13 Los Angeles Cocktail Bars You Need To Visit
Los Angeles is one of the most diverse cities in the world — and certainly in the United States. A 2015 report by CNBC even ranked L.A. as the most diverse city in America, noting Thai, Persian, Mexican, and Korean communities, among others, for enriching the city's culture. Because of this, La-La Land has one of the best bar scenes that you can imagine with bartenders and mixologists that hail from across the globe. These experts draw on international traditions — and use unique ingredients — to make drinks that truly stand out from the rest.
If you are on the hunt for a good cocktail, you might want to spend an evening out in L.A. Regardless of whether you are into classic European cocktails or the elevated flavors of Mexican mezcal, there is bound to be a bar that you will enjoy. From the grasshopper-garnished mezcal drinks that you can sip at Nativo to the gelato-infused aperitivos you can enjoy at Capri Club, this glitzy metropolis offers some of the most unique cocktail bars in the country.
1. Nativo
If you want to try something especially unique, head over to Nativo. This Mexican-inspired Los Angeles cocktail bar is located in the historic neighborhood of Highland Park, surrounded by cafés and restaurants. Here, you can amp up your liquor knowledge by ordering a tequila flight complete with a wide of variety of brands and añejos. If, however, tequila isn't your spirit of choice, you can always fill your flight with another one of the many destilados de agave on their list. Options range in price, starting with $6 tequilas and $7 mezcals.
The best part is that for just $6, you can elevate your experience through an "ofrenda upgrade." This relatively affordable perk allows you to enjoy your drink with a few flavorful garnishes. Served along with the flight on a small platter, these items include a botana pepita mix — the perfect Mexican bar snack — and some seasonal citrus, which is perfectly paired with a portion of salty sal de gusano. The ofrenda also comes with sangrita, a traditional post-shot pallet cleanser that will refresh your tastebuds before you take the next shot.
But those aren't the only elements that set Nativo apart from other local bars. In a truly stand-apart move, Nativo's ofrenda includes chapulines sazonados, or seasoned Mexican grasshoppers. Thanks to their smoky yet briny flavor, these grasshoppers pair perfectly with the rich, burnt depths of distilled agave drinks.
2. Dan Sung Sa
For an awesome evening of cocktails and comfort food, head over to Koreatown. Dan Sung Sa provides a cozy setting, complete with a bar that wraps around an open kitchen. Grab a seat at the bar, and soak up the wood, steam-filled ambiance — this is the perfect place to catch up with a friend over a few rounds of soju. If the setting seems idyllic, that's because it was planned to be so. The bar's creator, Caroline Cho, based it on the typical "pojang-macha," or tented street bars, in Korea.
In terms of drinks, Dan Sung Sa offers plenty of typical Korean fare, including varieties of soju that range from fruit-filled to yogurt-flavored. The bar also serves baekse-ju, a type of sweet wine made from fermented glutinous rice and infused with ginseng, among other herbs, like ginger. Makgeolli is another favorite from the menu. This rice wine, which tends on the sweeter side, has been an integral part of Korean culture for almost a thousand years (via CNN).
Of course, drinks are often best paired with a hot plate of food. And, luckily, Dan Sung Sa is the type of Los Angeles cocktail bar that will actually satisfy your cravings. Tear into a meaty chicken gizzard skewer or some sweet pineapples, then chase your eats down with a glass of rice wine. The results can be spectacular.
3. Las Perlas
It's pretty clear that Los Angeles residents and visitors have more than one great Los Angeles cocktail bar to choose from. However, when compared to the fierce competition, Las Perlas stands out from the rest. Designed like an Oaxacan-style cantina, this bar offers an impressive range of mezcals and tequilas, presenting you with approximately 450 options.
Whether you are looking for a classic margarita or a high-end dose of smoky mezcal, Las Perlas will satisfy your distilled agave craving. They even offer seasonal cocktails, which have, in the past, incorporated a number of unique ingredients and flavors. The Winter 2023 cocktail menu blended tropical fruity flavors with deeper spices in a creation called the Paradiso Tropical — a tantalizing blend of mezcal, pineapple liqueur, pineapple soda, and cloves, topped with a pineapple frond garnish.
That being said, regardless of which drink you choose, Las Perlas will serve it with a savory tajín seasoning rim. Tajín seasoning provides a hot yet tangy flavor, thanks to its key ingredients of spicy chile peppers, sea salt, and sour lime. Here, the contrast between the citrus and pepper elements provides the perfect complement to a toasty tequila cocktail or a smokier glass of mezcal.
4. Death & Company
Tinseltown may be full of exciting pubs and restaurants, but sometimes it's good to take a break from the typical Los Angeles cocktail bar scene. If you would like to spend an evening in a classic NYC-inspired hang, Death & Company is the place to go. This cocktail bar has all the flare of the Big Apple — its first location opened in the hip East Village of Manhattan back in 2007. And, its more recent location in L.A. seeks to replicate that classic, New York bar experience, complete with two bar areas: one for sitting and one for standing.
