Valhalla   

Ever since the class of 1972, Rice University students have been letting off steam at this small, quirky lounge across from campus. Though it remains a bit of a secret hideaway, those in the know hang out here amid the dusty piles of books on weekdays and Sunday for the incredibly cheap beer: Bottles are less than two bucks, and the draught varieties - Shiner Bock, Lone Star and St. Arnold's (of course) - are even less. Perhaps not surprisingly, Valhalla attracts an intellectual crowd. If you happen to go there alone, you could always challenge another patron to a game of chess, or simply strike up a conversation at the bar. Just don't show up on Saturday, the only day the bar is closed.