Pattie´s First Avenue Lounge: A lively party place with a Mexican cantina, Pattie´s features three dance floors, three bars, pool tables and a heated outdoor patio. Party buses -- full of bachelorette parties and other soirees -- always seem to be parked out front. Never a cover and the drinks are cheap (for Scottsdale, anyway). Live music and karaoke during special events. 7220 E. First Ave., Scottsdale, 480-990-0103.
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Postino: It´s a converted historic post office, including glass garage doors to bring in the outside during good weather. That´s almost as cool as the lovely boutique wines available (check out a tasty Folie a Deux, a rarely seen white varietal called m´nage á trois). The wine selection changes every other month, but great snacks are always on tap: Try the signature bruschetta, a huge wooden board groaning with four (out of nine) selections per order atop garlic-and-olive-oil-brushed Italian flat bread. The best seats in the house are many, at the bar, on a cozy couch, or on the pretty patio, grooving to excellent CD compilations. 3939 E. Campbell Ave., 602-852-3939.
Redfish: The chain restaurant´s Voodoo Lounge is dressed up with authentic New Orleans artifacts and antiques and a hundred-foot mural of bayou sites, but it´s the wrought-iron balconies and oil lamps that take us back to New Orleans every time. That and the Creole and Cajun appetizers (we like the shrimp r´moulade best) and the specialty cocktails (try to stop at just one Cajun Martini, we dare you). Signature beers like Dixie Crimson Voodoo Ale and Blackened Voodoo Lager and live music on the weekends bring us back to this faux French Quarter again and again. Fri and Sat: Live blues and jazz bands. 7401 E. Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd., Scottsdale, 480-998-6995.
Sapporo: Yes, the bar really is changing colors under your cocktail glass (neon lights, you know). But there are no kids lounging here; this spot is often favored by middle-aged professionals who eagerly crowd in to scan the scene while chatting on cell phones. Weather permitting, the back of the bar opens to a lovely patio with fountains bubbling out of rock walls. Service is smooth -- martinis come in silver shakers for self-pouring, with some creative choices like the Asian´tini garnished with octopus. Terrific sushi, too. 14344 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, 480-607-1114.
SIX Restaurant and Lounge: Selected as one of the top bars in the U.S. by InStyle and Esquire magazines, SIX, with its neon ambiance and gym-augmented clientele, may make you feel like you just sneaked into a Hollywood première. The unisex rest room can be a peep show if you forget to lock the door. Catch jazz jam sessions on Mondays and sets by world-class DJs on Sundays. 7316 E. Stetson, Scottsdale, 480-663-6620.
Sportsman´s: This may well be the only bar in town with a cheese cooler just inside the door. A cool combination neighborhood bar/wine club, Sportsman´s is as close to a ProvenÇal bistro as you´ll get in the Valley. On one side, 2,000 fine wines are available for take-away sale; on the other, a cozy bar wraps itself around some mighty friendly wine aficionados who serve as your bartenders. Fancy sandwiches and cheese platters are available for palate-clearing, and a coffee bar with pastries from Willo Baking Company will help sober you up if you just can´t say no to another Castello Banfi Centine. Check out the Sunday afternoon wine-tasting classes and the walls filled with oil paintings of quaint French village scenes. 3205 E. Camelback Rd., 602-955-7730.
Suede: Plush padded walls, sleek cherry wood, two lavish bars glam-lit with teardrop lights and neon ice strips -- no wonder this high-class lounge attracts so many beautiful, moneyed people. The sound is equally sophisticated, with DJ picks of jazz, disco and R&B. Everyone sports martinis in their manicured hands, with specialties like red-chocolate, the Bombay Sapphire Gin model, and Ketel One on tap, even. Plan on dinner, since Suede sends out truly tasty Euro-Asian fare like lobster pot stickers and spicy chicken spring rolls. Sun: Sunset Deep House. 7333 E. Indian Plaza, Scottsdale, 480-970-6969.
Zen 32: The fact that this trendy place serves sushi until midnight every day is enough cause to celebrate, but the late-night fish feasts are even more fun thanks to an upbeat, hip young crowd. The bar is separated from the restaurant by a glass wall, so guests can get loud, and they do. Japanese animation videos add extra pizzazz and commotion. Drinks are especially ambitious, featuring a dozen premium sakes, a groovy sake-rita (Momokawa sake, raspberry sake, Triple Sec, Chambourd, Sweet-n-Sour) and a sake-tini (Midori melon liqueur, Skyy vodka, cold sake). Free sushi at happy hour makes Zen 32 literally priceless. 3160 E. Camelback Rd., 602-954-8700.
Z´Tejas Grill (Chandler): Wall-to-wall marble and mirror lend a fashionable air to this romantic date spot. Both the bar and the well-regarded restaurant shut down by 10 during the week, so come early for an always-hopping happy hour featuring half-price appetizers. Live jazz acts perform nightly to an audience of after-work corporate types, thirsty thirtysomethings and jeans-clad boomers. 7221 W. Ray Rd., Chandler, 480-893-7550.
Z´Tejas Grill (Tempe): 20 W. Sixth St., Tempe, 480-377-1170.
Z´Tejas Grill (Phoenix): 10625 N. Tatum Blvd., 480-948-9010.
Z´Tejas Grill (Scottsdale): 7014 E. Camelback Rd., Scottsdale, 480-946-4171.
