The Dugout   

Years ago the Dugout was a favorite pre- or post-Red Sox game hangout for Boston baseball fans. But these days it stands as a stomping ground for anyone even loosely affiliated with Boston University -- from students to professors, each of whom runs the gamut from new age hippy to preppy intellectual to traditional sports jock. Head down the steps and poke inside, and you may feel a bit like you've stepped into a fraternity house basement -- this place is so underground, they don't even have a phone. You can smell the years of cigarette smoke on the walls. Faux wood paneling, pipes along the ceiling, an uneven floor and linoleum-covered tabletops are well-suited to the dark lighting. Drop a dime in the jukebox and settle into one of the tall wooden booths. They're great for private conversations, not to mention the coziness they offer, a perfect antidote to Boston's winter weather. The Dugout makes no bones about offering cheap beer and little, if any, food. Still one of ''the'' places to watch BU sports games on television, the Dugout has dozens of caricatures of the school's past hockey greats hanging on its walls.