Los Angeles is a wonderfully creative place to enjoy a cocktail.
While challenging to navigate, its sprawling topography offers a wealth of diversity that is also reflected in its drinks scene. Drinking dens abound in underground or hidden speakeasies. A number of great bars hide in plain sight, whether in glamorous Beverly Hills or on legendary Sunset Boulevard.
Bars attached to thriving restaurants feature cocktail programs helmed by bartenders who collaborate with the kitchen. Think repurposing ingredients for the purposes of sustainability, but also thematic consistency. Meanwhile, high-quality nonalcoholic options can be found on drinks menus everywhere, providing options for those in sobriety as well as the younger set, who are increasingly consuming less alcohol. Low-ABV drinks also abound for those riding the middle, looking for a steadier pace throughout their night. Bonus: These lower-alc cocktails also tend to pair better with food.
When it comes to spirits, however, agave distillates are in high demand thanks to the influence of LA’s neighbors to the south. Meanwhile, many of the city’s top bartenders have an eye on promoting and utilizing sotol, bacanora, and raicilla as local imbibers become more educated about trying Mexican spirits beyond tequila and mezcal.
To partake in LA’s inventive cocktail scene, read on for some of the city’s most distinctive bars that are at the top of their game.
9159 Sunset Blvd. West Hollywood
instagram.com/barnextdoor_
Housed in what was once Marilyn Monroe’s talent agency, Bar Next Door expertly balances the demands of serious imbibers with those of pre- and post-show revelers of the Sunset Strip. Its charmingly retro decor serves as the perfect setting for enjoying wonderfully executed classics and inventive, balanced signatures by bar director Brynn Smith, which she named after nearby West Hollywood landmarks.
You should try: Order the Olive Drive, perfection born of crossing a vesper with a dirty martini. On the lighter side, rewrite your understanding of the tart cosmopolitan with the Chateau Marmont, buoyed with St-Germain, green Chartreuse and hibiscus, which add body where the traditional vodka-cran-triple-sec recipe does not.
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818 E 3rd St.
instagram.com/deathandcompany
At Death & Co Los Angeles, you’ll be enveloped by dimly lit, moody vibes at this two-part underground speakeasy. Make a reservation ahead of time to ensure a seat at the bar or in the recesses of one of the semicircle booths. Or bide your time waiting in the front room where there’s a more casual drink and snacks menu. The drinks are elegant as they are unexpected, and all are helpfully categorized to help you find what you’re looking for, from “light and playful” to “boozy and honest.”
You should try: Tee up with a Yondu, a velvety concoction made with blended scotch, barley shochu, cold-brew rum and pistachio.
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It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Mírate is a two-story behemoth of a skylit restaurant, but don’t let its volume cause you to overlook the ethical sourcing of its spirits nor the innovation at this festive, lively bar. Nitro-infused pulque, specially canned cocktails, and a Oaxacan rum slushy are a few hallmarks on bar director Maxwell Reis’s menu, but the bottom line is that the drinks are imaginative in their composition and titillating to the palate.
You should try: The El Taquero #2, a mezcal drink emulating an al pastor taco with asiento and tostada-washed private batch Mal Bien espadin, Oaxacan pineapple brandy, chile liqueur, pineapple, and al pastor honey.
1263 W. Temple St.
instagram.com/thunderboltla
The charm of Thunderbolt is that it juxtaposes its neighborhood bar vibe with world-class cocktails. Forest green walls act as a warm backdrop to neutral wood walls, nut brown couches, and a splashy terrazzo bar top at this buzzy bar. Page through a colorful, design-forward menu featuring a wide range of drinks. Browse through their large selection of Madeiras. Owner Mike Capoferri’s Georgian upbringing inspires its Southern food menu, which is also completely gluten-free.
You should try: Order the La Frutera #3, which draws its inspiration from the fruit carts of LA and infuses tequila with guanabana, smoked pineapple distillate, pepitas, cashews, cucumber, and lime.
777 S Alameda St Building 1, Suite 114
instagram.com/katorestaurant
The bar at Kato, a minimalist restaurant ensconced in natural-toned woods that serves a tasting menu inspired by San Gabriel Valley cuisine, has forged an identity all its own thanks to bar director Austin Hennelly. Though offered as a pairing, the complex but polished cocktails alone are worth the seat, as unique ingredients are pulled from the kitchen and filtered through high-tech methods, redefining the classics as we know them. Thoughtful nonalcoholic offerings are so vibrant they taste as though nothing is lacking.
You should try: You’ll want the White Negroni, an effervescent creation that combines clarified local Mutsu apple with shochu, bittersweet floral liqueur, and bësk, a bitter wormwood Swedish liqueur with notes of grapefruit, gentian, juniper, and star anise made by Letherbee in Chicago.
4604 Eagle Rock Blvd.
instagram.com/capriclubla
Capri Club is a lively neighborhood aperitivo bar in Eagle Rock with no-fuss cocktails, a handful of aperitivi (spritzes and lower ABV drinks), and a red sauce Italian food menu. The locals bring the vibe to this maroon-tinged bar with vintage touches, which is open for libations and bites every day starting the afternoon so you can take in the best of LA day-drinking whether within the confines of its moody indoors or outdoors on its bustling patio. Come Mondays for Lasagna Night or Tuesdays for pasta; it’s a great way to enjoy this understandably popular bar.
You should try: Order a well executed classic, one of their well balanced signatures, a spritz if you’re keeping it low-key, or a Frozen Negroni for those hot days.
225 N. Canon Dr., Beverly Hills
instagram.com/dantebeverlyhills
At Dante, a view of the Hollywood Hills, indigo booths and a ceiling mural in pastels strike the mood for the jet-set crowd. An LA outpost of the New York original, the vibe here turns up the glamour, while the food and drinks are impeccable and the service is warm. Light, textural signature cocktails complement its Mediterranean-Italian food menu, with entire pages devoted to martinis and Negronis.
You should try: While in Rome, though, order the Fluffy Margarita Royale, made with tequila, dry curaçao, lime, clementine and saffron, and prosecco—it’s the kind of margarita you can’t get anywhere else.
2905 Washington Blvd, Marina Del Rey
instagram.com/oldlightning
Tucked behind Venice’s Scopa Italian Roots is Old Lightning, a cozy mid-century lounge with aquamarine hue. Its list, which includes countless bottles of dead stock, boasts vintage spirits that would impress any booze nerd. If you can splurge a little, take advantage of owners Steve Livigni and Pablo Moix’s years of hunting for these rare finds at estate sales and defunct hotel bars and ask to be guided through a tasting. While the cocktails on the last page of the menu are mostly classics, they’re more than competent.
You should try: The Herbie Special, with marshmallow-infused Jamaican rum, maraschino liqueur, pineapple, orgeat, coconut cream, and bitters for a little tiki treat.