I am fundamentally allergic to sports bars. I am also a diehard, obsessive Dodgers fan (this past season, the ongoing McCourt bankruptcy drama only made following the day-to-day game play more exciting — it was like a dysfunctional family epic in 162 three-hour parts). It can be hard enough to find a place to watch a Dodger game amid an owner boycott in Lakers-dominated Los Angeles; it's harder still when you're trying to avoid the blaring, brightly lit domains of white-capped frat boys. That's why I love Snake Pit Ale House on Melrose. With a couple of plasma TVs in addition to a wall-sized projection screen usually given over to the night's biggest game, you're almost guaranteed to be able to see your game of choice, in an environment that's both divey and homey, with 20 beers on tap and a decent jukebox. It's the closest thing to a San Francisco Mission Street bar that I've found in L.A., the place you go when you're into craft beers and Black Flag, but also — secretly or not so secretly — some brand of sports geek. 7529 Melrose Ave., Fairfax District. (323) 653-2011, snakepitalehouse.com.

—Karina Longworth