1. Thunderbolt
- Cocktail bars
- Echo Park
- price 1 of 4
- 5 out of 5 stars
- Recommended
Photograph: Courtesy Marie Buck
What is it? An award-winning casual cocktail bar in Historic Filipinotown known for its tech-forward, zero-waste approach to mixology.
Why we love it: Thunderbolt is the only bar-bar in Los Angeles that consistently makes the 50 Best Bars in North America. (The only other spot in L.A. to place on the list is Mírate in Los Feliz, which is technically a restaurant.) This year, Thunderbolt came in at a tidy number 24, and also nabbed a sustainability award from World’s 50 Best Restuarants, the list’s awarding body. The Southern-inspired bar bites are great—after all, the food menu’s brought to us by the team at the Park’s Finest next door—but the drinks are the star of the show. Signature creations include the P-Town Boxing Club, made with pandan and coconut-washed rye, and entire menu sections dedicated to savory (“culinary adjacent”) drinks and texture-forward drinks like the Koji Killer: “a frozen painkiller with an umami punch.” Throw in a lively front patio, comfy leather sofas and top-notch playlists, and it’s no surprise we tend to stay all night.
Time Out tip: If you’re no stranger to Thunderbolt, check out owner Mike Capoferri’s newest project, Night on Earth. Located in the Cahuenga Pass, the futuristic Valley strip mall joint serves an entirely different menu of first-rate drinks built at 16 degrees Fahrenheit—three degrees cooler than the ones offered at Thunderbolt, which translates into a slightly colder mouthfeel and less reliance on ice.
Address: 1263 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90026
Opening hours: Mon, Wed, Thu 5pm–midnight; Fri, Sat 5pm–1am; Sun 5pm–midnight
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2. Mirate
- Mexican
- Los Feliz
- price 2 of 4
- 4 out of 5 stars
- Recommended
- Sustainable
Photograph: Courtesy Matt Egan
What is it? A stunning Mexican restaurant in Los Feliz that offers stellar cocktails alongside a list of rare mezcals and tequilas, some of which you can’t find anywhere else in the United States.
Why we love it: There’s a good reason Mírate was has been named one of North America’s best bars for two years in a row. Sure, this place wins major points for ambience with its multi-level, open-air dining room centered around a tree, but cocktail enthusiasts flock here for beverage director Max Reis’s force-carbonated paloma (Tu Compa) and other cleverly deconstructed classics, agave-based and otherwise. Another standout aspect? Pre-Hispanic fermented beverages, which you rarely come across to L.A. aside from Mexican home kitchens and street vendors. Available on their own (“bebidas ancestrales”) or integrated into two more approachable drinks (El Pulquero and El Caminante), these funky, lightly alcoholic drinks nod to Mírate’s emphasis on honoring traditional Mexican foodways. Of course, Mírate offers plenty of crowd-pleasers as well—there’s also a michelada, a few boozy slushies and four clever variations on the margarita.
Time Out tip: Those in the Valley should head to Daisy Margarita Bar, which Reis also opened along with the rest of the Mírate team. The restaurant and bar focuses on clever, unexpected twists on the classic tequila-based drink in all of its sweet, sometimes frozen glory. I recommend the mangoneada, but you can also find Reis’s take on a michelada and a Cadillac.
Address: 1712 N Vermont Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Opening hours: Mon—Thu 5–11pm; Fri 5pm–midnight; Sat 11am–midnight; Sun 11am–11pm
3. The Roger Room
- Lounges
- La Cienega
- price 2 of 4
- 5 out of 5 stars
- Recommended
What is it? A first-rate West Hollywood cocktail bar run by hospitality and nightlife veterans Jared Meisler and Sean MacPherson.
Why we love it: You see it on the coasters, you see it atop the foam on your drink: “YES.” It’s the unofficial ethos of Jared Meisler and Sean MacPherson’s high-minded cocktail bar, where it’s best to just go with the flow because everything off that order-by-the-spirit menu is going to be good. But first, you have to find it: Look for the neon “PSYCHIC” sign on La Cienega, then enter through a curtain to find a handful of seasonal cocktails in addition to classics-leaning drinks split into categories of sparkling, rum, tequila, whiskey, gin, vodka and even absinthe. The place fills up fast, particularly on nights when there are larger comedy acts at the Largo next door, so stop by early or late. The lights are low and the drinks are spot-on, making it a perfect place to bring a date—or go solo and bring yourself on one.
Time Out tip: Can’t decide what to order? This is one of the few spots in town where you’ll never regret ordering the bartender’s choice.
Address: 370 La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048
Opening hours: Mon–Fri 6pm–2am; Sat 7pm–2am; Sun 8pm–2am
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