Amherst's bar and café scene is firmly student-flavoured but rewards a sober afternoon as much as a Friday night. Amherst Coffee on Main Street is the serious-coffee spot — and after dark turns into a respectable cocktail bar with a quiet back room. The Black Sheep, around the corner, is the long-running independent café with good sandwiches and a community noticeboard that tells you what is on this week.
For pints, High Horse and the Moan and Dove in South Amherst are both solid: the Moan and Dove in particular has an unusually deep beer list for a place this size. Stackers is more of a sports bar but does decent wings. The Amherst Brewing Company has moved a few times but its current incarnation is a reliable taproom for valley-brewed ales.