Patrons take to the dance floor of the Rodeo country bar one of three lounges inside the Metropolis night club at the Cincinnati Mills mall.

Looking for a fun new place to party? Here are some Cincinnati bars and clubs that you may want to try.

The Exchange

• Basics: 1130 Main St. Cincinnati, OH 45210 [Map]
  Call 513-721-2428
• Overview: Velvet ropes, hot DJs, pricey and exotic cocktails, and a dance floor that's reliably full every weekend. The Exchange takes some heat for being snooty, but if trendiness is your thing, than nobody does it better.
• The Little Things: VIP area, live music, and, depending on your gender, either plenty of beautiful women who will dutifully ignore you or plenty of overly amorous men to whom the concept of "personal space" has never been adequately explained.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Fries Café

• Basics: 3247 Jefferson Ave. Cincinnati, OH, 45220 [Map]
  Call 513-281-9002, or visit www.friescafe.com
• Overview: With a motto stating, "Where Beer Is Good Food," Fries backs it up with an international selection of beers.
• The Little Things: Pool tables, darts, video games, an outdoor patio and ... believe it or not, shuffleboard, just in case you really have a hankering to prematurely indulge the geriatric cruise ship experience.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Havana Martini Club

• Basics: 580 Walnut St. Cincinnati, OH 45202 [Map]
  Call 513-651-2800, or visit www.havanamartini.com
• Overview: And now for something completely different, drop in on the new Havana Martini Club, featuring a gorgeous wait staff, handcrafted cigars awaiting in a top-of-the-line humidor, and a scrumptious list of martinis. The "Celebri-tini" portion is particularly noteworthy (the Sophia Loren comes highly recommended). Upscale but accessible.
• The Little Things: Live music, dance floor. If one is to violate the Cuban embargo, one may as well do it in style.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Hofbrauhaus

• Basics: 200 E. Third St. Newport, Kentucky, 41071 [Map]
  Call 859-491-7200, or visit www.hofbrauhausnewport.com
• Overview: Europe is more relaxed than America in several areas: marijuana, prostitution, speed limits, and of course, beer. For lager connoisseurs who despair of the puritanical three percent alcohol level found in Budweiser, come down to this open-space, German-style biergarten. With long, wooden tables and benches, it's quite possible you'll find yourself arm-in-arm with a total stranger, swaying and chugging as if you'd been transported to Munich itself.
• The Little Things: Full menu, outdoor biergarten, cornhole (when weather permits), and a beer special known as "The Adulterator." Enjoy, just understand that we bear no responsibility if you should come home in someone else's clothing.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

The Mad Frog

• Basics: 1 E. McMillan St. Cincinnati, OH 45219 [Map]
  Call 513-784-9119, or visit www.themadfrog.net
• Overview: This longtime mainstay is still going strong, with national and local hard rock and jam bands performing live, open mic nights, and salsa dancing on Monday nights.
• The Little Things: Jukebox, pool table, patio, dance floor, and cheap cover charges and drinks to help you sway the night away either to the rock or to the salsa. Either way, embarrassing yourself will not prove expensive.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Mt. Adams Pavilion

• Basics: 949 Pavilion St. Cincinnati, OH 45202 [Map]
  Call 513-744-9200, or visit www.mountadamspavilion.com
• Overview: With four gigantic patio decks offering a spectacular view of downtown Cincinnati, you can feel like one of the elves of Lothlorien (if you'll pardon the gratuitous geek reference). Live music and DJs are continually on hand to enhance the panorama.
• The Little Things: Multiple dance areas for each deck, with a different medium of musical entertainment for each. (Bring your own elves).
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Orchid's

• Basics: 35 W. 5th St. Cincinnati, Ohio, 45202 [Map]
  Call 513-421-9100
• Overview: Billed as "an unknown local gem," this little space is located inside the Hilton Netherlands Plaza Hotel. With live bands playing jazz and Big Band music and bartenders who wear tuxedo shirts, Orchid's evokes the Roaring Twenties, perfect for cosmopolitans spending a night on the town.
• The Little Things: Comfortable, sofa-like chairs, with downtown Cincinnati and one of the area's finest restaurants just outside the door. And yes, we understand that by spilling the beans that this place won't remain an "unknown" gem for long. We're depending on you to keep quiet about it.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

The Poison Room

• Basics: 301 W. 5th St. Cincinnati, OH [Map]
  Call 513-333-0010, or visit www.myspace.com/poisonroom
• Overview: With subdued lighting, two spacious levels, and live music seven days a week, this is one of the hippest clubs in town. As far as entertainment goes, there's only one rule: no cover bands. The Poison Room was originally called The Viper Room, until they were sued by Johnny Depp's notorious L.A. club of the same name.
• The Little Things: Video screens continuously playing classic films, and large, comfortable couches to sink into after either the alcohol or the dancing (or both) wears you down. Take a nap, watch a movie, or curse the greedy, anal retentive coastal elites who unnecessarily pick on venues too far away to have any relevance to them whatsoever. It's entirely up to you.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Southgate House

• Basics: 24 E. Third St. Newport, Kentucky 41071 [Map]
  Call (859) 431-2201, or visit www.southgatehouse.com
• Overview: Every music fan within a 100-mile radius knows this is the rock club for the finest underground indie rock bands that you won't see outside of a Top Five city. Bands such as Yo La Tengo, The Fiery Furnaces, and the Silversun Pickups regularly grace the stage of this small, intimate venue.
• The Little Things: Pool tables, a fireplace, an art gallery, and three separate rooms that can (and frequently has) hosted up to 15 bands per night. Sensitive souls prone to overload may take a time-out, relax in front of the hearth and gaze catatonically at a soothing painting.
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Sudsy Malone's

• Basics: 2626 Vine St. Cincinnati, OH, 45219 [Map]
  Call 513-751-2300, or visit www.sudsys.com
• Overview: A unique local phenomenon for nearly two decades now. Sudsy's is part nightclub, and part Laundromat. No, you didn't read that incorrectly. And while we don't expect you to haul your own undies all the way down to Cincy, you can still take in the bizarre sight of local patrons doing so while watching some of the quirkiest live entertainment around.
• The Little Things: Jukebox, video games, intimate dance floor, and plenty of washers and dryers (if you really feel like hauling undies).
• Your take: Rate this restaurant or write a review

Compiled by Aaron Epple, contributing writer