Of course, the reason to go to Death & Co. has everything to do with the cocktails. The bar first made a name for itself in 2010, when the East Village location was named Best American Cocktail Bar at the prestigious Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards. Now, the downtown L.A. location continues that excellence with a menu that boasts a number of bold ingredients packaged in unusual combinations that just always seem to work. Their "Featherweight" cocktail, for example, blends sherry with Pisco, aloe, yuzu and honeydew, allowing the burnt flavor of the brandy to interact with the sherry's dried fruit sweetness.
Notably, Death & Co. offers an elaborate selection of alcohol-free mocktails that are actually worth ordering. Their selections include zero-proof rums and gins, which they combine with fruit, spices, and ingredients like egg whites or rose water to make high-quality drinks.
5. General Lee's
If you're looking to soak up a bit of old Hollywood glam, head over to General Lee's in Chinatown. The red-lit space itself used to attract the likes of Frank Sinatra, although these days it's full of folks in their 20s and 30s, looking for a spot to chill with their friends. Here, you can try cocktails that blend a number of unusual ingredients to create one-of-a-kind concoctions. In the Joyous Marsh cocktail, General Lee's bartenders combine vodka, vermouth, and wasabi to serve you something of a Martini with a punch. Other surprising ingredients include a cinnamon-Sichuan pepper tincture that they make right there on-site.
In terms of presentation, General Lee's is the perfect spot to buy a photographable drink. The Immortal Elixir cocktail is served in flames, while their holiday cookie special comes with a literal biscuit on top. For a truly unique Los Angeles cocktail bar experience, however, try the Empty Pot. Served in a gorgeous blue and white porcelain teapot, this liquor-spice blend includes five shots, which you can pour out into individual teacups. Beyond the incredible presentation, the Empty Pot offers a delicious combination of baijiu and rye, infused with ginger, lavender, and bitters.
6. Bar Franca
Folks in the mood to try some European classics should head on over to Bar Franca for G&T's, Old Fashioned's, and Pegu Club's. While it would be easy to glance at the menu and find the offering too traditional, Bar Franca is not your typical Los Angeles cocktail bar. This establishment works hard to ensure that each drink is actually made to perfection, meaning that if you care a lot about how your Negroni is mixed, this is the place for you. In true British fashion, the bar makes its own Pimms and even serves it in a drink called "Cygnus' Cup," along with mint, ginger, and assorted citrus.
Naturally, as a bar named for the Francs, there is also a wine list. And, just like any hip European hang, Bar Franca offers a few more affordable house wines, which you can order for just $7 on weeknights from 4 to 7 p.m. Cocktail aficionados should also hit this location's appealing Happy Hour to enjoy a selection of scrumptious $8 cocktails.
The ambiance at Bar Franca is flirty fun and sometimes a tad naughty — thanks to some rather risqué paintings you can find on their walls. Most of the seating is bar seating — however, you can find a table or two by the entrance. If you are looking for a cosmopolitan place to have a high-quality drink and maybe some olives, this is it.
7. The Cigar and Whiskey Bar
If you are interested in trying a wide range of whiskeys, this is your spot. In contrast to the simpler fare offered at most Los Angeles cocktail bars, The Cigar and Whiskey Bar in Beverly Hills offers some of the rarest whiskey options on the market. Their menu is scattered with a hard-to-find selection, including the Macallan 72 year "Lalique" or the Pappy Van Winkle 23 year. It also contains entire pages of Irish whiskies, Japanese whiskies, and Scotch. Of course, you can also find some more unusual options, including two Taiwanese whiskies.
Generally speaking, this bar is ideal for hard-core whisky aficionados. Indeed, it is highly specialized ... and it isn't cheap. With $200 tasting flights and rare whiskies that can cost much more, The Cigar and Whiskey Bar is the type of place where it's all too easy to run up a giant tab. However, for a whisky lover, it's easy to see how this place could seem a whole lot like paradise. Their classic Highball is made with Japanese Kaiyo Mizunara Oak whisky, while their Smoky Manhattan contains Highland Park 15 year. Of course, the establishment would be happy to amp those recipes up with something finer, if that's your fancy. There, it seems, the sky is the limit.
8. Tonga Hut
While many Los Angeles cocktail bars have a strong international influence, Tonga Hut is pure California. This campy Tiki bar boasts a super campy décor that has long appealed to customers. After all, it's not only the oldest Tiki bar in L.A., but it was one of the first locations of its kind to open in the United States. Over the years, Tonga Hut has played a major role in popularizing tiki culture in North America, and, while the Mai Thai wasn't born there, the bar has certainly perfected the recipe. Here, the common Cointreau element is switched out with a dose of Senior Curaçao of Curaçao Original Orange Liqueur. This makes the drink extra citrusy — an ideal characteristic for a rum-based beverage.
If, however, you're not in a Mai Thai mood, you can order one of the many other mouthwatering menu options. Folks looking for a frozen beach drink will enjoy Tonga Hut's selection of daqueris. And, anyone who is feeling especially extra can go for one of their huge fish bowl drinks. As you imbibe, feel free to order some beachy fried comfort food from the bar's menu of small bites. Whether you want to dig into some coconut shrimp or spicy pork rib sliders, you'll find some eats that are up your alley.
