Tommy Doyle's

Cambridge / Somerville, Boston –

A stone’s throw from Harvard University, Tommy Doyle’s is a multi-level pub popular with area students for its live Irish music and DJs, sports packages, and trivia nights.

The ground floor, its walls lined with vintage beer signs and Gaelic knickknacks, is the cozy main area where hoodie-clad college kids and kickback Cambridge locals clink pints and catch a little FIFA on the multiple flat-screens.

It’s no surprise that trivia is a serious event so close to Harvard, or that all three trivia nights draw a packed crowd that sees every barstool and chair in the long room occupied by undercover savants in jeans and t-shirts.

The basement – dubbed The Crimson Lounge – is a favorite birthday party spot for Harvard coeds or anyone else who wants to peruse the additional taps exclusive to the lower bar, while a spiral staircase peppered with old photographs leads patrons to the larger dance and live music floor.

Seasonal bands belting out Celtic beats and a monthly schedule of local acts add to the mix, while most nights all year see DJs spinning Top 40 and 80s classics for the crowd of stressed-out studiers who have dropped the books for the night.

Lots of televised sports and a Celtic brunch round out the weekend at Tommy Doyle’s, which, while a far cry from its former life as the site of the original House of Blues, still manages to keep the beats going strong.