Going out in Lyon

I love the Marquise, on the Rhone river, has great concerts, great place to hang out in the summer.
The Switch is a great bar, the bar owner is such a great guy... nice and simple place to have a drink with friends.
The Cuisine des Croix Roussiens and Canuts Sans Cervelle restaurants are my favorites... good food and nice chefs.
Ninkasi bars and restaurants can be crowded but they have great fries and burgers, and some concerts are really fun.
L'epicerie (one rue Mercière and the new one Cours Albert Thomas) is really good... crowded on the weekends, but you gotta try the "Temps des cerises" dessert.... so good!

I'm not that familiar with Lyon yet but when I was there I did go to the Switch like the last user mentioned, and I really liked this place. I haven't been to the Marquise but it sounds like a neat place, I will have to try that place next time

My "hands-down" favorite restaurant in Lyon is Le Fleurie in the 7eme arrondisement, but it is only open during the week for lunch.  I would definitely make a reservation.  ~15 for lunch, very gourmet and the menu changes daily!!!

I also love Les Potager des Halles in the 1ere arr near the Saone.  ~15E for lunch, ~32E for dinner.

Goman Etsu is a great Japanese restaurant that only serves okonomiyaki.  I <3 their green tea tiramisu!  Located on rue Lanterne

L'Escale des Saveurs is also really good.  Close to Place Sathonay

I haven't tried it yet, but I am really excited to go to Toutes les Couleurs, which is a bio restaurant!  In the 1ere arr, north of the Opera.

For coffee and milkshakes, Le tasse livre is really nice.  Also located near Place Sathonay in the 1ere arr.

For Jazz, I have visited two places so far.  Bec de Jazz and La Clef de Voute.  Bec de Jazz was fun, but doesn't even open until 23h and was kinda smoky.  I really liked La Clef, but it was pretty small, so no room for dancing.  There is also another club that I haven't been to yet on rue Lanterne.

My favorite bouchon thus far is Chez Mounier on rue des Marroniers near Place Bellecour.

Berthom is a nice bar in the 5eme arr that serves Belgian beers.  They also have a happy hour which is nice. 

I also love L'Impromptu Kafe which has cheap beer, a cool vibe, and a great view of the city.  Located in Croix-Rousse in Place Colbert.

I love Lyon and would love to hear everyone else's thoughts on this subject.  I ask everyone that I meet what their favorite restaurant is and most of them reply that there are too many restaurants in Lyon to try twice!  But, I would avoid most of the restaurants in the 5eme arr, because I hear it is very touristy.  Unless, of course, you get a good recommendation.

Toutes les Couleurs is an awesome restaurant, and one of the very few totally vegetarian restaurants in Lyon (Soliné near le Part Dieu is the only other one that comes to mind).  It is not very expensive, around 25 Euros for dinner with entrée, plat, dessert, and a drink.  They also have a somewhat coffee-ish drink called the Muckefuck that is pretty good, but I just like saying Muckefuck so I always order it.

My favorite French restau in Lyon is Restaurant d'Olivier in the 6th.  I am sure you can find better food at a Bocuse place, but the food here is great and cheap.  4 courses for 15-25 euros depending on the menu you select.

And I second the Switch as a great little bar in Lyon.  The owner is English, and if you ask him, you can prolly get him to go skateboarding with you over at one of the small parks in Lyon.  My second fav bar is probably Cafe Leffe.  Don't really care for the bar so much, but I do really like their beer.