SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WEBGUIDES
NEW YORK WEBGUIDES
|
Ranging from low-key hipster hangouts to upscale dancehalls, nightclubs are almost ineffable. Somewhere between swanky lounge and mega-club, nightclubs are mostly populated by the nicely dressed who can't decide between chatting over tasty cocktails or dancing in a sea of sweaty people, so they opt for a place that will more than likely offer both options. In Los Angeles, a nightclub is generally a place where pretension is thrown to the wind and an art is made out of getting people wildly intoxicated.
A.D.
836 North Highland, Los Angeles, California; Tel. 323.467.3000
A.D. is a Los Angeles nightclub for the A-lister set without the pretentious LA club vibe, rather AD seeks a low key hipster dance club vibe—which is kind of the new mainstream LA club scene vibe, but whatever—with the often scary meat market aspirations are left with the burley door guys. The multi-tiered AD dance club has a spot for everybody in its castlesque depths—bars, lounge friendly sofas and booths, the exclusive VIP section (wouldn't be a LA club without one) and multiple dance floors where some of Los Angeles' hottest DJs man the decks and command the masses with a steady stream of electronica, funk, house, hip-hop, disco and a measured dash of just the right '80s nostalgia rock. The bartenders at AD will keep your glasses full when you're hangin' at the bar, but schoolgirl fetishists need to grab a table—trust us. |
Airliner
2419 N. Broadway, Los Angeles, California; Tel. 323.221.0771
Airliner night club in Los Angeles is a spacious upscale dance club and lounge decked out in a—don't tax the imagination too hard— aeronautical designer motif, but certainly beating out anything airline related in the booze department. With two huge and well equipped bars, a bumpin' dance floor, a plush lounge area and some of Los Angeles' hottest DJs dropping serious beats, Airliner cruises at a comfortable altitude with other posh LA clubs. Also, Airliner hosts live music some weekends and rewards weekday scenesters with a decent happy hour. However, the captain at Airliner doesn't tolerate the baseball cap and sneaker set, so come dressed to impress and not like you're hopping a late night gambling bug flight to Vegas. |
Arena
6655 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, California; Tel. 323.462.1291
This massive Los Angeles dance club has been getting it done for pretty much everybody for a couple of decades thanks to the ingenious notion of not pigeonholing itself into any strict style or genre. The Arena nightclub features a multilevel space where clubbers, straights, ravers, gays, bis, hipsters and drinkers can mesh together under the pulsating lights and pounding beats thrown down by some of Los Angeles' top DJ talent. Arena even let's the young and hungry get in on the action with the Wednesday 18 and over club night with resident spinners dropping the latest in hip-hop science. Friday's ladies can get raucous for a while at Arena nightclub's female-centered male strip show, Saturday's are one of Los Angeles' hottest gay dance club nights with a midnight drag queen show and Sunday's feature live Spanish language music and dancing. |
Cafe Sevilla
140 Pine Ave., Long Beach, California; Tel. 562.495.1111
Known for turtle racing at this Westside LA bar, Brennan's also has everything from pinball machines and pool tables to '80s cover bands and Irish folk songs. The excitement never wanes at this Los Angeles watering hole with so much activity, a testament to the Irish in the pub. The folks are friendly, the beverages are quality, and the food is scrumptious at this LA neighborhood hang out. The loud and raucous atmosphere at Brennan's Irish bar in Los Angeles is half the fun for those looking to have a good time while watching sports, drinking, and playing bar games. |
Cohiba Night Club
110 E. Broadway, Long Beach, California; Tel. 562.491.5220
This is in no way an average cigar bar, but it is a cigar bar nonetheless. Cohiba Night Club is like a gentleman's club without the strippers, at least not on stage. Money-flashers pop magnum bottles of Cristal and Dom, pouring it into strawberry-laden flutes for the dolled-up hotties with the long fingernails who listen to them talking their very big games while puffing on giant stogies. Whoever said size doesn't matter has never been to the Cohiba Night Club and cigar bar. They do offer nights of jazz and '40s big-band music, so call for information; otherwise, most nights are DJ-spun to the tune of hip-hop beats. |
Crimson
1650 Schrader Ave., Los Angeles, California; Tel. 323.960.3300
