Aventura's neighborhood bars should reflect the city's lush landscaping, prestigious condos, and high-end malls. And Ivy Aventura certainly does. Couture and cocktails reign supreme at the restaurant/bar/club where, on weekends, well-coiffed rears occupy every seat at the bar. The crowd ranges from locals in their twenties and thirties to fifty-something Porsche owners from nearby Williams Island. Every strand of hair is either flat-ironed or gelled, and short skirts and button-up shirts comprise the dress code. The high volume of patronage requires you to be wary when maneuvering through the small dance floor, as the kinetic, rowdy revelers are usually too involved in dancing salsa to avoid bumping into the nine-dollar drink in your hand. But you can enjoy a more relaxed vibe in the outside lounge area, with its modern designer couches and chic, Asian-inspired decor. Part of what attracts people to Ivy is Aventura's lack of a nightlife scene. Aside from a few scattered sports bars, there's nothing else in the area with quite the same upscale appeal mixed with nightclub energy. Not to mention that the bartenders know how to make a damn good Scotch and soda.

South Miami is anchored by Sunset Place, an outdoor mall and headquarters for sulky teenagers. But the narrow off-roads nearby hold intriguing options for an evening of adult debauchery. For University of Miami students and hip Coral Gables residents, there's no better neighborhood bar than Sunset Tavern. Located on the corner of a cute and cobblestone street, the collegiate watering hole shares a kitchen with the ever-popular Deli Lane Cafe, thereby ensuring some of the finest bar food around. Hungry drinkers can stick to the basics and order up some meaty, messy nachos ($9.95 if you add spicy chicken, which you should), or choose to be snooty and order the pressed duck sandwich with brie, with apricot sauce on the side (at $9.95, a tasty deal). Dinner entrées top out at $15.05, and the options seem endless. The place offers a killer jukebox, stocked with classic rock, Eighties hits, and Nineties alternative (the Breeders, Red Hot Chili Peppers). Besides that, there's a pool table, weekly live music and specials that include Tuesday Karaoke night, Wednesday Wing Night (wash down those spicy bastards with a $10 beer bucket), and Thursday Ladies Night (which is less for loose drinking maneaters and more for fans of The L Word). Sunset also makes a great jumping-off point for even more drublic punkenness — it's within strolling distance of Old Florida-style tavern Bougainvillea's, expensive mall chain Dan Marino's, aspiring club Martini Bar, South Beach wannabe Town, and old man Fox's. If you bring romantic companionship, the evening could take you across the street to a fancy Italian dinner at Trattoria Sole followed by dessert at Soli Organic, or it could wind up in the back alley at BT Gentleman's Club. It all depends on how your date goes.

The game of darts can be quite serious and dangerous, especially when the hard liquor kicks in and you start seeing two bull's eyes. Throwing sharp needles at the dartboard takes concentration and precision, like a drunken ninja. The bartenders at Free Spirits Lounge know how to mix drinks, and they can also throw some darts. "This is one of the best dartboards I've ever played," says Mike Mirabel, as Black Flag blares in the background. He plays darts here regularly. "Trying to score triplets on this board is impossible, because of the way that the railing is embedded into the board." Darts are free. Just ask for them at the bar.

What's great about the Finnegan's jukebox is that it's a flat-panel touchscreen inside a fire engine-red telephone booth, the same type you'd find outside a real Irish pub. So when someone is lurking behind you, breathing down your neck to hurry up your music selection, you can just slide the door closed and stick your tongue out at them. Most of the playlist is a predictable blend of rap (50 Cent and Ludacris), country (Trace Adkins and Willie Nelson), and rock and roll (Lynyrd Skynyrd and Marilyn Manson). But we did find some unexpected gems from Spanish boy-band pioneers Menudo and the great Maná. We were also pleasantly surprised to find tracks by the Oak Ridge Boys, and our all-time favorite hair band: Ratt!

Miami is a playground for the gay male community — from downtown to South Beach, the boys have plenty of places to romp. Unfortunately Miami doesn't offer as many options for lesbians. What's a girl (who loves girls) to do when she just wants to have fun? For starters, look hard. Anam's, an exclusive women's club, is easy to miss. The clandestine bar is located on the second floor of a building tucked between the Little Cuban Museum and a HEARx store on Coral Way. Hidden from the street, the only hint of Anam's existence is its name etched into a glass door in swirling cursive. Stairs are visible from the other side of the door, but what they lead to is a mystery for those not in the know. Inside, dimly lit, stained-glass chandeliers shroud the bar in ambiguity, and faces are hard to distinguish among the shadows. For the most part men aren't allowed in, and the crowd is usually Latin women anywhere from their late twenties to early fifties. Owner Olga Sanchez serves the drinks while her partner, Ana Pou, plays the bongos to the DJ's mix of salsa, bachata, and other Latin beats. The club has a dancing room and a quiet room, where women can retreat to for a more intimate setting. One of Anam's unusual features is an old freight elevator that's been used as a showcase for a belly dancer. There's also an art space that will be put to use for future events.

