• The bars heat up when the sun goes down in Albuquerque.albuquerque, New Mexico sunset1 image by Trav from Fotolia.com
  
  Albuquerque is New Mexico's most populous city and home to a diverse mix of university students, immigrants and Native Americans. The city's nightlife scene is thriving on weekends, when live bands perform and bars spill out onto the street. Albuquerque is home to hundreds of bars, including many Irish pubs, breweries and even upscale martini lounges. Many of the best pubs are to be found around the University of New Mexico, along Central Avenue downtown near the airport. The more upscale lounges are located near the Albuquerque Convention Center, also downtown.
  
  

Kelly's Brew Pub

• Formerly a local car dealership along historic Route 66, this Albuquerque institution brews more than 20 homemade beers and offers informative tours of the brewery that provide insight into the art of beer making. Sample the many varieties including apricot ale, Belgian pale, extra-special bitter and oatmeal stout. You can even brew your own beer, measuring the ingredients, tending the kettle and bottling the stuff yourself. Kelly's enormous space features a large sports bar, outdoor patio and open-seating dining room. The extensive bar menu features a wide range of tasty snacks and pub grub, including nachos with guacamole, onion rings, quesadillas and green chili cheese fries, a New Mexico classic.
  
  Kelly's Brew Pub
  3222 Central Ave. SE
  Albuquerque, NM 87106
  505-262-2739
  kellysbrewpub.com
  
  

O'Niell's Irish Pub

• This dime-a-dozen Irish pub is hugely popular with the university crowd and hosts live rock bands on Saturday nights as well as Celtic and bluegrass music on Sundays. Founded by local eccentric and quasi-celebrity Rob O'Niell, who spent no less than 14 years on an Alaskan fishing boat, O'Niell's is a place where people get together to have a good time and eat greasy pub food--simple as that. O'Niell's bar menu is quite impressive, offering more than 50 imported and domestic bottled beers, a dozen beers on top, dozens of single-malt whiskeys and a wide range of other spirits, including absinthe. The bar menu is surprisingly interesting and features original concoctions such as fried pickles with ranch dressing, potato cheese fritters with cheddar, gorgonzola, and herbs, and crispy corned beef and cabbage egg rolls.
  
  O'Niell's Irish Pub
  4310 Central SE
  Albuquerque, NM 87108
  (505) 255-6782
  oniells.com
  
  

High Noon

• This kitschy Old West saloon in historic Old Town has been an Albuquerque favorite ever since it opened its doors in 1974, though the building actually dates back to 1785. High Noon serves up a wide selection of truly authentic Southwestern cuisine, such as rattlesnake and crab fritters topped with chipotle honey relish, crispy red chili onion rings, buffalo sausage topped with cheddar and jalapeno, and poblano chili stuffed with blue crab and cheese served over Spanish rice. High Noon's bar offers a wide selection of beers on tap, fine wines, and killer margaritas.
  
  High Noon
  425 San Felipe St. NW
  Albuquerque, NM 87104
  505-765-1455
  999dine.com/nm/highnoon