    
Southwest Florida Night Clubs and Bars
Across the patio is the Indigo Room (239)332-0014, which offers an encyclopedia of beers and sometimes brings in rock bands from all over. If it looks deserted when you first walk in, that's because the place doesn't crank up until 10:30 or 11 p.m. Another restaurant/club on the patio is Varian's (239)461-2727), with its restaurant downstairs and partially open-air bar with dance floor upstairs. Facing off on Hendry Street are dance clubs Club 1527 (239)461-2727 and The Beat Club (239)461-9300. Both consistently draw young party crowds onto the packed dance floors. The Liquid Cafe (239)461-0444 is an artsy part of the downtown scene with local artists' work adorning the walls and local musicians to entertain. The food is good, the brews are cold and you can sit at an outside patio. Right next door to Liquid is Bacchus & Co. downtown (239)226-4200, not to be confused with the original Bacchus & Co. (239)415-9463 in the Bell Tower Shops in south Fort Myers. The downtown spot is divided into bar, bistro and fine dining areas. Owner Shannon Yates also opened his namesake Shannon (239)689-2675 around the corner on Hendry Street. It features a breakfast and lunch bar with Internet access and TV news by the day. By night, it's a martini/dessert/cocktail bar (non-smoking inside) with an outdoor import and draft beer patio bar. The restaurant Tetley's Downtown (239)226-1686, sister to the upscale Fort Myers Beach restaurant, has taken over the first two floors of the long standing Peter's La Cuisine on Bay Street. The building's third floor is Copacabana (239)226-1180, a bar featuring live entertainment such as Latin, jazz and reggae, a VIP room and two bars. The club also has an open-air rooftop tiki bar with a DJ spinning Top 40 music. Across the alley from Tetley's and Copacabana is Eddie Fishbowls (239)334-9273, with a colorful, tropical decor and a signature drink in a fishbowl. It features loud, live rock bands. Hendry Street Station (239)337-1414 has good food and drink, a friendly atmosphere and bands on the weekends to make this a reliable place to stop. If it's stogies, martini's or leopard skin you're in the market for, check out the Downtown Tobacco and Cigar Bar (239)337-4662. You can walk through a doorway to the attached dark, metallic Gotham Hall bar, which features live bands. From there, venture through another doorway into Fat Cat's Drink Shack (239)226-9272 for some frozen delights and a casual, beachy atmosphere. The French Connection (239)332-4443 at First and Jackson streets serves great sandwiches and quality beers, and offers a good mix on the jukebox. Right next door to the French is Ellington's Jazz Bar and Restaurant (239)337-5299, which offers elegant dining and a bar area featuring national jazz performers. The Verdana (239)332-2065 doubles as a fine restaurant and a cozy piano bar. If you're a lawyer, politician or downtown power broker, or want to be one, stop reading now. This is your place.
La Marina (239)334-2727 restaurant on West First Street offers a gorgeous view of the Caloosahatchee River, a big outdoor tiki bar and a variety of live entertainment on the weekends. If your car is broken down, go by boat. If you're looking to shake that groove thing, head for the Latin sounds at Cachet Bar & Grill (239)277-7662 or Casa Blanca (239)278-5533. Cachet brings in live acts, and both places at times offer dance lessons for the uninitiated. If you're dying to show off that big brimmed Stetson, make tracks for Ricochet (239)277-5288. Not into country? Don't worry. Ricochet has evolved into more than a country/western bar and now offers a variety of live music. If you're into Nostalgia, you'll find food and fun at Groove Street Grille & Discotheque (239)437-2743, just off College and Winkler. And you'll find gags galore next door at the Laugh-In Comedy Club(239)479-5233 What has been a long line of rock-themed bars has evolved into Club Neptunes (239)334-0245, which brings in local and national acts ranging from rock to jazz to Latin and more. For a variety of live music all week, including Neil Diamond and Elvis impersonators, stop by the VIP Club (239)437-2177. If offers an amazing menu of more than 1,200 martini's and more than 100 single malt scotches. Speaking of impersonators, the gay nightclub The Bottom Line (239)337-7292 features drag queens, live bands and several bar areas for dancing and playing pool. It's become a popular hangout for heterosexuals as well. Prefer espresso and high-quality live folk music with your weekend nightlife? Try the Sweet Bean Coffee Cafe (239)275-9000. The Fort Myers Ale House (239)931-4160 offers great food, lots of beer, pool tables and plenty of televisions to watch your favorite sports. Mona Lisa - Italian Restaurant, Pizza and Lounge (239)939-5344 is the place to go for karaoke, especially on Sunday nights. The greater Fort Myers area now has several Hooters restaurants, where they have, well, you know what they have. There's the big Hooters in central Fort Myers (239)275-4666, one in Cape Coral (239)945-4700, Fort Myers Beach (239)463-6033 and Port Charlotte (239)625-0200. Another Hooters will open in Naples soon.
Take a drive down Del Prado. The place has so much neon, it's starting to look like Las Vegas. Be sure to sample the ribs and brew at Hogbody's (239)574-6600, then do like everybody else and drop by Mugs-N-Jugs (239)549-9555 near the Big John National Monument. The complex's downstairs and rooftop bars are both part of the Bamboo Garden and Dance Club (239)541-1500, with bamboo decor. Parents, want to see a sporting event but can't find a bay sitter? Pack up the kids and head for Uncle Brewski's Walk in the Park (239)573-2739. The owners have kids too, so they've created a video game area to keep the young ones entertained.
A slice of Key West is alive in North Fort Myers in the form of a saltwater dock, a full bar and live music at Shuckers & Company (239)995-7001. For even more tropical stuff, check out the new Hurricane Harry's (239)997-8300 waterfront grill and tiki hut and its Key West Cantina, which features a new bar and sushi. And Lee County's oldest drinking establishment is North Fort Myers' own The Big Still (239)997-5752.
When it's sunny and scorching, there's nothing like a cold one at the beachside bar at the Lani Kai (239)463-3111. Good luck getting near the place, though, when spring break hits. Ditto for Top-O-Mast (239)463-9424 and The Beach Pierside Grill (239)765-7800. The Cottage at the Gulf Shore Grill (239)765-5440 is famous for its rum runners and great sunsets. On the way back, drop by The Bridge (239)765-0050, which is actually on the bay, under a bridge. It's known for reggae bands on Sundays.
If your heading east, you can't miss Mugs-N-Jugs Lehigh (239)369-5069, which is hauling in crowds out there. In addition to mugs and jugs, they serve great cheeseburgers. The place is big. And on the right.
The Jacaranda (239)472-1771 on Sanibel has live music seven days a week and gets seriously busy when reggae bands play. It's a bar that defines Florida's carefree attitude. And if you make it all the way to Pine Island, you can sip your suds outside The Waterfront Restaurant (239)283-0592.
D'Amico & Sons in Naples (239)430-0955, also at Bell Tower Shops in south Fort Myers (239)489-0001, is a friendly place that lives up to its motto: "Eat well. Laugh often. Live Long." McCabe's Irish Pub & Grill conjures up a taste of the Emerald Isle (239)403-7170
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Recent development bodes well for Fort Myers,
especially along the brick-laden Patio de Leon. Hot Spots
there include Cyrus Nightclub (239)226-0292, a
European inspired dance club complete with a mural of cirrus
clouds downstairs with a lounge upstairs. Local and guest
DJ's keep the music thumping.