancing to top-40 hits and techno remixes. The bright bar serves high-end cocktails and other pricey drinks. Clubbers dance in the bar area and in a large dance area hidden behind the bar area—which is also equipped with a stage. White is the club’s theme color, but it’s combined with a dark atmosphere, making Envy feel cool and hip, which it is. Continue Reading

Epic isn't your typical nightclub, rather a space that opens for parties, events, and concerts featuring some of the best R & B, rap, and DJ-ing talent in the world. Not the country...the world. Continue Reading

The Fine Line Music Café is a club dedicated to live music (as opposed to a club with music). Indie rock, prog-rock, jazz, blues, funk, R & B, and world music are the mainstays, but just about every type of music has been featured here at one time or another. A different live act is featured every night, from up-and-coming local bands to national headliners, and the crowd changes with the music. No two nights are the same, and the cover charge fluctuates according to the drawing power of the band. Tickets to see national headliners are around $30 for the main floor and $60 for mezzanine.Seating is first come, first serve, unless you buy an X-Gold ticket for an extra $50, which guarantees a primo seat on the upstairs rail. The club has two levels and a dance floor, and all shows are either 18 or 21+.  It’s all about the music here, so there aren’t many frills—just top-notch sound in a great setting for listening, and moving, to some great grooves. Continue Reading

There's no denying that First Avenue has played an integral role in the history of Twin Cities music. First opened as The Depot in 1970, the notorious club brought in DJs, disco, and performances from Tina Turner, Frank Zappa, and B. B. King, to name a few. It wasn't until 1981 that the venue became known as First Avenue. Continue Reading

The sleek neon illuminating the sushi and liquor bars in the open interior of Fuji-Ya might make you think you’ve entered the future, or come to Japan. This is as close to an authentic Japanese sushi bar as we come in the Twin Cities, and the sake does indeed flow here, especially during happy hour. The crowd’s age varies along a bell curve that tops out in the mid-forties, and the vibe is more laid-back Lyn-Lake than snappy Hennepin. Thursdays and Sundays a DJ hosts a great late-night happy hour, conjuring a hypnotic atmosphere for sipping hot sake and forgetting for a while that you’re in Minnesota. Continue Reading

The Glockenspiel is a German restaurant that also happens to have attached to it a cozy little bar that looks and feels as if it was air-lifted from Bavaria. Most of the time, the bar serves as a quiet neighborhood sanctuary, but it is also a prime destination for serious beer lovers, because it’s got the best selection of German beers in the Twin Cities. Start with a Weihenstephaner Dunkel Weiss, from the oldest brewery in the world, then move on to a Bitburger, Piraaat Ale, or Celebrator. There are plenty more brews to choose from, all of them interesting international diversions. Continue Reading

Its rich history and century-and-a-half-old beer recipes are what draw the crowds to Gluek's. This charming German-style pub dates back to 1857, when Gottlieb Gluek began brewing beer in Minneapolis. To this day, Gluek's continues to be a hot spot for live music, good food (including brats, spaetzle, walleye, and burgers), and big mugs of housemade beer. Continue Reading