It's rocking with red velvet and the velvet ropes outside to match. Crimson is all about the eye candy that lingers about, making it hard to care whether or not the drinks or the service is good. Some places just attract such women and in LA, the hot woman capital of somewhere, it's not unusual for a bar's only highlight to be the clientele that drinks there. That's not saying that Crimson isn't cool otherwise. They offer free d'oeurves and the ladies shake it up scantily dressed to DJ Sean Patrick. OK, back to the ladies. Well, is that so bad? |
Saints & Sinners
10899 Venice Blvd., Culver City, California; Tel. 310.842.8066
This is an awesome after-work and happy-hour lounge. Saints & Sinners is for serious cocktail connoisseurs and those who would like to hang out at a place that reminds one of a porn producer's house with a hint of James Bond's taste, if that makes any sense. Saints & Sinners includes a circular fireplace in the center, a buttoned-vinyl ceiling, chandeliers, a velvet wallpapered private room and a DJ who spins cutting-edge, indie '70s/'80s rock and punk. Thursday nights are iPod nights, where people bring their own iPods and well, who knows. Saints & Sinners also has the most naughty, nasty and outrageous drinks ever concocted. |
The Continental
8400 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, California; Tel.323.782.9717
The Continental is a high-energy, swanky, loungy supper-club kind of a joint with a hip vibe and overall mood. It's got that "look-good" lighting that sometimes makes all the difference between an okay night and a great one. The Continental is popular with the younger and louder Beverly Hills party crowd and has a dress code of rock-star chic. Once partly owned by Matt Damon and his buddy Ben Affleck, the Continental pulls a crowd that dresses and acts like they're all expecting Matt and Ben to walk through the door. Drinks are pricey and the food is so-so, but the ladies make up for that. The Continental is the perfect noisy hot spot to get tanked before heading out to a late night club—it closes early at 1am. |
The Kids Cotton Club
1430 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Los Angeles, California; Tel. 310.877.9946
This place is the only throwback of its kind in the Hollywood area and one of the only hot spots that's had to turn away Lindsay Lohan. Maybe it's the way everyone dresses up to the max here, because all that glitters is gold and all that glamour gets in to The Kids Cotton Club. Fancy suits and dresses are what Leo DiCaprio and Demi Moore were wearing when they popped one Tuesday night for the weekly jazz soiree. The Kids Cotton Club is already legendary, and acts like John Mayer, Nikka Costa and Christina Aguilera are just some of the names who show up here unexpectedly, making sure it stays that way. |
The Ruby
7070 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, California; Tel. 323.467.7070
Thursday is the night to check out this legendary Hollywood bar/club. The Ruby caters to the deathly pale and dance-inclined. Come and "goth" out on the dance floor or on the main stage while slinky girls spy around with kohl-lined eyes like they're in Madame Butterfly. It's such a real Hollywood underground scene that's above ground, but for those who worship the ones whom are not. Get away from the darkness, as the Ruby offers an outside area for the many smokers who line up, in what is reminiscent of an alley behind a high school, where everyone is puffing away and complaining about their lives. The dress code at the Ruby is definitely not pretty but pretty goth.
|
Tiger Lilly
1745 N. Vermont Ave., Los Feliz, California; Tel. 323.661.5900
Tiger Lilly restaurant and bar makes happy hour in the afternoon no longer the only hour to get happy. The bar offers a 10pm to midnight happy hour with $3 margaritas and $3 draft beers. Tiger Lilly is located in the heart of trendy Los Feliz, which is really like east Hollywood and these days, it's reminiscent of Greenwich Village, Soho and Venice Beach. The food served in this cool amber-lit lounge is French-inspired. Next door, doors open up to a nightclub that rocks with all sorts of groovy Hollywood people. The appetizer menu, served late, is GI-normous, and it welcomes patrons to order many different items without ordering an entree. Very cool.
|
Vamp Lounge
1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach, California; Tel. 562.499.6625
Come aboard the Queen Mary for a night of serious burlesque and a show not to be forgotten. Reserve a table at the Vamp Lounge, hop on this magnificent ship at the port and be entertained by top dancers at this very unique night club in a cabaret setting. Roam around the boat, take in the sea air and enjoy the 1930s music, the costumes and the Queen Bees, who perform here regularly. They suggest the Queen Bee martini. |
—Los Angeles bar and club reviews by Alanna Lee, Ryan Osterbeck and Buddy Seigel
|
