When Black Cat opened its doors in 1993, it helped usher in the "new" U Street. Located on 14th a couple of blocks from U, the Cat quickly became one of the premiere indie concert venues on the East Coast, giving the 9:30 Club a run for its money. While Black Cat may have opened in the shadow of 9:30, it definitely came into its own over the years, booking such influential indie acts as Ani DiFranco, Sleater-Kinney and Yo La Tengo as well as mainstreamers like Foo Fighters (Dave Grohl is an investor), Garbage and The Offspring.

In 2001, the Cat relocated to a new space a few doors down from its original address. While the new space is bigger, the club saved some of the old touches. The cover-charge-free Red Room still exists with that same deep red paint covering the walls, same grafitti-covered tables, same pool table, same pinball machine and, mercifully, same wonderful juke box. The main concert room, which also hosts indie-rock, Britpop and retro-rock dance nights, looks similar to the old, complete with raised seating area in the back, except that it's larger and has two bars instead of one. The "back stage" (usually reserved for small bands as well as film screenings and poetry readings) is no longer just the back section of the concert room, but a separate space off the Red Room. One completely new addition: a smoke- free cafe dubbed Food for Thought. It serves the same vegetarian and vegan menu the original Food for Thought (run by Cat owner Dante Ferrando's dad) served to the DC community for 20-plus years. -- J.E. Coen (Photo: Denise Iacangelo)