Whether it's because of the TV show
Cheers or the city's Irish heritage, most visitors expect to find a lot of taverns in Boston. A lot there are, but in the heavily touristed areas, you may have to do a little hunting to find a traditional neighborhood-style place. (The pub that inspired the sitcom
Cheers no longer fits that category, having become a tourist attraction.) Most in the popular Fanueil Hall and Quincy Market areas are theme pubs, although a few genuine Irish ones still hold their own.
Boston has spawned many successful musical artists, including Aerosmith, the J. Geils Band, the Cars, Boston, Tracy Chapman, Godsmack, the Pixies, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Staind and New Kids on the Block. The underground band you see in a dingy club like the Middle East just might make its own rise to fame—or not. The city also has a penchant for grooming stand-up comedians: It was a stomping ground for Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, Steven Wright, Denis Leary, Janeane Garafalo and many others.
One convenient way to club-hop in Boston is to walk the length of Lansdowne Street, across from Fenway Park. The crowd tends to be pretty young and collegiate, even though most clubs admit only those age 21 and older (with exceptions on some nights). Many of these clubs have dress codes—not always rigorously enforced, however—that can vary depending on the night of the week, so make sure to call ahead if you feel like wearing your jeans. The nearest T stop for Landsdowne Street is Kenmore Square on the Green Line, but remember that the T shuts down before the clubs do, so save enough cash for cab fare.
Boston has a well-deserved reputation for shutting down early. Most bars in Boston close during the week at 1 am, although many extend their weekend hours until 2 am. Most dance clubs (including those on Landsdowne Street, which has close to a dozen alone) are open nightly until 2 am.
