LOS ANGELES BAR & RESTAURANT HISTORY

LOS ANGELES BAR & RESTAURANT HISTORY - AREA SELF-TOURS

Hey - I give free tours for movie stars and billionaires - you just provide the Limo! Okay, my lazy side will be apparent here. For those of you exploring Los Angeles metro history on a day trip of bar and restaurant hopping (only with a designated driver!) or for out of town tourists (like myself), I thought I'd give you a better grouping of places by area (each write up has its own meager attempt at this on other pages). For this first attempt, I'm leaving out remodeled places for the most part, as well as most hotels, buildings, movie palaces, etc. You find mainly bars and restaurants for now with a few exceptions. I'm being lazy in not giving you addresses (look them up on my other pages or use the GPS page) and I haven't thoroughly researched my area designations or names. Here's where I also show myself to be an outsider/tourist to Los Angeles Metro, having never lived there (unless you buy my proposition that San Diego and Las Vegas are Los Angeles suburbs - Las Sangeles!). I'm not well versed in neighborhood names, unofficial area designations, place nick-names, etc. For example, I don't know where the San Gabriel Valley starts and stops (I guess it's a safe bet San Gabriel is located there) and I couldn't tell you the boundary between Wilshire Center, Koreatown and Hancock Park (boy did I get in trouble with someone once because of that!). While most people may be patriotic for their "Patria", they are even worse areatics, villageotics, neighborhood chauvinists, Countyists - whatever you want to call it. So please write me to correct my area descriptions - but do it in a nice way - no profanity. It's like beating a puppy dog - I'm just a helpless tourist! Obviously, some restaurants have bars in them and some places I view as bars serve up some pretty good food as well. My designation of "bar" or "restaurant" is how I visualize them based on my favorite aspect of the place. Why do I have to always explain things ad nauseam?

BURBANK

Blue Room bar, Bob's Big Boy Restaurant, Chili John's Restaurant, Genio's Restaurant (closed), Frank's Steak House, Monte Carlo Deli & Pinocchio Restaurant, Smoke House Restaurant, Tony's Bella Vista Restaurant, Tin Horn Flats Bar.

CULVER CITY/LAX/WESTCHESTER/HAWTHORNE

Cinema Bar, Buggy Whip Restaurant, Chips Restaurant, Dear John's Restaurant, Dinah's Family Restaurant, Encounter's Lounge Restaurant, Johnnie's Pastrami Restaurant, Pann's Coffee Shop, Tito's Tacos Restaurant (remodeled).

BEACHES (excluding Long Beach)

The Arches (Newport Beach - opps it's gone), Bull Pen Bar & Restaurant (Redondo Beach), Dean's Muscle In Bar (Santa Monica), Ercoles Bar and Restaurant (Manhattan Beach), Harbor Room Bar (Playa Del Rey), (Thelen's) Mermaid Restaurant (Hermosa Beach), Old Tony's Bar & Restaurant (Redondo Beach), Parasol Coffee Shop (Seal Beach if it reopens as a Mel's), Uncle Bill's Pancake House (Manhattan Beach).

DOWNTOWN (also Lincoln Heights/Chinatown/West Adams)

The Airliner Bar, Casey's Bar, Cole's PE Buffet Restaurant & Bar (when it reopens), Cosmos Saloon, Cicada Italian Restaurant, Clifton's Brookdale Cafeteria, El Cholo Mexican Restaurant, Grand Central Public Market, Hank's Bar, Hop Louie Chinese Restaurant, La Fonda Mexican Restaurant & Mariachi Show, Nick's Cafe, Quon Brother's Grand Star, Original Pantry Cafe, Pacific Dining Car Restaurant, Papa Cristo's Greek Tavern Restaurant, Philippe's French Dipped Sandwiches, Redwood Bar (remodeled), Uncle John's

ECHO PARK/SILVERLAKE/SUNSET BLVD.

Brite Spot Restaurant, Barrangan's Mexican Restaurant, El Chavo Mexican Restaurant, El Cid Restaurant and Flamenco Show, Millie's, Short Stop Bar, Tiki Ti bar, Taix French Restaurant. You can continue on Sunset Boulevard out of this area and on to Coach and Horses bar, the Sunset Grill, Greenblatt's Deli, Myagi's Japanese Restaurant (Player's), Mel's Drive In (Ben Frank's) Rainbow Bar & Grill, Duke's Coffee Shop, Chateau Marmont Hotel, the Standard (W. Hollywood) and the Polo Lounge (Beverly Hill's Hotel) and the nearby Bel Air Hotel.

FAIRFAX/BEVERLY HILLS/WESTWOOD

Canter's Deli/Kibitz Room bar, Dan Tana's Restaurant, El Coyote Mexican Restaurant, Farmer's Market (Patsy's Pizza), Jan's Restaurant, Nate 'n Al's Deli, Nick's Coffee Shop, Matteo's Restaurant, Molly Malone's bar, Norm's Restaurant (on La Cienega), Polo Lounge (Beverly Hills Hotel), Swingers Coffee Shop, Tom Bergin's Tavern, Trader Vic's Restaurant (poolside).

