Becky's Bar and Grill boasts astonishing depth. And you'll be thankful for the long bar and cozy booths at its weekly Saturday-night karaoke — particularly when some dude turns Pearl Jam's "Better Man" into a thundering and tuneless dirge. The diversity on display is quite something: business professionals sip Blue Moons. Blue-collar types squat at the bar. Hairdos evoke your favorite decade (especially if your favorite decade is the '80s). Four guys man the karaoke station, rotating singing duties before everyone has had a few drinks and heads for the microphone. Most folks opt for vocally challenging ballads, and the singing, oddly enough, isn't bad. Check out the way one brave woman abandons her beer with an "I need no excuse" shrug and has her way with "Stuck in the Middle With You." The atmosphere at Becky's is measurably less raucous than other karaoke battlegrounds, so you won't have to wait long for your chance in the spotlight or withstand consecutive performances of "Total Eclipse of the Heart." But don't expect to bring down the house either. — Sam Allard
Becky's Bar & Grill, 1762 East 18th St., 216-621-0055,
