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Home - City Guide - Atlanta - Nightlife | ||
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Nightlife Nightlife in Atlanta varies from intimate bars to live music venues and nightclubs. Dress up for intimate dinners; dress showily for the Buckhead rave, and dress as way out as you dare for Little Five Points. Some bars stay open until 0400, but tend to close a little earlier on Sundays. Although the legal drinking age is 21 years, many bars may admit over-18s. Drink prices start from US$3 and vary enormously according to establishment; draught beers are more expensive than bottled. Little Five Points (west of the State University) is the Village of Atlanta. A small group of live music clubs and performance theaters hosts the city's cutting-edge artists and the small plaza area is a hang-out for street performers and a younger crowd. There are a few festivals throughout the year, most notably the massive Halloween festival every year. Buckhead, where Peachtree and Roswell meet, with Lenox Mall MARTA station, north of Five Points, is for the young, smart and unattached, who pack the strip, especially on Fridays. There are several dance clubs, a few live music venues, tons of bars, and restaurants to suit every fancy. The focus is Chastain Park Amphitheatre, 135 West Wieuca Road (tel: (404) 872 1115 or 733 5000), in the park of the same name, where live events take place on warm summer evenings. Midtown stretches from downtown to Buckhead, and Piedmont Park hosts everything from a Gay Pride festival to the Montreaux International Music Festival and the Dogwood Festival. The Atlanta Shakespeare Tavern, 499 Peachtree Street NE (tel: (404) 874 5299), is certainly not to be missed. For around US$25 on Saturday or US$20 on weekdays, you can see a full-length Shakespeare play in a setting not unlike the original Globe Theatre; a hearty pub dinner will set you back about US$10 and draught beers are on tap. Bars: For new visitors to the United States, Planet Hollywood, 218 Peachtree Street NW, is the All-American bar. If you're missing home, however, sample John Harvard's Brew House, a brewery outlet plus restaurant, at 3041 Peachtree Street NE and or Reggie's British Pub, 317 South CNN Center, which has matured steadily like a good brown ale. McDuff's Irish Pub, 56 East Andrews Drive NW, has live music and draught Guinness (who could want more?). Neighbor's Pub, 752-C North Highland Avenue, is altogether a classier joint in the posh suburb of Virginia Highlands. Atkins Park, 794 North Highland Avenue NE, is rated as Atlanta's oldest neighbourhood bar and restaurant, and Moe's and Joe's, 1033 North Highland Avenue NE, a relaxed bar-grill, are both nearby. Casinos: Gambling is illegal in the state of Georgia. Clubs: Buckhead has far too many nightclubs to list, but Little Five Points District is home to the leading-edge Frijoleros, 1031 Peachtree Street NE. The Bounce nightclub, 3120 Bankhead, has live hip-hop and R&B music at weekends and admits under 21s on Sundays. The Orchestra Pit, 3069 Peachtree Street, is far more upmarket. Comedy: Try Dad's Garage Theatre Company, 280 Elizabeth Street NE (tel: (404) 523 3141), on Thursday-Saturday, for comedy improvisation from the latest performers. Live music: Recommended in Buckhead are CJ's Landing, 270 Buckhead Avenue (tel: (404) 237 7657), for reggae on a deck. Jazz fans should try CafÉ 290, 290 Hilderbrand Drive NE (tel: (404) 256 3942). Fuzzy's Place, 2015 North Druid Hills Road, is a little blues venue with a reputation for producing the real thing. The Chameleon Club, 3179 Peachtree Street (tel: (404) 261 8004) plays live rock'n'roll; much more genuine and downmarket is 9 Lives Saloon, 1174 Euclid Avenue, which encourages local talent and sometimes has national bands. |