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Clube Guanabara
Located on the edge of Guanabara Bay, this laid-back space provides a great setting for live samba and choro . Musicians gather around a few plastic tables, while young and old dance and mingle over tall bottles of Skol beer. Best of all is the pier at the end of the club, where you can take a break from the music and get an eyeful of the city coastline.
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Cobal do Humaitá
A large farmers market on the western edge of Botafogo, the Cobal transforms into a casual nightspot when the sun goes down, complete with live music and open-air eating and drinking.
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Cobal do Leblon
Leblon's flower-and-produce market features a number of open-air bars and restaurants. A vibrant, youthful air pervades this place, and it's a major meeting spot in the summer.
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Conversa Fiada
'Conversa Fiada,' which can mean chit-chat or nonsense depending on the context, is an apt title for this lively Leblon bar. With its deep-red walls, an open-sided setting and a laid-back crowd it's earned a place among the top neighborhood botecos .
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Copa Café
One of Copacabana's best new bars, Copa Café has sleek contemporary design, a satisfying menu and plenty of tasty drink concoctions.
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Copacabana Palace Poolside Bar
Even if you can't swing the overpriced rooms, you can still soak up some of the decadence that the Palace delivers. The poolside bar offers dozens of sumptuous libations on a lovely outdoor terrace, a setting suitable for young duchesses and weary travelers alike. If you're looking for something more stately, head inside to the elegant piano bar, open to midnight).
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Cosmopolita
Behind the stained-glass doors of this 1906 saloon, Cosmopolita's bar is a fine setting in which to daydream over a few cocktails before hitting the samba clubs up the street. Or to just wait for the sunrise.
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Da Graça
The colorful Da Graça is one of Jardim Botânico's liveliest bars. The décor is festive and kitsch: rising up to the tall ceilings are walls draped with shimmery fabric, and brightly hued lamps decorate the entrance. On weekends, the sidewalk tables and the inside of the bar gather a loud but fun crowd.
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Dama de Ferro
Dama de Ferro has one of the best dance floors in town, and a fun, mixed crowd packs into this place in the late hours.
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Democráticus
Murals line the foyer walls of this 1867 mansion. The rhythms filter down from above. Follow the sound up the marble staircase and out into a large hall filled with tables, an enormous dance floor and a long stage covered with musicians. A wide mix of Cariocas gathers here to dance, revel in the music and soak up the splendor of the samba-infused setting. If you come to just one gafieira in Lapa, Democráticus is a good choice.
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Devassa
Serving perhaps Rio's best beer, Devassa makes its own creamy brews, before offering them up to festive crowds at its two-floor chopperia (beer hall). Top picks: sarará (wheat beer), ruiva (pale ale) and mulatta (a mix of dark and light beer with a shot of coffee). An occasional Música Popular Brasileira (MPB) band adds to the din on the upstairs level.
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Drink Café
One of a handful of lively, open-air restaurants along the lake, the Drink Café is one of the most charming spots to hear live jazz and bossa nova. Besides the peaceful setting and decent tunes, Drink Café has a small menu featuring German specialties.
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Drinkeria Maldita
Brought to you by the folks of Casa da Matriz this hipster-loving bar opened in 2007 and remains a top draw of Botafogo. Indoors features pop art and band posters, with DJs spinning rock anthems on the turntables. There are also dozens of tables out on the sidewalk - a fine setting for one of 32 creative elixirs from the enticing cocktail menu.
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Empório
A young mix of Cariocas and gringos stirs things up over cheap cocktails at this battered old favorite in Ipanema. A porch in front overlooks the street - a fine spot to stake out when the air gets too thick with cigarette smoke or bad '80s music.
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Esch Café
Billing itself as the House of Havana, Esch offers a blend of Cuban cigars and jazz. The dark-wood interior combined with the well-dressed over-30 crowd will probably make you feel like you're stepping into a Johnnie Walker photo shoot. Groups perform throughout the week - weekdays around , weekends around .
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Espaço Bndes
Weekly concerts are held at this Centro venue throughout the year. Featuring a mix of popular and classical music, BNDES in the past has featured musicians exploring symphonic pop, and experimental groups playing samba-jazz.
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Espaço Museu da República
The screening room in the dramatic Museu da República shows films you aren't likely to encounter elsewhere. The focus is world cinema - both contemporary and classic films.
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Espaço Sesc
Hosting an excellent assortment of theater and dance performances, Espaço SESC is a bulwark of the Copacabana arts scene. The repertoire tends toward the experimental and avant-garde, particularly during annual dance and theater festivals.
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Espaço Unibanco de Cinema
This two-screen cinema in Botafogo shows a range of films - Brazilian, foreign, independent and the occasional Hollywood film. It has a lovely café inside, as well as a used record-and-book shop with a number of works focusing on the film arts.
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Espelunca Chic
A popular newcomer on the Rio scene, Espelunca is a friendly bar that has boteco charm - open-sided, wood tables, minimal décor and waiters bustling about under trays of chope and piping hot appetizers, including tasty mini moquecas (seafood stew). There is another branch in Copacabana (2236 4090; Rua Bolívar 17A, Copacabana).
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Espírito do Chopp
One of many open-air venues in the Cobal, Espirito do Chopp fills up its plastic tables most nights with a festive, low-key crowd. The beer flows in abundance here, and there's always music nearby - either here or at one of the neighboring bars.
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Estação Botafogo
One block from Espaço Unibanco, this small three-screen theater shows a mix of Brazilian and foreign films. The small café in front is a good place to grab a quick cafézinho (small black coffee) before the movie.
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Estação Ipanema
On the 1st floor of a small shopping complex in Ipanema, Estação Ipanema screens popular contemporary films from Brazil and abroad. Its two theaters seat 141 and 163 respectively.
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Estação Paço
This small, one-room screening theater (seating 64) in the Paço Imperial doesn't offer much in the way of state-of-the-art cinema viewing. However, the excellent selection of foreign and independent films makes up for the technological shortcomings.
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Estrela da Lapa
One of Lapa's latest installments, this handsome samba club is set in a restored 19th-century mansion. Estrela da Lapa has an eclectic music scene and hosts bands playing choro, blues and hip-hop. Shows begin at , followed by a DJ who keeps the dance floor going until late.
