A&E Nightlife

Her friends would regularly wonder how she did it: Spending her days at the best photo (Weston Gallery), art (Carmel Art Association) and sculpture (Steven Whyte Studio) galleries, then swinging with the best musician (Dennis Murphy) and band (Cheeky Spanks) at the best clubs for rock, blues, jazz and dance by night (Monterey Live, Sly’s, Cibo and Hippodrome, respectively).

Her roommate finally sniffed out the source of her energy when she met Bess Oph in downtown Monterey before heading over to sample the best martinis (Lallapalooza) and mojitos (Montrio) around: quadruple espressos. Normally a gregarious greeter, Bessie wasn’t making any eye contact – instead she was staring into the caffeine machine from the best coffeehouse in county, East Village, her semi-exposed tongue steaming as lushly as a Brazilian rainforest in the sun, her bosom heaving, her breathing heavy and damp.

BEST LOCAL ARTIST
Janet RobertsGallery
North, Dolores and Sixth, Carmel 620-1987, www.janetrobertsfineart.com

“I paint what I must paint,” Janet Roberts writes in her artist’s statement. “The symbols and forms and gestures that are my own. An inescapable result of many years in the process of painting, searching for the traces of my authentic self.” Roberts, a 50-year-old, four-time cancer survivor, mother of four and horsewoman, takes longstanding Peninsula artistic influences and makes them hers to create “painting that may be influenced by the sea, or the sky, or the landscape, but is developed in the mind and resolved in the heart.” Although she works in the abstract tradition, her influences include everything from the Hudson River School to modern masters like Helen Frankenthaler, Robert Motherwell, Mark Rothko and Willem de Kooning. Fans and collectors of Roberts, who lives and works in Corral de Tierra in Salinas Valley but exhibits locally at Gallery North in Carmel, include Clint and Dina Eastwood, Elvis Costello, Diana Krall and David Lynch. Her work has also been shown at corporate venues like Apple and Google. But she’s no trendy celebrity painter. “Uncertainty is my welcomed comrade,” she writes, by way of approaching her approach. “I continue to take risks.”

BEST LOCAL STAGE ACTOR/ACTRESS
Michael Jacobs

Pac Rep Equity actor Michael Jacobs knew he wanted to be an actor from age 2, he told the Monterey County Theatre Alliance. His first role came not long thereafter when he played Mister Tooth Decay in the third grade. Luckily, he’s had better roles since, including Nixon in Nixon’s Nixon, Einstein in Picasso at the Lapin Agile and Salieri in Amadeus. But it’s his local appearances that Weekly readers have noticed at Circle Theatre, York School, MPC and the former GroveMont Theatre, in plays including Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida and Greater Tuna, where he played half the residents of a small town. Look for the him in Edward Albee’s fiery Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, coming in May.

BEST PLAY
The Wizard of Oz at Pac Rep
Outdoor Theater, Mountain View and Santa Rita, Carmel 622-0100, www.pacrep.org

Fabulous special effects – it ain’t easy to make those monkeys really fly through the air or to whip up a wizard head that huge – could not outshine the cast of Pac Rep’s Wizard. From Dorothy to the don’t-you-just-want-to-take-one-home-with-you Munchkins and the Scarecrow to the real pooch that stole the show as Toto, a colony of talented actors contributed dynamic energy to the ensemble cast. Not to overlook: expert direction, and an audience ready to sing along.

BEST PHOTO GALLERY
Weston Gallery
Sixth and Dolores, Carmel 624-4453, www.westongallery.com

It sounds like the in-heat hyperbole that comes with most self-promotion. “The Weston Gallery is the oldest and most respected gallery of its kind,” its website reads, “a world leader in the field of fine vintage and contemporary photography.” No hyperbole here, however. This gallery set the original standard for fine art photography, was a major magnet in bringing Ansel Adams and his accompanying legion of inspired artists to the area. It cements its supremacy further with arresting exhibits like Portraits by Yousuf Karsh (showing through the end of March) and the forthcoming selection of work by the Ed-and-Ansel legends that helped make this place click.

