Hipster Pick-Up Guide to Atlanta

Hipsters are obsessed with Apple products and thus love iPods, iPhones and iTunes. But, their heart strings are equally tugged by local releases on wax. So, where to find music-loving hipsters? Criminal Records in (you guessed it) Little Five Points. Their huge selection of used CDs (read: cheap) and free acoustic shows lure in hipsters, who are typically low on cash. Looking to talk for hours on end about The Shins? Look no further.

Kicks are an important part of the hipster wardrobe. They need to be either flat-soled, or some type of badass vintage boots. And both need to be totally worn out. While you can't get boots at Abba Dabbas, the store is a Vans/Chucks/PF Flyers heaven. Plus, they carry cheap, tropical-colored sunglasses and weird accessories like tote bags and bracelets.

There are plenty of nice vintage stores in L5P (Clothing Warehouse, Stefan's) and plenty of search-it-all thrift shops (Value Village), but Rag-O-Rama is the happy medium. Hipsters like it because it's significantly cheaper then the aforementioned vintage shops, but you don't have to dig like you do at Value Village. Plus, it's a few doors down from El Myr. Shopping and burritos for all!

Being well-versed in literature is as important to a hipster as a sportsman knowing who won the ?91 Heisman (Ty Detmer). Hipsters tend to be low on money and transportation, but Atlanta Book Exchange is in their neck of the woods (East Side) and it's cheap. It also serves as a good way to kill time between band practice and their shift at Corner Tavern. But don't underestimate the hipsters? wit and knowledge of memoirs; they're scruffy but know their stuff.

This is like hipster headquarters. The jukebox is loaded with The Smith's, they have PBR on draft AND vegan-friendly food, plus they stash a Twister game in a corner for those in the know. They are also known for making outsiders (we suggest you dress to blend in) feel ignored enough to leave before ordering. It's a risk, but if you want a hipster, here's where you find `em.

Older hipsters love the Highlander. Younger hipsters love Yuengling and tator tots. Guess what? The Highlander has both! It's a lengthy bike ride from EAV, but still within the hipster circle of neighborhood residence. Plus, it has pool tables, a killer juke box and has been featured on the Food Network's "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." Hipsters are proud of both their dives and their cheap eats so, while commercial, this is a badge of honor.

Dating back to its days when it was in the Ponce hotel, MJQ has always been a hipster haven. And now it's located in an underground parking garage. For those hungry to chase (and dance with) the youthful hip set, look no further. Wednesday nights are free (hipsters love free!); expect to dance, pound Schlitz and witness breakdancing. Cute, indie-rock kids invade the place when the Drunken Unicorn actually has decent bands.

PBR is an important staple (read: only option) in the hipster drinking rotation. And there is no more PBR bar, than the Star Bar. $2.50 tall boys keep the quantity intake high and the prices low. While super-buzzy indie bands like Manchester Orchestra or Gentleman Jesse pack the upstairs, to find a true hipster, head to the cave-like (and somewhat unknown) downstairs bar. A patio and bad cell service will add to the experience.

Sure, you can find hipsters mod-dancing at Highland Ballroom Lounge, or scarfing grilled cheese sammies at Righteous Room, but our call for the Poncey-Highland hipster hideaway is El Bar. 1. It's underneath a Mexican restaurant. 2. It has no sign or windows. 3. It's dark as hell. This is where hipsters go to escape the normalcy of the Local. You're bound to find one in an adventurous mood.

To find an aging hipster, we look to the bar run by aging hipsters, BookHouse Pub. Lodged next to its little sister, the youth-obsessed MJQ, BookHouse is small, dark and goes with a backdrop of paperbacks rather than flatscreens. The food and beer list is pointed and service has the attitude you?d expect coming from a place named after the secret society in ?Twin Peaks.?

Hipsters love cheap burritos, smoking and cool bars. Fortunately for them, it's an all-in-one package at El Myr! Plus, it's conveniently lodged between hipsters? favorite big venue (the Variety), their favorite vintage shop (Rag-O-Rama) and a bike shop ... because hipsters love bicycles.

The EARL somehow magically melds both youth and experience. Boasting not only a great burger but a venue that books acts like Black Lips or (oh my god!) Band of Horses, the EARL is the classic hipster hang, but still brings in a crop of young guns. Kids with newly minted 21+ identification nosh on cheese burgers while writers in their late 30s wax about the best Pavement record over High Life. The EARL: where to find hipsters of all ages!

To find a hipster that is as interested in waxing about food as they are the last great Neutral Milk Hotel album, head to Top Flr. The place has a shabby-chic vibe, ridiculously good food (that's served into the am hours) and it's all affordable. Duck confit pizza? Jasmine tofu in a banana curry? For the hipster gourmand, we give you Top Flr.

Hipsters don't travel long distances well, so Decatur's Brick Store isn't much of an option. But thankfully their domain (L5P) got this beauty of a beer bar in `08. A kick-ass shotgun room, cool vintage luggage (every hipster loves things that look like they came out of a Wes Anderson film) and a redonkulous beer `n? burger list catapult this to the top of hipster favorites.