Nightlife in Danbury

You know you have a popular menu item when more than 20,000 of it gets ordered every week. At T.K.'s American Cafe, that menu item is its wings. The restaurant's specialty is offered in 52 different sauces, which range from no spice to so hot the devil himself can't stomach it. The wings pair well with the 40 beers on hand and the sports events flickering on 30 HDTVs.

Beach Boy and local resident David Marks considers First & Last Cafe his favorite restaurant in Danbury. It's not hard to see why—the eatery imports sun-ripened Italian tomatoes, and chef and owner Adam Moss crafts each pizza with housemade dough. He tops the dough with fresh ingredients such as pepperoni and olives before placing it inside a wood-fired brick oven, which renders the crust crispy, the cheese gooey, and the sun useless.

Owners Aura Showah and Douglas Waterbury attribute the success of Widow Brown's Cafe, which has been in business for more than 35 years, to culinary consistency, a family-friendly ambiance, and an eclectic menu that has earned the eatery a feature in the News-Times. While two-handing a burger or steaming sandwich, patrons can peruse the chalkboard around the fully stocked bar for a list of weekly events, such as trivia, karaoke, and raucous tax-preparation luaus. Wooden wall panels glow in the light of wall-mounted TVs as forks venture south for American comfort fare or globetrot with Asian-, Irish-, and Italian-inspired dishes. As frozen drinks or draft beers chill boothside, diners can bust billiards at one of the café's pool tables or surf the café's free WiFi for instructional videos on how to correctly execute robot dance moves.

A soulful songstress that dabbles in a mishmash of classic American musical genres, Joan Osborne blipped onto the nation's radar more than 15 years ago with the hit "One of Us" and remains steadfast well into the millennium. Immerse inner ears in an intimate acoustic set featuring Joan's pianist pal Keith Cotton and special guest Jeffry Braun. For this concert, The Ridgefield Playhouse will feature a complimentary preshow hors d'oeuvres spread from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. and a full bar stocked with buyable libations. Groups should call ahead to reserve blocks of seats.

$15 for $30 worth of steak house fareGeorgetown Saloon Georgetown Saloon’s culinary wizards infuse steak house fare with inventive twists and eclectic ingredients, conjuring up a menu of burgers, ribs, and 16-ounce cowboy steaks, plus, crab cake BLTs and New Orleans–style shrimp. While gastronomic gurus serve up mouthwatering eats, Georgetown Saloon’s celebrated lineup of live music vibrates air particles to distract ears from begging mouths for french fries.

Fast Eddie’s Billiards Cafe takes playing pool and drinking beer to the next level. Sure, the standard domestics are available, but besides the expected lagers and neon signs, Fast Eddie’s boasts an impressive menu of craft brews. More than 50 choices include Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA, Allagash White, and Smuttynose Robust porter. Imported beer, wine, and premium liquor are also available to add entertainment to billiards tournaments.

Over the tops of neatly groomed conifers, the muted drizzle of a fountain loops over a still pond. Glancing out from the dining room of Seasons American Bistro & Lounge, away from the lofted beams and white tablecloths, the eye drifts out across the water and to the verdant rolling hills crowded with ancient trees. Inspired by the bistros and tapas bars of Europe, the menu at Seasons highlights shareable plates, which circulate during long chats measured in glasses of wine. From the ranks of bottles spring the floral bouquet of the Italian Alverdi pinot grigio and the earthy plum notes and Napa Valley sunshine of the 2005 Markham merlot. The sound of toasting glasses drifts through a bar and lounge with small tables and a wrap-around banquette decorated with cut flowers and candles that set the mood and keep somebody from setting down a cornucopia there.