GLENDALE/ATWATER VILLAGE

Astro Family Restaurant, Club Tee Gee bar, Damon's Restaurant, Dinah's Fried Chicken Original Restaurant, Red Lion Restaurant and Bar, The Roost bar, the Tam O'Shanter Restaurant

HOLLYWOOD/WEST HOLLYWOOD/LOS FELIZ

The Argyle Hotel, Barney's Beanery Restaurant & Bar, Boardner's bar, The Chateau Marmont Hotel, Coach & Horses bar, The Derby Restaurant, Dresden Room bar & restaurant, Dan Tana's Restaurant, Duke's Coffee Shop, Formosa Cafe, Frolic Room bar, Miceli's Italian Restaurant, Musso and Frank's Grill, Pig 'n Whistle Restaurant, Pink's Hot Dog Stand, The Power House Bar, Rainbow Bar and Grill, Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles, The Snake Pit (Melrose Ave.), Village Coffee Shop (Hollywoodland), Yamashiro's Japanese Restaurant, Ye Rustic Inn bar

LONG BEACH/SAN PEDRO/SOUTH BAY(?)/SOUTHERN LOS ANGELES COUNTY

Alpine Inn Restaurant (Dance Hall and Theme Village - Torrance), 36 36 bar (Long Beach),Canetti's Seafood Grotto, Clancy's bar and restaurant (Long Beach), Joe Jost's bar (Long Beach), Harvey's/Johnies Broiler former site (Downey - now demolished- to be reborn as a Big Boy Restaurant), Henry Moffett's Chicken Pies (Bellflower- sorry it's gone!), The Indian bar (San Pedro), McDonald's Restaurant and Museum (world's oldest - Downey) Olsen's Restaurant (San Pedro - now gone), the Queen Mary Ocean Liner, Hotel (Long Beach), Reno Room bar (Long Beach), The San Franciscan (Torrance), V Room bar (Long Beach), Haskell's Prospector bar and Restaurant (Long Beach), Nino's Italian Restaurant (Long Beach).

ORANGE COUNTY

El Adobe Restaurant (San Juan Capistrano), La Paloma Chicken Pie Shop (Anaheim), Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinners (Buena Park), Riviera at the Fireside Restaurant (Westminster), Watson Drugs and Soda Fountain (Orange).

PASADENA/EAGLE ROCK

(Freddie's) 35er bar, the Bucket Restaurant, Casa Bianca Restaurant, The Chalet bar, Colombo's Restaurant, the Colorado Bar, Delacey's Club 41 Restaurant (still there?), El Cholo Mexican Restaurant (Pasadena branch), El Toreo Mexican Restaurant, Fair Oaks Pharmacy, Gus's Bar-B-Q Restaurant (remodeled), Monty's Steakhouse (sorry it's gone), Pie 'n Burger Coffee Shop.

SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY

Below the Cajon Pass:

Iron Skillet Restaurant (Ontario), Magic Lamp Restaurant (Rancho Cucamonga), Sycamore Inn (Rancho Cucamonga), Vince's Spaghetti Restaurant (Ontario branch).

Above the Cajon Pass:

The Summit Inn, Peggy Sue's Diner, Idle Spurs Steak House, the Palm Cafe, the Village Cafe, Emma Jean's Holland Burger Cafe

SAN FERNANDO VALLEY (excluding Burbank)

Barones Italian Restaurant, Bear Pit Restaurant (Mission Hills), Bobby's Coffee Shop, Casa Vegas Mexican Restaurant (Sherman Oaks), Chimneysweep Bar (Sherman Oaks), Darby's Coffee Shop (Canoga Park), Fox Fire Room (North Hollywood), James Family Restaurant, La Frite French Restaurant (Woodland Hills), My Brother's Bar B-Q (Woodland Hills), Sitton's Restaurant (North Hollywood), The Tonga Hut Bar (North Hollywood), The Valley Inn (Sherman Oaks)

Saugus Cafe is not too far from San Fernando.

SAN GABRIEL VALLEY/EAST LOS ANGELES COUNTY (AND WHITTIER/PICO RIVERA/ARCADIA/ALHAMBRA/SAN MARINO - help! What do I call this area?)

Bahooka Ribs and Grog Restaurant (Rosemead), Bun 'n Burger Restaurant (Alhambra), Chris & Pitts Restaurant (Whittier Branch), Colonial Kitchen Restaurant (San Marino), Covina Tasty, Covina Bowl Bowling Alley, Dal Rae Restaurant (Pico Rivera), The Derby Restaurant (Arcadia), Ember's Lounge bar (Whittier), Goody's Restaurant (San Gabriel), the Hat (Alhambra branch), Mission Family Restaurant (Pomona), (Clearman's) North Wood's Inn (San Gabriel), Rod's Grill (Arcadia), (Clearman's) Steak 'n Stein Restaurant (Pico Rivera), Tamarack Inn bar (Pico Rivera)

WESTSIDE LOS ANGELES/SANTA MONICA/VENICE/BEVERLY HILLS

The Apple Pan Restaurant, The Arsenal Bar, Big Dean's Muscle In Cafe, Billingley's Restaurant, Casa Escobar Mexican Restaurant, Chez Jay's, Dolores Restaurant, the Galley Restaurant, Harvelle's bar, Nate 'n Al's Deli, Rae's, Snug Harbor Coffee Shop, The Townhouse bar and Trader Vic's (poolside) and La Dolce Vita restaurant.

WILSHIRE CENTER/KOREATOWN

Brass Monkey bar/restaurant/Karaoke, Frank 'n Hank's bar, La Fonda (close to this area), Langer's Deli (close to this area), The HMS Bounty bar and restaurant, Lowenbrou (Lowenbrau) Keller German Restaurant (now Medusa Lounge), the Prince Korean Restaurant (the Windsor), Taylor's Steakhouse.