BEST ART GALLERY
Carmel Art Association
Dolores between Fifth and Sixth, Carmel 624-6176, www.carmelart.org

The mission statement ofthe oldest art gallery in the one-time-bohemia-by-the-sea (and the second oldest operating nonprofit artist’s cooperative in the United States) is ambitious: “The Association exists to provide its members with a permanent art gallery, to advance knowledge of, and interest in the arts, and to create a spirit of cooperation and fellowship among artists and the community.” But do it they do – showing about fourscore artists at any given time, bringing free monthly art lectures to the public and cultivating a sculpture garden where fellowship blooms naturally.

BEST SCULPTURE GALLERY
Steven Whyte Studio
Dolores between Fifth and Sixth, Carmel 620-1917, www.stevenwhytesculpture.com

Steven Whyte is an interesting character: a clean-cut British sculptor of world – class pedigree based in little ol’ Carmel who is (understandably) obsessed with his charismatic bulldog, Sir Wellington. His works are just as interesting – delving past the physical form to reveal the defining facets of the persona beneath – and include local landmarks like the Dr. Roberts statue on the lawn of Seaside City Hall. His upcoming projects demonstrate his versatility – he’s working on a 12-foot statue of 1957 Heisman Trophy winner John David Crow for Texas A&M, and a life-size relief of St. Anthony and Child for Carmel Mission.

BEST CLUB DJ
DJ Angel
www.hippoclub.com

The DJ is a dynasty. His record-spinning popularity (he’s won five straight) is a Best Of record. But it doesn’t go to DJ Angel’s head. There’s no room for it: He’s too busy scheming on the next track and how he’s going to spin his way into it. As he does, Doc Ricketts Lab regular keeps some of the largest dance floors in Monterey County packed.

BEST PLACE FOR KARAOKE
Britannia Arms
444 Alvarado St., Monterey 656-9543

Even the most ardent followers of local music probably don’t know of the local duo Rockface. One fine Tuesday this past summer – or maybe it was a Wednesday or a Sunday; the karaoke happens all three nights – Rockface strolled into Britannia Arms, downed a handful of shots and realized the bar’s crowd needed a good rocking. They walked up to karaoke master Bobby Vegas and chose Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive” from his ample collection of songs. Even though Rockface couldn’t tell if the audience’s faces were contorted in ecstasy or pain, they left Britannia Arms with a flush of adrenaline from having lived out their wildest rock star fantasies.

BEST BAR FOR FOLKS OVER 50
Mission Ranch
26270 Dolores St., Carmel 6624-6436, www.missionranchcarmel.com/restaurant

According to restaurant manager Sue Carota, Mission Ranch owner and film legend Clint Eastwood recently glanced over at the bar and said: “This place looks the same as when I had my first legal drink here.” (Apparently Eastwood visited the bar while stationed at nearby Fort Ord.) With an old school copper bar and photos of old Carmel on the walls, the Mission Ranch is a refuge from a rapidly changing world. In addition to these nostalgia-inducing features, the Ranch’s nightly entertainment is a throwback to the days before karaoke machines: a piano bar where patrons can sing along to standards by Sinatra or more modern fare including the country pop of Taylor Swift.

BEST PLACE NOT TO TAKE YOUR PARENTS
Forbidden XTC
551 Market St., Salinas 998-7858

There’s an orgy of evidence that demonstrates how Forbidden XTC won this most prestigious award. It offers the largest DVD selection in Monterey County, pole-dancing class every Wednesday, a range of fun toys, novelties such as “boob cake pans,” a broad selection of kinky costumes and high-end BDSM gear. But it’s the fact that the shop caters to women that makes it unique. When you think Forbidden XTC, think Victoria’s Secret, but better, because it sells lube.

BEST CLUB FOR ROCK
Monterey Live
414 Alvarado St., Monterey 373-5483, www.montereylive.org

If Monterey Live has won Best Club For Rock (and it has), then that means that there’s a wide variety of music that qualifies as rock these days. This would include the soulful hip-hop of Alex Lee, the fuzzy, juke-joint blues of American Relay and the quirky cabaret of Vermillion Lies – in addition to the more traditional rock stylings of locals, The Mystery Lights, and out of towners Dramarama. Fortunately, Live doubles as a dictionary for live music.

