are we talking Washingtonian-esque bars in Baltimore? who wants to go to something like that?

I'll nominate Brewer's Art though, I guess.

One on each side of the coin: Rocket to Venus for uber-scenesters; and Mt. Royal Tavern for divey goodness.

Since I'm the roommate, I'll chime in. I have a heck of a time getting my friends away from D.C.'s obnoxious gravity, so I try to really wow them when they get here. (Warning: I may be failing Sam's cheap test, though anything's cheap compared to D.C. and especially New York.)

Lime is my first choice—amazing tequila selection, good food, fun bartenders, always a place to sit.

For grit (and traditional music), J. Patrick's Irish Pub in Locust Point on Thursdays.

If they know good beer, I'll take them to Brewer's—otherwise getting decent seating is too hit-or-miss on a busy night, honestly. The Dog Pub is great for the flavors and the absurd number of glasses.

If I want to hit them over the head with how many good bars we have in close proximity, a crawl from Dionysus to Brewer's to The Owl Bar is good. By the time we get to the 13th Floor, they're too drunk (and excited to have a view—D.C. has no high buildings) to notice it's kind of a creepy place.

For style & cocktails, I say Red Maple or certain nights at Club One. (Ixia doesn't make the cut unless I'm stuck touring around major fake martini queens—way overpriced and stuffy.)

Musically it's a toss-up until the dust settles on the various indie rock bar shake-ups and location jumps.

XS is pretty cool, and worth being added to Patchen's bar crawl - if only for the interior decor/layout.- kind of a "mini-Adams morgan"set of bars.