BANGALORE was till yesteryear known as the Pensioner�s Paradise, the Garden City and the University City of India. However, this sleepy nomenclature has been swiftly shed over the last few years and replaced with the sobriquet of Silicon City, or the IT capital of the country.

Another title that our burg enjoys, although not as blatantly as its sisters, is the Beer Capital of India! With at least two major booze barons having ensconced themselves in Bangalore, the quantum of pubs where you can get the ever popular draught (or tap) beer, is mind-boggling.

These are not just places where draught is served, they are a whole way of life, and often you�ll find an entire family quaffing the stuff in consanguine conviviality. But come, let me take you on a pub crawl to five of the popular places which quite frankly, are my personal favourites.

Let�s start with THE PUB WORLD on Residency Road, (perpendicular to the famous Brigade Road). This place offers its pubbers a choice of five different locations within its portals. The Red Lion is ye olde English, Der Keller is robust German, The Old West is a Saloon, Manhattan is down-town and Hollywood is a stand-up-at inverted barrels and quaff.

Each area has it�s own decor and style and seating. The music is loud and damned good, the only thing missing is a dance floor! But, I dare you to keep still with all the catchy music. And then there�s the food! One of their specialities is a tandoori dish called Hariyali Kabab; it�s in a green masala which is just spicy enough to warrant large gulps of chilled draught by the tap (mug) or pitcher (four taps) full. TPW is the watering hole of folks from 18 to 88. The atmosphere is cozy and Ashok Sadhwani (the owner) ensures it stays that way.

A little down the road, say about a kilometre or so, is another hugely popular place called THE BLACK CADILLAC. Owned and run by the debonair man about town, Ranjit Narang, who conceived and created a cool cat kinda place with an option of indoor or outdoor seating; mostly done in black and red with a bit of chrome thrown in for luck! (I must interrupt myself at this juncture, to tell you that most pubs in the city are weekend places, except the five that we�re hopping to.

These places are happenin� all week �round, with only the volume of bingers picking up on weekends. Also, the good pubs are not cheap, so we�re talking an upmarket crowd. And that�s good, because it�s then safe for women, and you see plenty of singles. The Black Cadillac is a doozy for the city�s yuppy crowd who need a place to unwind after a hard day in front of their computer terminals.The music is very - garage, very now - Britain or the States and the DJ, a young fellow who knows his regulars like the back of his CDs, is a teetotaller and ever alert for mood shifts. He�s very good this guy and the crowd loves him.

But it�s also true that not only the yuppy crowd haunts this place; I�ve often seen senior corporate execs doing their thing here. Also the food is good, mostly snacky, kebabs n thingz. Good bonhomie all around.

Now, you come out and cross the road diagonally. Not because this is your second pitcher, but because that�s where you wanna go next. Upstairs, to a place that�s perched like an eyrie on the second floor. It�s called PURPLE HAZE and lives up to its name. It�s a hard rock pub, named after a Jimi Hendrix number; it plays only rock; and that�s great because I love rock and if you do too, and are in our city, you gotta do this one.

There are rock posters and paintings everywhere, even in the loo! And there�s psychedelia backing it and lots of purple in the decor too. The food is not important here though it�s quite good, standard pub grub. But, the music, oh! mama! the music with a large screen giving you a visual boost too.

This is the place to chill if you�re young and happenin� and in Bangalore. The fact that Purple Haze is packed to capacity every night of the week, with or without an event happening (yes, they have those too), speaks volumes for it�s status. Speaking of volume, don�t expect to be able to talk here! Again the DJ/Manager Girish, knows his music trackwards, and he�s got attitude.

If you don�t trip on rock, this isn�t the place for you. It�s said politely enough but you won�t find anything else playing even if you were silly enough to request it. Purple Haze is like a cult thing, if you want to stand up and be recognised in this city, you better be seen at Purple. You�ve only downed three pitchers by now.

So now, you pop into (or on to) your wheels, and head for the most happening place in this city since it opened a couple of months ago. I�m talking 180 Proof on St. Mark�s Road. Roshni and Jai came out of nowhere (actually New York), and took our bean-town by storm. You can�t really describe this place as a pub, but more like an 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. ultimate meeting place, which serves you draught beer among it�s myriad other beverages and �short eats�! It�s really classy.

It�s an old building restored, keeping as much of the architecture as they could. With huge air conditioning ducts, (which make it lovely indoors) criss-crossing the ceiling, and not looking at all out of place; and a grand sweeping staircase which take you up to a mezzanine level (where you can feel like God, looking down at the mortals below)! The music is loud, but not so much that you have to yell at each other.

Also upstairs, it�s a little quieter, although I haven�t been able to figure this out, since sound I�ve always heard, travels upwards! Wait, this lovely place also has an outdoors seating area under the stars with wrought iron furniture, where you can escape far from the madding crowds ignoble strife, and sip your choice in gentler climes listening to only occasional blasts from the interiors, when the huge glass doors open to egress other gentle souls.

If you want to meet corporate and well-heeled Bangalore this is the place of choice. And you�re only into your penultimate Pitcher! Get on to Mahatma Gandhi Road, and you�ve had it up to here and your eardrums can�t contain another decibel. You must have a more somnolent and dignified place to consume your final pitcher of the eve.

Sweep into the quiet luxury and extreme class of The Oberoi, and into THE POLO CLUB. Plush green leather and gleaming wood paneling welcomes you. Banquet or table the choice is entirely yours. Pleasant people, popular music at extremely bearable levels, quiet, friendly, efficiency.

Fresh beer in its beaded pitcher. Ahh! This is what you�ve been wondering about. This is the kind of place you need to unwind in. Sure the prices are five star, but what the heck are you earning for? So what will the starter be? A brown leather folder reveals �The Bridle Selection�, bit of a jolly old pun that, wot? Ha! Ha! Let�s try the Herbed Potato Wedges, they�re golden crisp externally and oh! so soft on the inside; or Smoked Salmon anyone? Chicken Satay, perhaps?

The food is great, from Swiss Rosti to Shepherd�s Pie to exotic sandwiches (very filling) to good ol� Indian veg., fish, chicken or lamb. And if you happen to be a dessert freak, then move on to Rule Eighteen and let that rule your senses. They�ve got it all.