BEST CLUB FOR BLUES
Sly McFly’s
700 Cannery Row, Monterey 649-8050

Sly McFly’s sits on an aesthetically enviable and historically significant spot on Cannery Row, where it pumps out hot, live blues music – to mix with the cool ocean air – from a lineup of local practitioners like the worldly John “Broadway” Tucker, the passionate Willie G., the smokin’ Shane Dwight, the sassy Kaye Bohler and the Red Hot Blues Sisters. And it’s the official unofficial after-hours jam session spot for the Monterey Bay Blues Festival, offering up its stage to heavyweights like the late Bo Diddley, Sista Monica, Charlie Musselwhite and B.B. King. The busy dance floor, ocean view and aforesaid music conspire to produce an ever-present atmosphere that can only be described as “good times,” which secures this local blues institution’s top spot.

BEST CLUB FOR JAZZ
Cibo Ristorante Italiano
301 Alvarado St., Monterey 649-8151, www.cibo.com

Most Peninsula folk call this long-standing Italian restaurant/nightclub “Cibo’s,” although the singular “cibo” is Italian for “food.” So it’s not grammatically correct, but it’s as ingrained on us. As is this primo downtown joint, which comes through with the jazzy goods six days a week. Its roster rotates through hot commodities like Lucidology, the funky Neil Banks, Lisa Taylor & Powerhouse, Joe Lucido (Sunday evenings) and others. And the classy, brassy and bold after-hours crowd complements the warm, terra cotta décor.

BEST DANCE CLUB
The Hippodrome
321-D Alvarado St., Monterey 646-9244, www.hippclub.com

Featuring two levels, four dance floors, and a sound system with enough bass to knock your nose ring off, the Hippodrome has virtually monopolized booty shaking. The main floor has two caged stripper poles, perfect for the intoxicated party girl, the exhibitionist, or both (at the same time). On a packed night, guests can expect techno, Hip-Hop/Top 40 and live music being played on the various stages. With a little something for everyone, the Hippo continues to be the party destination for anyone who wants (or needs) to get into the groove.

BEST LOCAL MUSICIAN
Dennis Murphy
www.dennismurphy.smoothjazz.com

When told that he had won the Best Local Musician, bassist extraordinaire Dennis Murphy reacted as he does to most things: with genuine humility and class. “How did that happen? I voted for Tom Ayres [guitarist for Persephone’s Bees and Mike Beck and the Bohemian Saints].” Don’t let Murphy’s modesty distract from a sea of distinguished musical accomplishments that helped secure the bass player’s Best Local Musician title: He leads the 18-piece Dennis Murphy Big Band, rocks the area’s private parties with his five-piece Dennis Murphy Band and directs the Monterey Bay Blues Festival Student Honor Band, an outfit of 16 promising players from local high schools and middle schools.

BEST LOCAL BAND
Cheeky Spanks
www.cheekyspanks.com

Just a month ago, local rock band Cheeky Spanks made a bid for the Weekly’s Best Local Band title during a crowded gig at Bullwhacker’s. Lead singer Jill Childers said the 2007 Best Local Band winners Jonah and the Whalewatchers are great, but they just don’t get out there in the trenches and play as much as her group. The speech probably didn’t secure them any votes. The quartet’s rousing version of Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll” minutes later, however, certainly earned several endorsements – and a full dance floor.

BEST HAPPY HOUR
Peter B’s Brew Pub
2 Portola Plaza, Monterey 649-4511

Here, at the only onsite microbrewery on the Peninsula, the happiness window isn’t shuttered on weekends or squeezed into unrealistically early time slots – it’s a daily 4-7pm affair. In those three hours the great deals are manifold: half-off appetizers, $3 margaritas, $5 Long Islands and daily drink specials. The tastiest value might be $5 for 16 ounce drafts (besides stouts), as Peter B’s IPA, dark wheat, hefewizen, amber porter, golden ale and brew of the month represent a nice range of mouthwatering suds to soak up – or $4 for a 25-ouncer if you slap down $50 to join the mug club and have your vessel hang from the ceiling.

BEST PUB
Crown and Anchor
150 W. Franklin St., Monterey 49-6496, www.crownandanchor.net

Most frequenters enter the Crown and Anchor through the back entrance and leave through the front door. But this mix-up is one of the establishment’s trademarks, as is the outdoor, sunken patio visible from the entrance of the Osio Cinemas, which draws in passersby like moths to a flame. Most nights the patio is hopping with friends mingling, eating, drinking, playing chess and joking around with the jovial Samoan C&A mainstay, Art. It may also help that there are 20 beers on tap, an ample selection of the finest single malts and a menu featuring authentic Cockney faves like bangers and mash.

