Nightlife in Austin

Frank's professional sausage stylists enliven the casual downtown restaurant with gourmet makeovers for the humble and plainspoken hot dog. The Jackalope, with antelope, rabbit, and pork smothered in huckleberry compote, sriracha aioli, and applewood-smoked cheddar ($7) shares the culinary salon with the Carolina Pork It, a Vienna dog stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon, deep fried, and topped with grilled coleslaw and green-chile pimento cheese ($6). Meataphobes can switch out any standard dog for a veggie dog ($0.25 extra) and top their soy delight with veggie chili ($1 extra). Traditional bar-food sides round out the quirk of curry and sage sausages. Waffle-fry nachos come pinned down to the plate with cheese, refried beans, sour cream, and salsa ($7), while a cup of baked beans ($2.50) closes the savory, pork-based circle.

The culinary wunderkinds at The Tap Exchange craft a menu brimming with mitt-fitting and stomach-filling grub. Sociable servers can deliver small bites, such as the spinach-artichoke dip ($8.99), to pave the way for heartier bun-handled eats such as the River City cheesesteak ($8.99), or a Black & Bleu burger topped with coarse black pepper, bacon, blue cheese, and mayo ($8.99 single, $12.99 double). Patrons preferring to use utensils can fork-dive into entrees including fish 'n' chips ($9.99) and grouper with chipotle sauce, red cabbage, and cilantro aioli ($13.99). Tap Exchange also entertains diners with Karaoke Saturdays, occasional live music, and an outdoor patio where cool breezes tickle patrons' funny bones with uncanny impersonations of warm winds.

Much like the raucous saloons of the Old West, where grizzled cowboys would gather to play Truth or Dare and give each other makeovers, Shiner's Saloon is outfitted with many a TV and video game, and brings in live music seven nights a week. Hop a cozy squat in one of Shiner's heavy, country-style chairs and be transported to a time of gunslingers, outlaws, and painted ladies, assuming you have time to play Deadwood on the Wii before the next local rock band takes the stage.

Though named for a fixture of a bygone era and reportedly haunted by its ghosts, Speakeasy lives in the present: its three floors fill with modern music each night. On the first floor, live music from local bands spills through Speakeasy Live, where hardwood accents, art-deco lamps, candle-lit tables, and exposed brick complement a Jazz Age atmosphere. On the Mezzanine level, a full bar, antique couches, and two vintage bowling lanes overlook the main stage.

At the top of a 59-step staircase, patrons emerge onto Terrace59—a neon-lit rooftop lounge that offers panoramic views of downtown Austin. The terrace stays heated during the colder months, while a canopy allows the full bar to serve and lively music to play even in the event of inclement weather and cushions the fall of DJs who decided to parachute in. On each of the three floors, servers pour all kinds of drinks, many of which are named for people, places, and events associated with Prohibition.

The Dinner Detective eschews campy costumes and plots for an exciting evening of food-accompanied mystery and paranoia, where actors hide among the diners, playing innocent and making everyone a potential suspect. To solve the crime, guests freely interrogate one another, chivvying out clues about the murderer and determining who has a bloodthirsty look in their eyes. Between dramatic deaths and simulated police involvement, guests dig into four-course meals, washed down with bottomless iced tea and drinks from the cash bar. The diner who comes closest to solving the mystery through their snooping goes home with a prize basket to show off to their friends or split with the murderer as per their shadowy conspiracy.