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A spiffy Dublin-style pub with good food, excellent pints, and large windows that let in the sunlight and the breeze.

Like a modern-day Moscow speakeasy, Pravda seduces with its sumptuous red interior, exhaustive vodka menu, and chic clientele. Weekends bring out a mix of black-clad Euros intent on striking fetching poses with vodka martinis in hand, and international students hell-bent on having a decadent night out. DJs spin an infectious mix of house and electro.

A sleek and sophisticated bar in the front fades into a Euro-trance dance floor in the back. Very popular with the international set (see Pravda 116).

Thursday through Saturday, club goers must wear black leather (no brown leather or suede, please), full Western wear (think John Travolta in Urban Cowboy ) – or go shirtless. That’s right, guys: no gear, no beer. Fortunately, the prohibitive dress code is well worth it, with weekend fetish shows and throbbing techno music. Country and western two-stepping on Tuesdays brings the cowboys out in droves.

Rattlesnake’s roof deck hosts one of Boston’s most boisterous after-work crowds. Dress is always casual, and people are always mingling.

Befitting its location in the sleek Charles Hotel, Regattabar offers a refined yet casual setting for watching today’s giants of jazz. Book early, since shows sell out quickly (see Regattabar).

The giants of jazz frequently stop at this nautical-theme lounge in Cambridge’s Charles Hotel. Drinks may not be extraordinary but the talent is; recent visitors have included McCoy Tyner, Ron Carter, and local favorite the Charlie Kolhase Quintet. Shows sell out quickly.

Spicy Caribbean cuisine, potent rum-based cocktails, and live reggae music make this one of Cambridge’s more spirited institutions. An ideal escape on frosty winter nights.

Housed in an ornate, bilevel theater, the Roxy can accommodate more nightlife denizens than any other Boston club. Top 40, ’80s, Latin, and house blare through the powerful sound system, while a mixed crowd lounges around on cushy banquettes or keeps the beat on the mammoth dance floor.

This massive two-story dance hall sometimes morphs into a live-performance concert venue for touring acts. High-energy Latin on Thursday, pop rock on Friday, techno on Saturday (see Roxy).