With that question in mind, I started a mission to prove the skeptics -- including myself -- wrong.

Recent times in a neighborhood bar gave me some hope.

A few of my adventurous female friends and I head to a newly expanded watering hole. One tequila shot and several dances have my previously tired body sending out the feel-good vibes. Those vibes eventually land on a group of British blokes -- in every sense of the word -- at the opposite end of the bar.

There are five of them and four of us, which means more of them to take turns buying.

A quick look around and I notice that, like most bars, there are about 80 percent men packed like sausage in the place. To the average mathematician, the odds may be in my favor. But come last call when those anxious males stroll by in that last-ditch effort, I'm not liking my odds.

I just don't feel so special when I'm certain the guys are thinking, "Go home alone or with female. Pick one, any one."

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The Brits are fine and make for some challenging conversation due to thick accents and obscure Monty Pythonisms, but my attention turns to a very attractive guy waiting in line for the men's room.

It may sound untoward to be hanging outside the men's bathroom, but in a cramped bar it can happen. And I can't think of any place more obviously and shamefully strategic.

Our eyes meet more than once and I intercept him on his way back to his friends. We hit it off immediately and -- ever the optimist -- I'm thinking, "I've finally done it, met a decent guy in a bar." So it seemed.

As the night progresses, Keith and I have more fun, more conversations and -- being in a bar -- more alcohol, which I know will cloud my impression of him but also may make things flow more easily. By the end of the night I am smitten with this guy, who reminds me of my college boyfriend, only smarter and better looking.

He gives me his number, doesn't ask for mine, which maybe was a sign not to call . Of course, I call a few days later. We talk, and for some reason he's not as entertaining as I remember. The conversation ends with us making plans to make plans for dinner. He is to call me. And so the story goes ... he has yet to call.

We hit it off so well, but he is no longer an option. Just as in my dating past, a bar connection turns out to end with the signing of the tab.

As my friend Amy puts it, "There is bar life, and there is real life." You may meet someone in that space and time, but don't expect it to go beyond that.

The bar is for drinking, and drinking is for temporarily escaping reality, for many of us. So real connections seem somewhat unlikely.

But not for everyone.

SURVEY Can good long-term relationships start in a bar? No way. It never works out. Why not? It's just another place. If I have enough to drink. Results | Disclaimer

My friend Robin and her man met in a bar when they were completely drunk, and now they are planning to head down the aisle. And then there is Maura, who met her husband at a nightclub that might as well be called Butcher Shop. For her, what made the difference was the fact that they both were dragged there by their friends. Misery loves company, as do sober people in a bar.

While the evidence may be lacking, I believe the answer to my question is yes, good men can be found in bars, just as they can be hunted down in supermarkets, churches and other more "wholesome" venues.

But expectations have to be kept in check in the bar world. A few too many drinks, a few too many dances and someone OK seems much better than average. Yet when it works it works -- regardless if you meet in a smoky-filled bar or in the self-help aisle of the local book shop.

Perhaps the best way to go about it is go out to have fun, not to meet the object of fancy. The bar setting may not be ideal for a pure connection, but that guy who meets my tastes could be playing pool with some friends, waiting in line for a beer or bumping into me on the dance floor.

Even if he's there just to help me escape life for a while, I won't be complaining.

Laura Lewis is an adventurous 20-something who knows how to make the most of being single. Her column appears every other Thursday.