Lounges are increasingly popular in Tegucigalpa, one of the most popular being Río in the shopping center Los Proceres. While El Rincon (tel. 504/235-4551) in Colonia Rubén Dario, a few blocks from Morazán, is technically a restaurant, it has a very large and glamorous lounge area that is packed on weekends and serves a mean martini. The Nau lounge at the Inter-Continental hotel is another chic spot to sip cocktails, at the edge of the hotel pool.

Downtown, the top floor terrace of La Terraza de Don Pepe (tel. 504/237-1084) grants a view with its beers and has karaoke on weekends. Up the hill in Colonia Palmira, the Mirador (tel. 504/280-5000) bar at the Hotel Honduras Maya has a lovely outdoor terrace with a great view of twinkling lights along the hills in the evening—and two-for-one beers during happy hour.

A good place for a casual beer is Pupusería El Patio on Boulevard Morazán (a block east of McDonald’s). Beer is cheap, and there is often live music, dancing, and/or karaoke. People usually show up every night of the week, but like everywhere in Tegucigalpa, it’s the weekend nights that are packed. La Caramba, a couple of blocks off Boulevard Morazán, is another place for a drink and live music, usually of very good quality, with salsa music on Fridays.

There are a number of bohemian spots for a drink, where the city’s artists and intelligentsia congregate. Cinefilia (on Av. Rep. de Panamá) is a popular spot for after-work drinks, and it has a large selection of international films for rent. Downtown not far from Hotel Excelsior is Café Paradiso (Av. Miguel Barahona 1351, tel. 504/222-3066), which offers a bit of everything—food and drink, free wireless Internet, poetry readings, film screenings, and live music. Call ahead for a schedule, or sign up for event listings via email by writing to paradiso [at] cablecolor [dot] hn.

Casa de Puros in the Casanoble shopping center on Juan Pablo II has a small bar and restaurant (with an excellent ventilation system) in case you want to sip and nibble while you smoke a cigar. Specialty cocktails and some interesting wines are available, as well as gourmet toasted sandwiches.