Club Cafe, in the South End

Perhaps no gay bar in Boston is more popular than Club Cafe Lounge & Video Bar, which consists of a loud, popular, cruisy, and bustling gay club; a more relaxed video lounge; and an adjacent restaurant, 209 American Bistro & Bar. Below the bar is the gay-popular Revolution Fitness Health Club (formerly Metropolitan Health Club), which does offer single-visit and week-visit guest passes. The bistro, a favorite gay-date venue, serves commendable mod-American food, such as organic salmon with jasmine rice, green curry, and bok choy; and braised pork shank with cannelini beans. Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays tend to be the busiest nights in the video bar, which pulls in a generally preppy, professional bunch of guys; Wednesdays there's karaoke. In the lounge, which is open nightly, you'll find a much quieter ambience. If you're in town looking to meet locals, and you can stand the occasionally cliquey vibe in the video bar, Club Cafe is a must for gay-bar-hoppers. It's around the corner from the many gay-friendly establishments in the South End, such as Fritz gay sports bar at the Chandler Inn Hotel.