Nick's Nightclub

From the bare light bulbs dotting the rafters to the American flag hanging behind the bandstand, Nick's will make you think you've parked your pickup outside some Southern honky tonk, not in an industrial park near the Beltway. The customers, many of them native Southerners, add to that impression with their cowboy hats and Texas-size belt buckles. They two-step around the dance floor and, by some secret code, sometimes meet in the middle to perform high-kicking precision line dances.

You can join them, too: Instructors offer dance lessons for couples at 7:45 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and a new line dance is taught at the same time in the back room Friday. Each lesson costs $5, and it's worth it if you want to look like you know what you're doing. And trust us, women will be asked to dance.

Bands, which perform at 9:15 on Friday and Saturday nights, are a mix of regional touring acts and local groups. Sometimes you'll get a night with Jason Aldeen and Blake Shelton covers; other nights it's more Waylon and Willie or original material. If you need a break, head to the back room for contemporary country karaoke.

-- Fritz Hahn (Oct. 26, 2012)