hang out with the new friends you made at the bar while you chow down. And in our experience, the staff have been nothing less than forgiving of latenight antics. The Oxford: 337 N. Higgins Ave, 5490117, the-oxford.com Finalists, Best Late-Night Munchies 2. El Cazador Truck: Various locations 3. Pita Pit: 130 N. Higgins Ave, 541-7482, pitapitusa.com
Best Bar to Hook Up Stockman’s Dating apps are all the rage these days. There’s OKCupid and Tinder and HowAboutWe and Plenty of Fish and many more, all to let you suss out the singles in your area who are looking for the right person—or just Mr. or Ms. Right Now. At first, it seems seductively easier and hassle-free to just scroll through pics, answer a few questions and get paired up by a digital service. Then again, pics can be deceiving, and questionnaires and algorithm-made matches don’t always add up to love in real life. For the old-fashioned, IRL approach to taming some strange, as the kids say, you can also get some friends together and head downtown to see who’s on the dance floor at Stockman’s. Having a few cold ones
Kris Moon
and shaking what your mama gave you still makes for a more memorable experience than sitting at home scrolling through OKCupid. Stockman’s Bar: 125 W. Front St, 549-9668 Finalists, Best Bar to Hook Up 2. The Badlander: 208 Ryman St, facebook.com/pages/The-Badlander 3. TIE: Bodega: 221 Ryman St, 549-0435 Sunrise Saloon: 1805 Regent St, 728-1559, sunrisesaloonandcasino.com
Best Cocktail Selection Plonk Plonk issued an exciting announcement in midMay: The restaurant’s rooftop patio had officially opened for the summer, and all those Coconut Lime Rickeys and Gin Blossoms could finally be enjoyed while taking in a great view of Missoula. Of course, Hellgate Canyon at sunset isn’t necessarily a make-orbreak when confronted with the option of a Sage Martini, a Pink Panther or a Makers Ginger. Plonk’s cocktails are creative and tasty enough to make any
photo courtesy of Ryan Polei
missoulanews.com • Best of Missoula 2014 [47]