Bodega Wine Bar is the place you go when you tell all your friends, "I know a spot". This Lakewood wine bar is unassuming from the outside, but one step inside and you're transported to an Old World wine cellar with high-quality pours to match. The staff is passionate and knowledgeable about their wines sourced from all over the world. The best way to navigate the menu is by ordering a flight first, and then from there, you can order your favorite by the glass. The cheese and charcuterie on the food menu are an obvious addition to the wine. You come for a glass but will most likely leave with a bottle.

The house-made bloody mary on The Old Monk's brunch menu is your cue to kickstart a boozy weekend. For $7, they're practically handing them out here. They're made with original or spicy house mix, Tito's vodka and the classic garnishes: a green olive (maybe one too few) and a stick of celery, plus a lemon and lime wedge. With a generous squeeze of the citrus, it's the perfect compliment to a savory brunch.

PopStroke is a Tiger Woods-partnered luxury mini-golf affair with two state-of-the-art 18-hole courses, a full-service restaurant with dishes made from scratch, an ice cream parlor, a playground and a lively sports bar that serves craft beers, premium spirits and meticulously crafted cocktails. Need a margarita to get your head right as you come down the back nine? No problem, just order from the PopStroke app and they'll bring it to you as you play. As for food, it skews toward high-end here, as you'll find seared ahi tuna, tuna tartare, hummus platters and citrus-marinated chimichurri steaks. We've come a long way since the Putt-Putt days (sorry, Putt-Putt).

Bar stools can be butt-hurting situations. Metal wobbly numbers with shaky legs from one too many benders. Vice-like armrests trap you at the bar and make climbing down awkward as you try to squeeze around them. But not at Ginger's. Here are the La-Z-Boys of bar stools. A large extra-cush leather seat for your tush is super comfortable, with half arms and a padded back for a bit of reclining. Oh! And the footstool at the bottom to rest your tired dogs, instead of dangling awkwardly. It might be dangerous to be this comfortable at a bar.

Bar Colette starts creating your cocktail days before you even make yourself comfortable on one of its pink velvet couches. This European-inspired cocktail lounge was an exciting addition to West Village late last year, and Ruben Rolon's (Colette's Michelin-recognized bar director) artistic mixology is on full display here. His most impressive creations involve a clarified milk punch that gives many of his cocktails a simple appearance but are packed with a full sweep of flavors from the first sip to finishing notes. His menu rotates seasonally, so there's always a reason to stop in to try a new favorite or get your hands on a second round before some drinks go archival.

Christies has been an essential sports bar in Dallas since 1991. There are more TVs than we can count, and on big game days (no matter the sport), the energy is palpable. The food is much better than expected: house-made-tortilla chips are kind of good. When the weather is nice, head up to the rooftop. No matter how busy it gets, the staff is attentive, and food and drinks arrive quickly. Each seat in the house offers a view to multiple TVs, meaning you can watch all the sports at once. A dream, really.

The espresso martini has had quite the run the past couple of years, and it's pretty ubiquitous at this point, but some bars put their hip into it. Case in point: Cosmo's, which starts with house-made Vietnamese coffee, a substantially richer elixir that packs a buzzy punch. The Vietnamese coffee is mixed with Van Gogh Espresso Vodka and Kahlua then tossed in a tumbler and shaken into a creamy smooth bliss. They only make a certain amount each day; when it's gone, it's gone, so go early.

It's difficult to imagine a more fun setting for a cocktail than 4 Kahunas Tiki Lounge. The moment you step inside, you're transported to a Polynesian island haven. Thankfully, the drinks might even surpass the fantastical decor. The fact of the tropical matter is the look of a proper tiki cocktail has to be every bit as on-point as the taste does. The aesthetic, theme and booze all collide in a perfectly fun way when it comes to any of the powerful, fruity 4 Kahunas cocktails served in their shark mugs. We love sipping right out of the shark's mouth, but the little drizzle of red syrup trailing from the open mouth is the drama we desire.

While so much of the Dallas beer scene revels in variants of IPAs, it's a different local beer on the opposite end of the spectrum that we most love to see in various forms and flavors. The Temptress, Lakewood Brewing's beloved imperial milk stout, has been offered in mint, peanut butter, Oreo, raspberry and gingerbread forms, just to name a few. And they're all spectacular. Of course, the original base version is always enough to satiate us on its own. One of the most storied beers from one of the best breweries around will always be at the top of our list.

When the local craft brewery boom started over a decade ago, Lone Star Beverages in Carrollton was already slinging the best beers from not only local breweries but from the best craft breweries in Colorado, Oregon and elsewhere, including many few around here knew about. As the craft beer scene and tastes have evolved, so, too, has this shop. If there's a little-known IPA from Maine, a sour ale from Florida, a hard tea from New England or a slushy beer from Austin that you want but no one seems to have, you haven't checked Lone Star Beverages out yet.