best-kept secretsFor drinks: Lamar’s, 1020 E. M.L. King Blvd. 266-0988. Half-motel, half-restaurant, Lamar’s hole-in-the wall Chrystal Lounge is known for good, strong drinks. The jukebox has a nice selection of jazz. Walls are covered in a gaudy, floral wallpaper that cannot be missed.For karaoke: Rob’s Restaurant and Lounge, 5308 Dayton Boulevard, 875-6164. Karaoke night is every night. On weekends as many as 100 people crowd into the bar a few minutes from downtown. The small space can get kind of smoky, but it’s the place to be if you want to hear locals belt some of the best and worst country songs ever written.
Looking for a nightclub? Here’s where to goAMERICAN LEGION POST 81 — 227 James Asbury Lane, Cleveland, Tenn. 423-476-4451.AMERICAN LEGION POST 95 — 3329 Ringgold Road, East Ridge.624-9105.AMIGO — 5450 Highway 153. 875-8049.ARIS’ HARBOR LIGHT — 9718 Hixson Pike, Soddy-Daisy. 843-2800.BART’S LAKESHORE — 5600 Lake ResortTerrace. 870-0777.THE BIG CHILL –427 Market St. 267-2445.BLUE ORLEANS — 3208 Amnicola Highway. 629-6538.BOURBON STREET MUSIC BAR — 2000 E. 23rd St. 826-1985.BUD’S SPORTS BAR — 5751 Brainerd Road.499-9878.CANCUN — 1809 Broad St. 266-1461.CHATTANOOGA BILLIARD CLUB EAST — 110 Jordan Drive. 499-3883.CHATTANOOGA CHOO CHOO — Victorian Lounge, 1400 Market St. 266-5000.THE COCONUT ROOM — 6925 Shallowford Road. 499-5055.COMEDY CATCH — 3224 Brainerd Road. 622-2233.CONNIE’S PLACE — 3647 Hixson Pike. 877-4160.CRITTERS BAR AND GRILLE — 2612 Cummings Highway. 508-8170.DOUBLE HILLBILLIARD CLUB — 1966 Northpoint Blvd. 875-8760.DOUGHHEADS –124 Harrison Lane, Soddy-Daisy.EAGLES CLUB — 6128 Airways Blvd. 706-398-9346.EL MESON — 2204 Hamilton Place Blvd. 894-8726.FAMILY PLACE RESTAURANT — 12848 N. Main St., Trenton, Ga. 657-8799.FIRESIDE GRILL — 3018 Cummings Highway.821-9898.THE FOUNDRY — 1201 S. Broad St. 424-3775.FRATERNAL ORDER OF EAGLES NO. 2942 — 3029 Rossville Blvd. 698-6188.J&J RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE — 2208 Glass St. 622-3579.JJ’S BOHEMIA — 231 M.L. King Blvd. 266-1400.LEGENDARYPALOMINO CLUB — 26201/2 Rossville Blvd. 624-6600.LINDSAY STREET HALL — 901 Lindsay St. 755-9111.THE LOWER LEVEL — 4251 Bonny Oaks Drive. 622-1981.LUCKY’S — 5017Rossville Blvd. 468-4222.MARKET STREET TAVERN — 850 Market St.634-0260.MILLENNIUM DINING AND ENTERTAINMENT — 3649 Brainerd Road.320-5033.MS. DEBBIE’S NIGHTLIFE LOUNGE — 4762Highway 58. 635-1591.MUDPIE RESTAURANT — 12 Frazier Ave. 267-9043.NICK AND LINDA’S BAR — 4823 Highway 58.386-5404.THE OFFICE — 1401 E. Third St.THE PALMS LOUNGE — 6925 Shallowford Road. 499-5055.PORKCHOP’S BAR AND GRILL — 6729 Ringgold Road, East Ridge.296-2571.PULSE NIGHTLIFE — 5709 Lee Highway. 702-5008.RAW — 409 Market St. 756-1919.RED LANTERN — 1301 Chestnut St. 757-4730.RHAPSODY CAFE — 1201 Hixson Pike. 266-3093.RHYTHM & BREWS — 221 Market St. 267-4644.ROB’S RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE — 5308Dayton Blvd. 875-6164.RUMORS — 3884 Hixson Pike. 870-3003.SALVATION ARMY — 822 McCallie Ave. 756-1023.SPECTATERS SPORTS GRILLE — 8021 EastBrainerd Road. 305-0667.STRIKERS LOUNGE AT HOLIDAY BOWL — 5518 Brainerd Road. 899-2695.T-BONES — 1419Chestnut St. 266-4240.TABLE 2 — 232 E. 11th Street. 756-8253.TRACKS SPORTS BAR AND GRILL — 4321Ringgold Road. 698-4849.TREMONT TAVERN — 1203 Hixson Pike. 266-1996.VFW NO. 1289 — 6011 Lee Highway. 892-2772.VFW NO. 2598 — 3370 N. Ocoee St., Cleveland, Tenn. 423-476-8442.VFW NO. 4848 — 1491 Riverside Drive. 624-6687.WALT’S FIREPLACE RESTAURANT & LOUNGE — 6238 Bonny Oaks Drive. 485-9080.ZIGGY’S UNDERGROUND — 607 Cherokee Blvd. 598-6770.– Staff Report
Whether you are in the mood to belt out power ballads with a 1980s cover band, cram onto a dance floor with sweaty strangers or spill your heart out at an open-mike showdown, Chattanooga has a nightlife option that will get your blood pumping.
For the band junkies, there is an array of venues, from laid-back acoustic shows to rambunctious performances by popular headliners, to fill the night hours.
At Rhythm & Brews on Market Street downtown, hundreds of people pack in to see bands like the Breakfast Club, an always sold-out ’80s cover band, or Here Come the Mummies, a funk-rock troupe that plays for audiences dressed as — you guessed it — mummies.
Audience members often can be seen dressed in costume for shows and drinking home-brewed beer on tap from Big River Grille & Brewing Works next door.
Get there early on a Friday or Saturday night or you might not get in, said Megan Bales, a Chattanooga resident.
“I like large crowds. I love ’80s music, and I feel like Rhythm and Brews has a good combination of both,” said Ms. Bales. “The prices aren’t too high.”
JJ’s Bohemia’s, a small, edgy bar on M.L. King Boulevard, has become a hot spot in the regional punk-music scene. The bar, a magnet for new and up-and-coming punk bands, is often filled wall to wall.
A calmer, creative crowd gathers at Mudpie Restaurant on Frazier Avenue on Monday and Saturday evenings. The restaurant’s Speak Easy at 8 p.m. allows everyone from grandmothers to rap artists to share poetry.
On Saturdays, Mudpie draws local amateur and professional musicians who perform songs for a sizable all-ages crowd.
“It’s a nice atmosphere and really relaxed and laid-back. It’s a lot more laid-back than other places in town,” said Mandy Prince, a waitress at Mudpie. “They come eat dinner, listen to music and just enjoy themselves.”
For performances without guitars and drums, the Comedy Catch and Giggles Grill on Brainerd Road in Chattanooga is a good place to go for some laughs. The comedy club, which has been open for 25 years, has hosted many national and regional comedians.
Both Jerry Seinfeld and Jeff Foxworthy have performed at the club, according to the Comedy Catch website.
“I had never been to a comedy club before. It was really fun,” said Kristen Heiner, a Chattanooga resident. “There is some comedy riff-raff there, but the main acts are usually really good.”
For dancing, there are several options in town, and three of the best are The Palms in East Brainerd, Electric Cowboy on Brainerd Road and Midtown Music Hall in downtown Chattanooga.