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Just as diners are ordering dessert, the lights are dimmed and the music turned up, officially ushering in the night to this restaurant and wine bar. A terrific selection of wines, many by the glass and fairly priced. The splendid loft space has a large adjoining patio (see Crush).

A haunt of creative types, this bar atop the Park Hyatt Hotel offers refuge from daily stresses. In winter, a fireplace and huge leather chairs beckon; in summer, spectacular views from the terrace (see The Roof Lounge).

Rave gear isn’t mandatory for joining the 3,000 clubbers who, animated by lasers pulsing to the house, progressive, and trance beating from a deafening sound system, party into the wee hours. Five lounges offer a brief respite from the cavernous split-level dance floor. Concerts are held at adjoining Kool Haus (see Guvernment).

It’s all about style at this busy see-and-be-seen bar on the ground floor of the prestigious Four Seasons Hotel in fashionable Yorkville. At your table, adept servers prepare the perfect cocktail in a miniature shaker; nary a drop is spilled. At the bar, business tycoons talk takeovers while scoping out the room (see Avenue).

Giant “ants” on the front of this former flophouse signal a different bar experience. Unspoiled by the acts that played here before making it big, this low-key bar is dedicated to up-and-coming musicians. Join foot-stomping regulars on weekend evenings for pay-what-you-can country music (see Cameron House).

Unpretentious dance-til-you-drop club with HiNRG music. The lower level fills up quickly with 300 frenetic dancers. A quieter area upstairs entices you to loll on leather banquettes (see Una Mas).

Pub lovers will feel at home with the mahogany bar and stool and booth seating set among the marble columns of this historic bank building. Good choice of beers on tap, and tasty pub food, including bison burgers.

The high-ceilinged dance club of this restaurant/bar venue (see The Fifth) caters to the 25-plus crowd. Bouncers ignore the jeans-clad in favor of those casual-smart; once inside, grab a drink at the long bar, then dance to R&B and top-40 music or play pool under the watchful gaze of cigar smokers in the sideroom (see Easy & The Fifth).

Lively bands and hot DJs play everything Latin, from salsa to merengue. Enjoy dinner before the show, arrive later for drinks, or go all out with a dance lesson-dinner-show package (see Lula Lounge).

On the 54th floor of the TD Bank Tower (see Toronto-Dominion Centre), this sophisticated spot caters to corporate wheelers and dealers (reduced to size against the magnificent view of Lake Ontario), as well as locals and visitors out for a special night. Excellent wines, cocktails, and beer selection (see Bar at Canoe).