Samba Room, 4514 Travis St. at Knox Street (tel. 214/522-4137), is a trendy, high-decibel, Latin-chic hangout for Big D's beautiful people. On one side is a surprisingly good restaurant, the other a packed watering hole with a cool serpentine bar. It's a good place to sip a mojito, the Cuban rum, lime, and mint favorite (but the caipirinha, a Brazilian drink favorite made with cachaça, doesn't even approach authenticity). A happening new spot, with a lot of downtown nightclub weight behind it, is Umlaut, 1602-B Main St. (tel. 214/742-2DOT; www.umlautbar.com). It calls itself a "19th-century underground lounge dressed in 21st-century design." You probably know right there if that appeals to you. Stark, sleek, and self-consciously cool, it has extensive beer and wine lists and DJs spinning mellow techno sounds.

The Old Monk, 2847 N. Henderson (tel. 214/821-1880), is a dark, handsome bar 1 block east of Central Expressway with an excellent selection of Belgian beers, single malts, and great pub grub -- go with the Belgian mussels with fries and spicy mayo. In Uptown, just off McKinney Avenue, The Ginger Man, 2718 Boll St. (tel. 214/754-8771), has a great beer garden and a beer selection to die for: about 200 beers from around the world, including 70 on tap. Beware the cigar-smoking big shots. If you want to heighten the effect an expensive cocktail has on you, check out The Dome, 50 stories above ground in the revolving Reunion Tower ball, 300 Reunion Blvd. (tel. 214/712-7145).

A step up from karaoke is Pete's Dueling Pianos, 4980 Belt Line Rd. #200, Addison (tel. 972/726-7383), a piano bar where four accomplished players tickle the ivories on two baby grands and everybody sings along (loudly, enthusiastically) to tunes by the Stones, Beatles, and other boomer faves.