Drinks in LA

[Baron]

I'd pick Edendale of the places I mentioned, but we can wait for some other people to chime in still. We could also go farther west to Culver City or Beverly Hills or something like that. Is Lawyerdad participating? I thought he might have an idea.

 

[Get Smart]

Edendale sounds cool

my 2 cents is for a place that is easy to get in/out of, with regards to parking and actually getting seated

 

[lawyerdad]

Originally Posted by LabelKing

I think some of those "hip and trendy bars" allow smoking unofficially.

I assume that's not unique to LA. I don't know if it's just "hip and trendy bars", but maybe that's just because I never spent too much time in those sorts of places. My old neighborhood bar in Los Feliz (when I lived in that part of town) used to tacitly allow smoking and it was hardly hip and trendy. I don't really get out to bars much anymore, but my sense is that lots of places will still look the other way.

 

[Renault78law]

Originally Posted by Baron

I'd pick Edendale of the places I mentioned, but we can wait for some other people to chime in still. We could also go farther west to Culver City or Beverly Hills or something like that. Is Lawyerdad participating? I thought he might have an idea.

I vote for "farther west." Culver City is easily accessible and plenty of parking.

 

[teddieriley]

This gathering sounds interesting. I don't know if I can make it up in a timely manner from OC, but I'll certainly try. I personally like the west side, more so because I am familiar with it, although admittedly I haven't spent much time in Silverlake and Los Feliz which feel more down to earth.

 

[itsstillmatt]

I haven't lived in LA for years. Has Culver City changed much since the late 80s/early 90s?

 

[lawyerdad]

Originally Posted by Baron

What do you guys think of the Edendale Grill in Silver Lake? It's a good place for a group of people to meet for either drinks of dinner. There's also Cafe Stella in the same neighborhood, or the Cliff's Edge.

If Culver City or thereabouts works better, maybe Lawyerdad has some ideas for that side of town.

If it ends up being the Culver City area, I would recommend Beacon (I guess you'd call it Cal-Asian or fusion, but great food), El Rincon Criollo (Cuban, better than Versailles in my opinion), Jackson's, or Hzu's (good, spicy hole-in-the-wall Szechuan). Ford's Filling Station is popular, but I've found the food to be hit-or-miss and overpriced for what you get. There's also good Mexican in the area. In more or less the same neighborhood, I'm partial to Cafe Bella Roma, which just opened on Robertson a few months ago. Pretty good Italian with fresh pasta made on-site (the chef used to work at Angelini), run by a nice couple (and coincidentally walking distance from my house). No liquor license yet, but the corkage fee is either negligible or non-existent. It's small, though (maybe 6 tables), so a reservation would be important (especially since it just got outed with a good review in the LA Times a week or so ago).

 

[lawyerdad]

Originally Posted by iammatt

I haven't lived in LA for years. Has Culver City changed much since the late 80s/early 90s?

Yes, the downtown area (near where Washington and Culver come together) has really been revitalized, with a lot of good new restaurants and a critical mass of art galleries and small businesses, drawing (for better or worse) increasing numbers of hipsters and yuppies.

It's our first choice for dinner and a movie these days, although that's in part because of geography.

I'd add to the list of possible destinations Taylor's Steakhouse on 8th, which is too far east to be called Culver City, but combines decent food and big drinks with a cool retro atmosphere.

 

[itsstillmatt]

Originally Posted by lawyerdad

Yes, the downtown area (near where Washington and Culver come together) has really been revitalized, with a lot of good new restaurants and a critical mass of art galleries and small businesses, drawing (for better or worse) increasing numbers of hipsters and yuppies.

It's our first choice for dinner and a movie these days, although that's in part because of geography.

I'd add to the list of possible destinations Taylor's Steakhouse on 8th, which is too far east to be called Culver City, but combines decent food and big drinks with a cool retro atmosphere.
Good to hear. I was thinking you guys were nuts.

 

[lawyerdad]

Originally Posted by iammatt

Good to hear. I was thinking you guys were nuts.

Well, we still could be. But I'd say the changes are probably comparable to what, say, Los Feliz and parts of Silver Lake were going through back in the late '80's and early 90's, with perhaps a bit less of the rocker/hipster Hollywood spillover that Los Feliz gets.

 

[Baron]

The thing I like about Edendale is that a big group can sit together outside or in the bar and people can arrive at different times, eat dinner or just have drinks, etc, without much hassle. They can easily push tables together if more people arrive. I think trying to pin down a specific dinner reservation for a big group like this would be a headache. I don't mind finding another place, but I think it should be in the same "bar/restaurant" mode rather than a small food only place. There is a lot of street parking around there too, and a valet. Some other ideas further west: Pizzeria Mozza Magnolia or Bowery in Hollywood Taylors - I 2nd that nomination, as I've never been there and they apparently have a special stuffed New York cheeseburger on Monday nights, according to the website http://www.taylorssteakhouse.com

 

[lawyerdad]

Originally Posted by Baron

The thing I like about Edendale is that a big group can sit together outside or in the bar and people can arrive at different times, eat dinner or just have drinks, etc, without much hassle. They can easily push tables together if more people arrive. I think trying to pin down a specific dinner reservation for a big group like this would be a headache. I don't mind finding another place, but I think it should be in the same "bar/restaurant" mode rather than a small food only place. There is a lot of street parking around there too, and a valet.

Some other ideas further west:
Pizzeria Mozza
Magnolia or Bowery in Hollywood
Taylors - I 2nd that nomination, as I've never been there and they apparently have a special stuffed New York cheeseburger on Monday nights, according to the website http://www.taylorssteakhouse.com

Good points. Isn't Mozza still tough to get into, though?

 

[Baron]

That's probably true about Mozza - I wasn't sure so I threw it in there.

 

[drizzt3117]

I am OK with further west if that's what people want to do. Taylor's sounds good to me...

 

[teddieriley]

^^I like this on their online menu: "NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR WELL DONE STEAKS." If you go into a steakhouse asking for this, they should ask you to leave.