BEST MARTINI
Lallapalooza
474 Alvarado St., Monterey 645-9036, www.lalla-palooza.com

You sigh happily after dispatching a dish of bone-in ribeye or salmon roasted on cedar. Now it’s time to get that same warm glow in your stomach turned on in your head – it’s martini time, and if you’re at this downtown Monterey hotspot (or at the sister locale in Salinas called Lalla Lounge or its Del Monte Center cousin Lalla Grill), you’re at the right place.In a menu dedicated to the martini, classics like the Cold & Dry and the Lemondrop mingle with more exotic species like the Betty Page, a Cosmo twisted with XXX-rated liqueur, blood orange and citrus; the Spa-Tini, made with mint, cucumbers, lime, gin and Hypnotiq; and a mysterious number called a Pink Panty. We’re told the guys like to go for the whiskey sour martini called the Water Moccasin.

BEST MOJITO
Montrio Bistro
414 Calle Principal, Monterey 648-8880, www.montrio.com

A good mojito expresses a creative approach and classic execution. It requires fresh ingredients, careful and loving construction, speed in preparation, and rewards those who refuse to cut corners. In today’s maddening world of chi-chi cocktails, Montrio’s Cocktail Chef Anthony Vitacca brings all these insightful skills to bear as he mashes mint and mixes magic. Then, suddenly, mind-melting multitudes of meticulously made mojitos materialize.

BEST MARGARITA
Baja Cantina
7166 Carmel Valley Road, Carmel Valley 625-2252, www.bajacantina.com

There are many ways to have a margarita at Carmel Valley’s Baja Cantina. One can order a pomegranate margarita in a 45-ounce glass globe. Or get a pitcher’s worth of the restaurant’s wildly popular house margarita, which is made with lime juice, premium tequilas, Triple Sec and sweet and sour mix. For true tequila connoisseurs, Baja’s AsomBrosorita is a popular pick.

BEST NEIGHBORHOOD BAR BEST BAR FOR DARTS
The Bulldog British Pub
611 Lighthouse Ave., Monterey 658-0686, www.bulldogbritishupub.com

There are many reasons why the Bulldog earns the honor of “best neighborhood bar.” First: There’s nothing more titillating than a short, big-bosomed bartender screaming, “I wanna hear some New Kids on the Block!” in a thick Liverpool accent. Second: The pub makes a hell of a good “Bulldog burger” – sautéed onions, mushrooms, bacon and Swiss cheese. Third: Last call never comes before 2am. And fourth: Great camaraderie always buzzing around the dartboard. Christine, one of the owners, says the dartboards are in use from 7pm on every night of the week. There are two dartboards, one between the jukebox and the bar, and another in the far back corner of the pub. Some maneuvering is necessary in order to avoid dart-related accidents on the busy nights, but that just adds to the challenge of the game.

BEST DRINK WITH A VIEW
Highlands Inn
120 Highlands Drive, Carmel 620-1234, www.highlandsinn.hyatt.com

If Point Lobos is the “most beautiful meeting of land and sea,” then the Lobos-overlooking Highlands Inn is the most beautiful meeting of the sea with furniture, glass and cocktails. Add live jazz on Friday and Saturday nights, 7-10:30pm and the conditions are ripe for an extreme glad-to-be-alive moment. If a visitor to Monterey County could stop for only one drink while passing through, there’s no better place than this upscale tree house.

BEST SELECTION OF WINES BY THE GLASS
Sardine Factory
701 Wave St., Monterey 373-3775, www.sardinefactory.com

As you’d expect, the Factory’s by-the-glass program mirrors its four decades of continued excellence in wine. Interesting styles from across the world allow diners a glimpse of the magic waiting below in its stellar cellar and are the perfect way to experiment with your palate’s range without dropping a bundle. Wine salesmen clamor on weekday mornings to taste current wine cellar master Arvind Dutt on their selections from wherever great wine is grown. The benefactors are the Sardine Factory’s legion of loyal followers.