9. Apothéke
True to its name, Apothéke is a Los Angeles cocktail bar that takes the apothecary theme to a whole new level. According to the venue's menu, a cocktail can cure just about any ill. Looking for health? Order the Kale in Comparison — a drink that ingeniously combines quinoa-infused vodka with pineapple, ginger, and lime. Looking for love? Try the My Universe — a mezcal-based cocktail garnished with cayenne pepper and pearl dust. Meanwhile, for a taste of euphoria, the bar suggests something called The Bounceback, which incorporates real bee pollen, Earl Grey tea, and gin.
While the bar's apothecary theme is super fun, the drinks themselves rely on more than just their trendy cure-all claims. Curated by a team of talented mixologists, the cocktails offered at Apothéke actually taste good. The bar's founder, Christopher Tierney, co-wrote a mixology recipe book called, "Apothéke: Modern Medicinal Cocktails" with Erica Brod, and received much praise. The cocktails have been reviewed by international groups, including the likes of Vogue, The New Yorker, and the German Design Awards. It is a location that you must hit at least once, although we won't judge you if you keep going back for more.
10. Los Balcones
Peru is world-famous for its unique flavors, which range from the briny citrusy taste of ceviche to the creamy satisfaction of a stuffed potato causa. To experience these delightful flavors, you need not travel further than the heart of Hollywood, where Los Balcones offers premium Peruvian bites and craft cocktails.
The locale is particularly known for its Pisco Sours, offering far more than your traditional blend of lime and brandy. Of course, if you are one for the classics, this is still the place to go — Time Out ranked it as one of the top Pisco Sour spots in all of Los Angeles. However, if you are looking for something more unique, order the Chilcano — a Pisco-base drink mixed with ginger beer and lime. Or, experience a bit of Peruvian/Mexican fusion, through an offering called the Tipsy Jalapeño. This drink blends classic cenote blanco tequila with a specialty Pisco that's actually infused with spices to create a totally unique flavor.
Naturally, you can enjoy your Los Balcones cocktails with some traditional Peruvian eats, like a bass ceviche, marinated in leche de tigre and garnished with large pieces of choclo. Heartier fare includes a braised lamb shoulder that's served on Peruvian beans. Whether you are looking for high-quality food or unique craft cocktails, this bar uses flavor to transport you to the rich culinary scene of Lima.
11. Black Market Liquor Bar
Headed by chef Antonia Lofaso, this Los Angeles cocktail bar offers just as many good eats as good drinks. The menu at Black Market Liquor Bar has something for everyone, ranging from spicy tequila drinks, like the Red Hot And Bothered, to your sweeter fare, like the Sugar Plum Fairy. In addition to appealing to people with different palates, this bar can accommodate customers with different price ranges. Craft cocktails start at $14. However, there is also a list of "really fancy drinks" where the most animated cocktail aficionados can enjoy specialty drinks for up to $28. Even better, the bar can accommodate your alcohol-free friends with vintage sodas or fresh-squeezed juices.
In terms of food, Black Market Liquor Bar mainly offers appetizers and sharing plates. Kick off your evening with some oysters on the half-shell or vegetarian spring rolls and then move on to crowd-pleasers like the smoked trout, peel-and-eat shrimp, or Korean wings. If anything, the food menu contains variety, thanks to dishes that can claim influences ranging from Japan to Mexico to China. In the end, this means that there will even be something for your pickiest friend to enjoy.
12. Blind Barber
Folks who are on the lookout for a bar with a unique concept should check out the Blind Barber in Culver City. This speakeasy boasts a barbershop storefront, where you can actually get a new hairstyle — preferably before you drink up. Behind the row of mirrors and swivel chairs, however, is a door that will take you to a dimly-lit world of craft cocktails, high-end liquors, and beers. The cocktail menu is particularly strong, offering a relatively small but carefully-curated selection of beverages based on seasonal ingredients. Some of their more creative items include the Red Hot Señora, which combines tequila and Aperol, and the Batman, involving gin and Rose liqueur.
Whisky aficionados will enjoy the reasonably large spirits menu. Complete with high-quality scotches like the Macallen 12 yr or the Lagavulin 16 yr, this offering will be enough to satisfy all but the pickiest whisky drinkers. Although mezcal is clearly the Blind Barber's weak point — it only sells four options — tequila lovers will almost certainly be pleased with the dozen or so brands and añejos that you can find at this location.
13. Capri Club
If you can't make it all the way to Italy this summer, at least head over to Capri Club. Here, the Mediterranean theme is evident in the décor, thanks to the vintage wood-paneled walls and red leather bar stools that give off an old-timey European vibe. The theme also extends to the menu, which includes true Italian aperativos, like Amaro & Soda or Vermouth. In the past, fancier cocktail ingredients have included true Campanian fare, such as gelato and mint. But, most European of all, is perhaps the bar's walk-in-only policy, which makes grabbing a drink the fun, spontaneous activity that it was always meant to be.
The best part is that the snack menu includes delightful dishes, like artichoke with aioli, vegan risotto balls, and fried fava beans. If these options sound particularly authentic, that's because they were dreamed up by Puglia native, chef Francisco Allegro.