Blake's On Telegraph, Berkeley

Since 1940, Blake's has been a fixture of Telegraph Avenue. Starting as a joint for beer and a quick bite by Larry Blake, it evolved into a jazz club, then a blues venue as well as a casual restaurant serving a mix of tasty bar food with some surprisingly good variations, all very reasonably priced. It serves food at all hours, has a full bar and dining section on the main floor, a bar and performance stage downstairs, and a third service bar and lounge area on the third floor. It offers approximately 15 imported, domestic and microbrew beers on tap, as well as an ample stock of fine wine and premium liquor. Choose from pizzas, burgers, sandwiches, salad, pastas and wraps that are reasonably filling and affordably priced. Performers at Blake's have included the likes of Otis Rush, Etta James, Boz Skaggs and Greg Allman; it also now books alternative sounds like Third Eye Blind. On any given night you may hear ska, funk, jazz, rock or world music. Blake's is the second destination of the Raleigh's-Blake's-Kip's-Bear's Lair Cal Berkeley college bar crawl; expect a predominantly student crowd most nights.