BEST SELECTION OF BEERS ON TAP
Ol’ Factory Café
1725 Contra Costa, Sand City 394-7336, www.olfactorycafe.com

The many culprits for this perfect crime include the dark wheat German Erdinge, a rare Belgian Trappist ale called Chimay White, Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout and Triple Karmeliet, a Belgian recently voted best in the world – and eight excellent others, including an organic offering. Actually, sounds like a Usual Suspects-quality conspiracy.

BEST PLACE TO SHOOT POOL
Easy Street Billiards
511 Tyler St., Monterey 333-0825, www.easystreetbilliards.com

Stocked with REBCO pool tables, an extensive selection of domestic and imported beers, snacks like deep fried chicken tenders or corndogs fresh from a 350-degree auto fryer, it ain’t hard to love Easy Street. Cues retailing at price points ranging from $100 to $1,000-plus hint at the breadth of intensity local players bring to the finely maintained green felt.

BEST SPORTS BAR
Knuckles Historical Sports Bar
1 Old Golf Course Road, Monterey 372-1234, www.monterey.hyatt.com

Places simply don’t retain people like Knuckles. It’s understandable: Between the free peanuts and popcorn, the rock-solid grill menu, the big old selection of beers and the multiple big screens wired to speaker boxes on the table (that can be adjusted to whichever game is most crucial), it’s hard for customers to ever leave. But it’s the fact that staffers like Cindy Pachusik have worked there over two decades that is truly impressive. It speaks to just how welcoming the environment is here.

BEST SINGLES BAR
Mucky Duck
479 Alvarado St., Monterey 655-3031, www.muckyduckmonterey.com

If the lines running down the sidewalk are any indication, the Duck has plenty of singles perusing the market. Cover charges are rare, and with frequent drink specials (including the ever-popular half-price Wednesdays and Thursday’s $2 drink deal) it’s easy to find unattached ladies and germs chillin’ at the bar, dancing on the outdoor patio, or wailing Cold Play songs on karaoke night. But the best times come on the weekends, when the girls dress to the nines and the boys try not to drool. Let the mating rituals begin.

BEST GAY BAR
Franco’s Norma Jean’s
10639 Merritt St., Castroville 633-2090

Castroville is now known for two things: artichokes and the only gay bar in Monterey County. The establishment, open only on Saturday, is much more than the quintessential gay bar. It has a showroom featuring Adventures of Priscilla-quality Spanish drag shows starring alter-ego pop icons. The bar is also a proactive part of the community. Owner Ernie Sanchez has donated more than $38,000 to AIDS organizations in Monterey County. On an endnote, you don’t have to be gay to go to Norma Jean’s; the drag show is quite spectacular regardless of your sexual orientation.

BEST COFFEEHOUSE
East Village Coffee Lounge
498 Washington St., Monterey 373-5601, www.eastvillagecoffeelounge.com

How to hatch a hip joint: Give it a New York name but slap it in the center of Monterey. Get exotic, fair trade beans, but roast them locally. Fill the nooks and spaces of a historic building with comfy chairs and functional tables so that a seat is rarely empty. Host art shows, music acts and a weekly open mic so conversation centered on poetry, politics and foreign policy stays as hot as the coffees, teas and tasty soufflés.

BEST MOVIE THEATER
Osio Cinemas
350 Alvarado St., Monterey 44-8171, www.osiocinemas.com

It’s the only movie theater in Monterey County that dared to show Inside Deep Throat – a documentary that explores the legacy behind the smut film that became the highest grossing independent flick in history. It charges admission prices that are consistently lower than the other local theaters. It always has a finger on the pulse of film’s highest form: Academy Award winners Slumdog Millionaire, Milk and The Reader were all screened here this winter. In other words, Osio is it.

BEST HANGOUT AFTER THE MOVIE
Lalla Grill
1400 Del Monte Center, Monterey 324-4632

It’s just not fair, putting a place this appealing no more than a Kung Fu Panda flying elbow drop away from Century Cinemas. Whether your post-flick twitch is for a drink (a Mod Mojito with pineapple-infused vanilla rum?), a snack (grilled goat cheese polenta?), a meal (coriander-seared ahi served over red curry noodles or a Hearst Ranch New York steak?) or a romantic dessert (chocolate fondue for two?), this place has a reel of choices and several different contemporary sets in which to enjoy them.