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Live Entertainment

Where do you go to kick back on a balmy evening in August? Several voters favored Marqs in Menlo, which features plenty of live music. Wednesday is Blues Night, for example, while Mondays feature local musicians. Actually, there are tunes just about every night -- check the calendar. Feeling confident? Enter one of the vocalist contests. Meanwhile, other Weekly voters picked the Cuban bar and restaurant La Bodeguita del Medio, a place for sipping a sweet rum cocktail, puffing on a cigar and gazing at Cuban artwork. (La Bodeguita also won Best International Restaurant and Best Martini/Cocktails; see another listing in the martini category.) Marqs in Menlo: 1143 Crane St., Menlo Park; 650-853-1143. www.marqsinmenlo.com. La Bodeguita del Medio: 463 S. California Ave., Palo Alto; 650-326-7762. www.labodeguita.com


Nightlife Spot

By day a mild-mannered restaurant, by night Nola becomes a raucous rendezvous site perfect for shaking off the work week. Specializing in Cajun classics such as seafood jambalaya and Creole shrimp, the trendy bar and restaurant adds spice to any evening (and even offers a gluten-free menu). Drinks are a must, but be sure to bring your trusty sidekick(s) if you try to defeat Nola's famous hurricane in a 60-ounce bowl. Runner-up Melt Ultra Lounge, with its plush interior, classy drinks and posh "bites," is the ideal spot to live it up like Tony Stark, without leaving downtown. Nola: 535 Ramona St., Palo Alto; 650-328-2722. www.nolas.com. Melt Ultra Lounge: 544 Emerson St., Palo Alto; 650-325-6358. www.meltpaloalto.com


Palo Alto Park

When not flying over the Peninsula, capes a-flutter, superheroes find plenty of fun at night Mitchell Park, voted the Best Palo Alto Park by Weekly readers. The beloved 21-acre open space features curvy bear sculptures and "gopher holes" in the tots' area, large grassy expanses for athletic games, picnic areas, tennis courts and a dog run. "It's been luring small fry like a cat to catnip," a Palo Alto Times columnist wrote at the park's birth some 52 years ago. Some things, fortunately, haven't changed. 600 East Meadow Drive, Palo Alto; 650-496-6962. www.cityofpaloalto.org


Place for a Play Date

It's your friendly, neighborhood play-date spot! Where, you ask? Parks are persistently popular. Kids love Johnson Park's concrete slide and Mitchell Park's water-play area and gopher holes. For some learning fun, the Junior Museum and Zoo offers hands-on science exhibits and more than 50 species of animals. Parents will be glad to know that good clean fun is just a sink away at Opal'z, where you can make soap, lotions and lip balms. Johnson Park: 200 Kipling St., Palo Alto. Mitchell Park: 600 E. Meadow Drive, Palo Alto. Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo: 1451 Middlefield Road. Opal'z: 719 Colorado Ave., Palo Alto; 650-322-6500. www.opalzoap.com


Wi-Fi Hot Spot

B Coupa Cafe== was a big winner this year, also pulling in readers' votes for Best Bakery/Desserts and Best Coffee House. For a full listing, see the Bakery/Desserts category.

— Palo Alto Weekly staff