Entertainment

Right now is the perfect time to visit a Dallas bar or restaurant with a patio and a pool.

The weather is not yet so humid that you feel like you're covered in a wet blanket. And you can still catch a breeze from time to time. Here are a few good spots to visit as the sun's going down. Click on the name for more information.

Jason Janik / Special to DMN

Customers can swim in the pool at J. Pepe's Mexican restaurant on Greenville.

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Where: 3619 Greenville Ave.

The scene: A Mexican restaurant with a pool in the

back is such a stellar idea, we wonder why more don't have one. After work, this place is full of young professionals sipping beers and frosty margaritas. Later, college students congregate in T-shirts, or in dressier jeans and heels. Music on a recent evening ranged from Frank Zappa to Journey.

Can you swim in the pool? Yep. Says so on the menu. Bring the trunks!

Where: 2332 Leonard St.

The scene: Dragonfly's patio thumps with ambient

house music, played from a DJ booth perched over the water. Thirty- and 40-somethings in button-down shirts and flirty dresses mingle, and some cuddle on the

striped lounge chairs. Glass is prohibited poolside, but Dragonfly has branded plastic cups to hold your fruity cocktail. Try the Fountain of Youth Zatini ($12), a mix of Grey Goose, Cointreau, cucumber-honeydew purée and fresh lime.

Can you swim in the pool? Not unless you're a Hotel ZaZa guest, and only during the day.

File 2006

On weekends, DJ music is piped outside to the rooftop patio at Fuse restaurant, in the Dallas Power & Light building.

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Where: 1512 Commerce St., Suite 100

The scene: Fuse restaurant's rooftop patio is among the coolest downtown, with a pool, a rushing fountain and views of the skyline. On weekends, DJ music is piped outside and there's a packed crowd of urbanites in their 20s and 30s. On a quiet weeknight, it's a good place to zone out and listen to the water. Sip on the Spice Sake Rita ($9), a mix of fresh orange juice, Cointreau and sake, with a chile rim. Go ahead and lick it off – it's that good.

Can you swim in the pool? Only if you live in the Dallas Power & Light building; it's just for residents.

Where: 7530 E. Grand Ave

The scene: It almost feels like summer camp when you hang out here – if summer camp had beer and fried munchies. The East Dallas bar's huge back yard has three sand volleyball courts, two pools – one of which has a slide – and a jukebox stocked with rock, country and soul. (Think Guns N' Roses and Stevie Wonder.) To drink, split a pitcher with some friends, as we saw three ladies doing recently.

Can you swim in the pool? Yessiree. Five bucks gets you all the swimming and volleyball you can handle. Drinking in the pool is fine, too, as long as you use a plastic cup.