A downtown bar and music venue faces plenty of competition, but The Place compensates for its catch-all name with a two-level setup that pleases both music lovers and people-watching drinkers. Inside, everything's blue, blue blue, thanks to heaps of neon tubing everywhere. The music comes fast and furious. If you want to retreat from the action, head to the upper bar, a circular wonder of bacchanalian ingenuity. The menu used to be Cajun, but it's now more straightforward bar food.

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