Twelve years ago Melissa Burley was an overworked and underpaid teacher in Miami-Dade's public school system. She supplemented that income with a job at late-night taco institution San Loco, located within stumbling distance of Mac's Club Deuce, Miami Beach's most venerably liquor-soaked bar. Within no time Ms. Burley found a new hangout and a family of fun regulars. She spent a lot of time on the customer side of the bar. "I used to always ask Mac, 'When are you gonna hire meç'" she recalls. "One day it was raining and I asked him again. And he replied, 'What're you doing tomorrowç'" As they say, the rest is history. Burley's friends, the regulars, helped her learn the ropes — "because the customers know the bar better than the new bartenders," she laughs. In the decade that Melissa has been tending the Deuce, Miami Beach has been through bouts of popularity with Eurotrash, model types, ravers, and the hip-hop glitterati, and she's been slinging cocktails through it all. She may not be the most instantly chummy bartender you've ever had, and to hell with all of that Tom Cruise Cocktail bottle-flipping bullshit. She's a no-nonsense blond who serves her drinks strong and fast. Along the way she's adopted some basic bar rules for both tender and customer. Rule number one: "The bartender should never be drunker than the customers." Rule number two: "You always want to befriend your bartender. Cause we know a lot of things about a lot of people." Melissa is also keeper of the Deuce's legacy. She created the bar's MySpace page (www.myspace.com/deucebar) and updates the Deuce Screen of Fame, a photographic retrospective of debauchery and nudity that takes place in the darkened, historic establishment. If you're lucky (or acting the fool enough), you'll get your picture snapped as well. The scrolling images feature regulars and newbies, and it's heavy on locals and light on famous faces. "We only put famous people in it if they're into it," she says. "We've got Johnny Knoxville in there, I think. Often we just leave them alone. The slide show is funny whether you know the people or not. It's about the crazy people and the stories that take place. Like when Tara threw the iguana." Normally an evening in which a live iguana is flung across the bar would be one of those you-just-had-to-be-there stories. Thanks to Melissa's quickness with the camera, the moment was captured for posterity. And she needs to be quick, because who knows what can happen nextç

Fox's is where serious booze hounds do their thing. No better place for James Bond's favorite drink than this cozy, dimly lit, circa-1946 joint. Sit at a wood-paneled booth or just sidle up to the bar. The old pro behind the counter will make you a mean martini (the "dirty" version is a knockout here). Depending on the label you ask for, it'll set you back $6 to $10 — or about half the price you'd pay at a South Beach spot with half the personality. That leaves money for ... another martini. And if you go during happy hour (4:00 to 6:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday), or from 11:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. Tuesdays and Saturdays, drinks are two for one. Which means ... more martinis!

Mixing a bloody mary sounds easy. Just some vodka with tomato juice, rightç But it takes some serious skill to make a good one. A bad one may taste like ketchup and Skol, or bitter shrimp cocktail sauce. Some bartenders make it so spicy that your lips will burn. The perfect bloody mary can be found on the seventh floor of the Four Seasons hotel, in the heart of Miami's financial district. The hotel's upscale and classy bar is called 14-Thirty-Five, and its bloody mary is intensely refreshing. The bartender uses Absolut Peppar, a vodka made specifically for a bloody mary. The Absolut is mixed with a unique blend of tomato juice, horseradish, basil, rosemary, and pepper. Order it on the rocks, add the twist of lime, and there you go. Not too spicy, but just enough to clear the sinuses. Outside the bar area, there's a stunning view. Enjoy.

When it comes to cocktails and the places that serve them, details matter. Dirty martinis require just the right amount of vermouth and olive juice, while decent bars thrive on atmosphere and quality service. All things considered, Cielo has the right ingredients to make it the ideal place for relaxing with your drink of choice. Beads hang from the windows, creating the illusion of a sparkly blue waterfall trickling over diners and drinkers. Suede barstools and white contemporary sofas look as if they were inspired by the creamy softness of a white Russian. The clientele and ambiance scream wealth, but rest assured that at $9 for well drinks and $12 for premium cocktails, you're getting your money's worth — the staff is both attentive and well versed in the art of mixing drinks. Live Latin acts take the stage most nights, but a quieter experience is still available with a simple reservation. In the wine room, patrons can dine and drink in a glass-enclosed area supplied with wine racks and a high-def i. Those who opt to chill at the bar or in the lounge area will quickly see that the patrons at Cielo are as pretty as the décor — and remember, the only thing that makes a good cocktail better is the environment in which it's enjoyed.

It's you on the stage, kickin' verses about your life. Just you, the band, a microphone ...oh yeah, and those hot-ass lights. You peer out into the crowd and the faces staring back seem to be standing at attention. Oh, this place is fly. The mood is right, they dim the lights. And the stiff drinks help to ease your tension. You've been working on this sonnet, this haiku, that rhymeYou punked out last week,But the ever-vivacious Ingrid B pulled you out of your shell this time.And here you are.Listed under your nom de plume.It must be Wednesday NightOpen mike nightAt the Bohemia Room.