Cue-Phoria, Winter Park

Disenchanted with the stigmatization of pool halls as dark, grimy places, lifelong billiards enthusiast Faheem Zia decided to give the game he loved room to thrive in a well-lit and smoke-free joint with an art-deco aesthetic. Gleaming cues dip back and glide smoothly between fingers tented against the main hall's 13 pool tables, which include Diamond Pro-Am units topped in cerulean felt and 9-foot Brunswick Gold Crown IV tables. A heated Søren Søgaard model without pockets serves as a venue for less-common billiards variants and lacks the traditional spots to hide an extra pair of aces.

Each table makes an appearance on the professional circuit monthly, when one of three rotating professional leagues visits and fills the room with an orchestra of cracking Super Aramith balls. During matches, café-style tables surrounded by high-top chairs and stools fill with a range of upscale pub fare such as wings dry-fried in ovens. A jukebox crouches in one corner, spilling forth a varied soundtrack on waves of neon light, and a panoply of touch-screen games and two dartboards let patrons compete while avoiding green felt after a teary falling-out with Kermit.