Bars in Lakeville

Lone Spur’s menu offers a massive selection of tasty eats known to spark spontaneous “Yeehaws” and unprintable Deadwood quotes from dining city slickers. Master cooks harness a slow-cooking heat to ensure that each brisket emerges from the pit 14 hours later in a delicious smoky cloud that won't try to kill you like the monster from your favorite island program. After a lunch of sandwiches and ol’ Mexico bites such as the buffalo burger ($9.50), brisket melt ($7.95), and lunch taco burrito ($7.75), you can ride back through town for some dinner barbecue (any two meats, $12.95; any three meats, $15.95), which includes Texas toast; a choice of cole slaw, potato salad, or soup; and a choice of seasoned steak fries, ranch house beans, cornbread, or baked potato with your beef, pork, or poultry order. If you still miss the danger of high noon shoot-outs, Lone Spur offers a chili so hot it requires a signed release before consumption. And if you can't take the heat, try the smoked sautéed pork barbecue ($11.45, Texas size $13.95) or three pounds of turkey leg ($12.95) instead. For dessert, dive into a hot fudge brownie stampede ($4.99) or Texas saucy banana ($4.99), just like real cowboys did before they settled in for a night of pillow fights and painting each other's nails.

Harry's Food and Cocktails recently coronated Ryan Stechschulte as its new chef after he proved the only applicant capable of pulling the chef's knife from its enchanted cutlery block (in accordance with the prophecy). Ryan's updated menu features an eclectic selection of steaks, chops, seafood, burgers, and more. Start with an order of poutine (house-cut french fries topped with cheese curds, pickles, and onion gravy, $9.95) or opt for a more continental beginning with an order of mussels sautéed in white wine ($10.95) or grilled asparagus ($8.95) drizzled with truffle oil, crowned with parmesan, and served with a soft-boiled egg. Lunchtimers can savor the gooey barbecue pork, pepper-jack cheese, and jalapeño-relish-covered cowboy burger ($14.95) made from Angus chuck or impress the Bavarian polka virtuoso of their dreams by ordering a liverwurst sandwich ($9.95). The beef stroganoff with roasted mushrooms and crème fraîche ($15.95) and the seared duck breast ($22.95) with potato dumplings and wilted greens will quell carnivorous cravings, and aquaphiles will find much to love in the red snapper with grits and sweet-pepper sausage ($17.95). Finally, impress your date with a dignified dessert by alternately slamming your face into a toasted fluffer-nutter sandwich, with house-made marshmallow and redskin peanut butter topped with malted vanilla ice cream ($6.95), and a caramelized banana split, with vanilla ice cream, salted caramel, and Chantilly cream ($7.95).

Sixty-four tables populate Shooters' 22,000-square-foot billiardland. Some are Valley and Diamond coin-operated tables, and others are Brunswick Gold Crown tables designed for professional play, with flawless felt and wood that welcomes elbows like the moon welcomes a handsome astronaut. Observe the physics of a well-played bank shot from the ample seating surrounding each table. Shooters' rates are hourly and depend on the number of people at a table. Before 7 p.m., one to four players play for $3.75 an hour per person; after 7 p.m., hourly rates are $5.25 for one player, $4.75 for two players, $4.25 for three players, and $3.75 for four players. On weekends after 8 p.m., rates rise an additional $0.25 per hour.

The Independent is a locally owned dining and cocktail destination boasting one of the happiest happy hours around. From 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. each day, city dwellers gather in the restaurant's chic yet casual confines to mingle over impressive daily specials, including $5 select appetizers, $5 specialty martinis, and $3 select draft beers and house wines. Pair a frothy Bells’ Two Hearted Ale tap brew ($3) with a classic Margherita pizza ($5), or wash down a chipotle-tinged plate of onion rings ($5) with a glass of crisp chardonnay ($3).

Boxes of food, crates of beer, and new equipment are delivered to restaurants and bars daily. In the case of Keegan's Irish Pub, the most important delivery ever made to its St. Anthony East neighborhood location was not supplies, but the pub itself. Designed in Waterford, Ireland, in 2001, the pub immigrated to Minneapolis via boat and train in 2002. Once on American soil, its pieces underwent multiple crash courses on the career of Kirby Puckett before getting re-assembled in a Victorian-era style that keeps with the area's historic character.

Today, perfectly poured Guinness beers and seasonal craft beers swirl around clinking glasses as patrons tackle hefty burgers and pub favorites, such as beer-crisped fish 'n' chips. Soft music plays in the background most of the time, except for when the pub plays host to live events, which fill the weekly schedule with energized rounds of trivia and rollicking performances from bands.

As Tommy, one of Howl at the Moon’s piano players, explains on the club’s website, “Every night…we try and throw a party, regardless of whether it’s a Tuesday night or a Saturday night.” The bar’s trademark dueling pianos serve as the epicenter of these nightly celebrations; patrons submit their favorite songs on slips of paper for the pianists and backing musicians to recreate. If the website’s playlist is any indication, the bands can handle popular songs from all genres and eras, from Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer” to Kanye West’s “All of the Lights.” The performances are spirited: colorful lights splash upon a stage where servers, guests, and chairs that have somehow developed mobility all dance along to the music.

Fueling the celebration is the bar’s indulgent selection of drinks. Servers stand over patrons to plunge jello injectors into their mouths, and revelers grab colorful straws to help drain 86-ounce booze buckets filled with sangria or other fruity libations. Pomegranate liqueur and honey-infused whiskey sweeten specialty cocktails, and local beers add depth to coolers stocked with Stella Artois and Dos Equis.