As a former doorman at a popular night club, I'm familiar with the game - familiar with the intricate ritual engaged in by singles across the South Sound every weekend.

Whether you realize it or not, there are singles of almost every age on the prowl every Friday and Saturday - traveling from nightspot to nightspot hoping to stumble upon wherever the most cracking party is. Singles looking for the sweatiest dance floor. Singles looking for the beautiful people. Singles looking to hook up - be it on the dance floor or somewhere more private.

But it can be intimidating, this singles scene. What clubs are worth your time? Which spots are the best? Where do YOU have the best chances of meeting that special someone, or at the very least having a great time?

Lucky for you, the Weekly Volcano has already done the legwork. Here's a look at some of the best nightspots in the South Sound.

Masa

Masa on Sixth Avenue serves some of the best handmade mole' in the city. But it's not the mole' that fills Masa to the brim every Friday and Saturday night. It's the two dance floors. It's the Latin style moves. It's the endless parade of short skirts and buff arms. It's the fact that every weekend night, Masa is one of the hottest meat markets in town. Mole' is more of a weeknight dish, anyway.

[Masa, dancing on Fridays and Saturday at 10 p.m., $10 for guys, $5 for girls, 2811 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.254.0560]

Jazzbones

A two-story restaurant, bar and nightclub on Sixth Avenue hosting live rock, jazz, blues and DJs. The main floor combines table seating with a dance floor. Upstairs is balcony seating, as well as mingling space - and a second bar. This nightclub's sushi bar combines traditional Japanese cuisine with California and Northwest influences. Monday night live band karaoke is very popular. Check jazzbones.com for up-to-date music and DJ information.

[Jazzbones, 2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.396.9169]

Bull Market Bar & Grill

Offering a 21+ dance club inside a bowling alley is an intriguing idea. It's about time we combine bowling, the most drinking conducive of the pseudo-sports (fishing and golf a close second), with the glamour and class of clubbing. At Paradise Village Bowl in Parkland, you can roll a few games then hit Bull Market's dance floor in search of hot bodies. Just don't be mad when you fail to score. Bowling can be quite hard.

[Bull Market Bar & Grill, 12505 Pacific Ave. S, Tacoma, 253.537.6012,

paradisebowl.net]

Emerald Queen Casino Bridge Nightclub

The first thing you notice about the Bridge isn't the plethora of bartenders or the row upon row of seating, but the small orange ashtrays positioned around the club. Yes, The Bridge is a last bastion of indoor smoking, where a man returns from a night out smelling like he ... spent a night out. But for those wary of cigarettes, know that the sheer size of the Bridge helps diminish the smoke. And the place, even though it's roughly the size of an airplane hangar, is packed. Patrons of all ages and income brackets order drinks, dance and flirt. Soccer moms, gray-haired professionals, rock-and-roll enthusiasts and even young hipster types all move about, enjoying their Saturday night.

[Emerald Queen Casino, 2024 East 29th St., Tacoma, 253.594.7777]

Buck Wild Saloon

Come Friday and Saturday nights, Buck Wild Saloon fills from wall to wall with anxiously horny cowboys, military men and, fortunately for them, girls who like cowboys in the military.

With beer pong, pool tables, ladies never paying a cover and random drink and food discounts, the appropriately named Buck Wild Saloon (open every day from 3 p.m. to 2 a.m.) holds true to all its hype. On weekends we were told sweaty bodies fill the generously sized dance floor as drunken women try their best to ride a mechanical bull in the sexiest way possible.

[Buck Wild Saloon, 11401 Steele St. S., Tacoma, 253.537.0801]

Big Whisky Saloon - OLYMPIA

We understand Big Whisky Saloon's appeal. New-school country music plays over the loudspeakers. The men in the crowd wear big belt buckles and flannel shirts. Friendly drink girls pass out $1 PBRs. Hookups happen on the dance floor and in the back near the pool table. People smile all around. What we didn't fully understand was the music. It's not just country. Saturday the outdoor patio was crammed packed as AC/DC blared out the door. We mean packed.

[Big Whisky Saloon, $5 cover, 425 Franklin St. SE, Olympia, 360.357.4721]

The Swiss

We know, we know. Weekend nights at The Swiss are packed with Tapout shirts and fake bronzer. But whether it's the Private First Class headbanging his way through a KRY cover song or the hairdresser from South Tacoma ordering Fuzzy Navels for her friends, The Swiss always brings a crowd. And a crowd means hookups.

[The Swiss, 1904 Jefferson Ave., Tacoma, 253.572.2821]

Lady Luck Cowgirl Up

A full service restaurant and lounge offering live entertainment nightly, featuring Lady Lucks' Cowgirl Up dancers on stage, providing choreographed dancing acts to country music. Country flair with top 40 DJs playing nightly. They also have the V.I.P. Lounge: The Silver Horseshoe Lounge.

[Lady Luck, 14114 Pacific Ave. S, Tacoma, 253.538.4996]

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