Cat's Eye Pub   

There's live music here seven days a week and pints all around. Not only is the Cat's Eye one of the oldest bars in one of the oldest buildings in town, it's also rustic and real, dirty and densely decorated. A mural of Irish history, depicted by potatoes, landscapes and patriotic heads, adorns one wall. Against this backdrop, bands play American jazz, blues and Irish folk. The dance floor is a happy sea of beer-drinking music lovers from every walk of Baltimore life. A good-sized tavern with a large front room and an impressive oak bar provides a setting for two-decade-old decorations, including an inverted miniature Christmas tree, dusty ship models, tinsel, fairy lights, international flags (from Israel and Sweden) and stickers for O'Malley for mayor. In the back bar, get away from the crowd and the plentiful cigarette smoke while enjoying good beers in partial peace. For most people who come here, it is bliss, not peace they are looking for. Bliss comes in the form of one of the bar's favorite bands. Steve Kraemer and the Bluesicians play nearly every Sunday to a packed house. They threaten a cover charge, but more likely the James Dean look- alike harmonica player will walk a tip bowl through the crowd after the second of three sets. (For all you trivia buffs, Steve Kraemer, pianist and singer, was lead man in the original 'Blues Brothers' band.) Smiles on every face harken back to a simpler time when good dance, great music and a strong drink made all right in the world. -- Lynn Romano