Dan's Cafe

An Adams Morgan standby since 1965, Dan's Cafe is as bare-bones as it gets: For the thirsty, the choices range from cheap beer (six imports), cheaper beer (12 domestics) and a liquor stock limited to pints and those little bottles they sell on airplanes. If you want a strawberry daiquiri, Dan's managers will tell you to find a cruise ship.

The setting is bare-bones, too: bar stools, picnic tables and beer-stained booths, with the only entertainment options a silent TV (no closed captioning), a 50-cent pool table and a jukebox with a selection that probably hasn't been changed since the now-retro pop favorites were first in their prime.

Dan's customers are generally a diverse and undemanding lot. (It's a popular hangout for bike couriers and Washington City Paper staffers.) The bar's sometimes sullen service doesn't seem to disturb the lot, perhaps because they realize that whatever they don't spend at Dan's is only going to be blown on food, rent or clothing anyway.

– J.J. McCoy