Bar Patrol By M. Franco Salvoza Washingtonpost.com Staff Wednesday, December 24, 1997

Hangover Cures If you plan to ring in the New Year with some alcohol – and especially champagne – chances are your head will be ringing in the New Year. Here are some ways Style Live staffers get back to the land of the living. · A B12 vitamin and Big Mac meal from McDonald's · Plenty to eat beforehand · Plenty of water to drink before sleeping · Aspirin or Tylenol and a hot bath the next morning · A long walk · Indian food · A Bette Davis movie and lots of sleep · Lots of water and a fat brunch with friends · More drinking · McDonald's Chicken McNuggets and a 32-oz. Gatorade · A shot of whiskey and a teaspoon of pepper

Noisemakers: In Georgetown, Blues Alley offers several dinner packages for couples and groups for $25 to $100 per person. Jazz acts The Roy Hargrove Sextet, The Keter Betts trio and vocalist Eve Cornelious will hit the stage for several lengthy jams throughout the night. Down the street at the Bayou, bands Everything and The Emptys kick off Halloween-in-December at the first annual Masquerade Ball. Downtown at the 9:30, the bluesy, folk rock band Cowboy Junkies headline the New Year's Winter Wonderland bash, while Jimmie's Chicken Shack kicks off the Midnight Meltdown at the Hard Rock Cafe.

Don't forget local mainstays like the bluegrass band The Seldom Scene performing at The Birchmere, the alt-rock band Tuscadero at The Black Cat, or rockabilly/blues star Bill Kirchen on stage at Twist & Shout. At Whitey's, The Nighthawks kick off a hard-rockin' set for a party which includes dinner, champagne, party favors and raffles for only $20 to $35 a person. For a similar price, catch a 10-item buffet and the jazz stylings of Men of Concern at Takoma Station Tavern.

All-in-one for the 1st: If you like things simple, try one of several tidy party packages. Almost all include the same New Year's basics – dancing to a DJ or two, hors d'oeuvres, party favors, discounted hotel rooms and a champagne countdown – as well as a pricey ticket. Shack Events (703/ 242-DOIT) touts the 5th annual Capital Countdown package at the Historic Lobby at Postal Square and Capitol City Brewery as the D.C. area's "largest, most prestigious, and most diverse." Their extravaganza includes the basics plus open bar, performances by emmet swimming and Eddie from Ohio, a casino room, a room to catch Bowl games, and a late night bagel and muffin brunch for $89 a ticket.

The New Year's Eve Bash sponsored by Lindy Promotions ($95 in advance, $104 at the door, call ProTix at 703/ 218-6500) features performances by Boogie Knights and Rose Royce, that funky band that sings "Car Wash." Lindy's will throw a similar New Year's Eve Bash in Baltimore at the Globe Brewery ($60 in advance, $70 at the door, call 1-800-955-5566). If you want a little more room to stretch your legs, party in the largest ballroom in the city at the modest Washington Party Group's New Year's Eve Extravaganza at the Sheraton Washington. Tix are $79 in advance, $89 at the door. Call 703/ 391-2708 for more info.

Don't forget about the New Year's Gala at the BET Sound Stage, which includes open bar and music from the Marcus Johnson Project for $45 a person, or the Psychedelic New Year's at the Hyatt Regency Reston (703/ 709-6294). There you can hear, like, groovy 60s' music from Bobby & the Believers for $119-359 per couple.

Suit yourself: Dress up, cradle a cocktail, puff away on a cigar, and tell that stranger about those resolutions you'll claim to keep at such swanky, see-and-be-seen places as Cities, Velvet Lounge, Lucky Bar, and Ozio. At Felix in Adams Morgan, combine a three-course meal with champagne and lounge performances by Truth Groove and Freedom for only $40 to $60 a person.

Brew pubs: Stop by Capitol City Brewing Companies in Bethesda and Shirlington for special menus, champagne, music, and locally brewed beer. Cover is only $7 to $10 per person. Don't forget Old Town's Virginia Beverage Company, Bethesda's Rock Bottom or Rosslyn's Bardo's for their smooth microbrews.

Drink-n-sing: Irish institutions like The Four Provinces, The Irish Times, Flanagan's and The Dubliner will have dinner and drink specials, party hats, as well as traditional folk tunes to sing and enjoy along with that frosty mug o' Guinness. For a complete package including ceili dancing and dessert, try the Greater Washington Ceili Club New Year's Eve Gala at the Conference Center Ballroom (202/ 885-2968) for $35 a person.

Generous local businesses and cab companies will continue sponsoring The SoberRide Cab program (1-800-200-TAXI) to help the tipsy stay off the road. This free cab service will be offered in most local suburbs from December 19 to January 1 between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m.. But have a backup plan as cabbies' dispatchers and phone lines will surely get tied up around the wee hours.