The best new bars in Los Angeles to try right now

For a night of Vegas-style debauchery without ever leaving L.A., look no further than the Houston brothers’ buzzy new nightlife destination on the eighth floor of the Moxy Downtown. Over two nights, we experienced literally everything Level 8 had to offer (except yet-to-open raw bar Mother of Pearl). While the price of entry is high and the drinks are expensive and generally quite sugary, the dizzying level of spectacle makes Level 8 well worth the time and money for a dressy night out on the town. We enjoyed the array of burlesque and live music performers and the speakeasy-style entrances at Mr. Wanderlust, jazz bar and piano lounge; the eye-catching golden carousel bar at Golden Hour, a poolside rooftop bar which draws inspiration from the beaches of Miami and Copacabana; and the ruined cathedral confines of nightclub Sinners y Santos, where live lucha libre fighters perform above the "secret" wrestling ring atop the bar. Non-alcoholic cocktails available. $25 valet for the first three hours, $5 every 30 min thereafter up to $55 max; outdoor patio.

Love or hate them, non-alcoholic cocktails are here to stay, and there’s no better place to appreciate mixology for mixology’s sake than this new moody, dim-lit and completely booze-free Chinatown lounge. Housed in what was once the Hong Kong Cafe, STAY offers a dozen zodiac-inspired drinks, a handful of plant-based bar bites and the ability to soak up the history and ambience of the former ’80s punk rock venue. While fairly pricey (we’re talking $18 to $24 per drink here), beverage director Derek Brown makes the cost worth your while with creations like the Ox, which mimics the bite of an old-fashioned with bourbon alternative Kentucky 74 and vermouth-like Roots Divino Aperitif Rosso. Other drinks like the Rooster (which uses tart cherry tonic) run on the juicier, sweeter side, but you can also ask the bartenders to craft any cocktail of your choosing, sans booze. Non-alcoholic cocktails only. Street parking.

Taking over the old Onyx space, the Coco Club offers the same sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean that made the space’s former occupant one of the best rooftop bars in town. A new island-inspired cocktail menu by Dushan Zaric (best known for cofounding NYC’s Employees Only) adds intrigue with drinks like the passionfruit-tinged Coco Killer and a lychee-infused gin creation known as the White Lotus. A complete design overhaul has given the indoor-outdoor bar an all-new tropical-leaning look and feel, which includes artisan-crafted rattan stools lining the balcony railings—perfect for taking in the picture-perfect view—and a fire pit in the string-lit outdoor lounge. On the weekends, expect live DJ sets and heavier crowds to contribute to a dancefloor-like atmosphere inside. Outdoor patio available. Valet, street and 90 minutes' free parking at nearby public lots.

This new Melrose cocktail lounge in the former Bathtub Gin space comes from nightlife veteran Jared Meisler (the Roger Room, the Friend). With a baby grand piano and a spinning disco ball, the Moon Room brings a touch of class to a raucous night out—but it’s the thoughtfully executed house cocktails that distinguish the bar from the rest of the pack. Beverage director Annemarie Sagoi mixes spiced cocoa and camel milk with aged tequila and mezcal in the Orion, a smoky, slightly creamy concoction reminiscent of a malted milkshake. She’s also crafted an intensely crushable spicy marg in the form of the Andromeda, a pineapple-forward rendition that distills the thrill of jalapeño to a mere whisper. Stop in on a weekday or earlier in the evening for a more grown-up cocktail party feel, or tear up the unofficial dancefloor that forms on weekend evenings. Outdoor patio. Non-alcoholic cocktails available. Street parking.

Located below Seven Grand, this Mexico City-inspired cocktail bar from Pouring with Heart (Las Perlas, the Varnish) already has twentysomething Angelenos lining up on Seventh Street on the weekends. Marked only by a neon sign in an alleyway, Bar CDMX features minimalist art prints from Mexican artist Beo Hake, an alcove full of Spanish language arcade games and booths for large groups or making new friends. Floor-to-ceiling concrete nods to the natural stone interiors of bars in this watering hole’s namesake megacity, but they create an acoustic nightmare once the bar is more than half-full (even when the music is low, conversations bounce around the mirror-clad room). Bar CDMX turns up the volume even more with their drinks program: The pineapple caipirinha can convert piña colada haters to the sweet side, the draft mojito is perfectly balanced and the house margaritas will transport you to a poolside lounge chair. Street and private lot parking.

Still friendly with (and slightly outshined by) Good Housekeeping off the back patio, this reimagining of Cafe Birdie splits the former restaurant into the loungey, foliage-draped Arroyo Club and the carb purveyor the Hotline. The latter makes use of the kitchen to whip up burgers (beef optional), egg sandwiches, grilled cheeses and a couple of variations on fried potatoes for $14 or less. From the signature cocktails to mocktails, Arroyo Club’s drinks have a Latin-Caribbean flair to them without steering into tiki territory, and they’re inventive without alienating patrons. Outdoor patio and non-alcoholic drinks available.

With over-the-top drinks and upside-down decor, this intimate speakeasy along Fairfax Avenue literally upends expectations. Unlike menu-free Blue Collar next door, Cold Shoulder offers a hefty booklet of craft cocktails ($20–50) accessible through a sliding library shelf from its more casual sibling. On weekend nights, ask the Blue Collar host for the password, or simply walk right in on more relaxed weekday evenings. The house menu here runs a tad sweet in our opinion, particularly the “top shelf” creations, but study the menu for a few minutes and you’re likely to find something to your liking. If all else fails, order something classic: Cold Shoulder’s experienced bartenders know how to put essentially any drink together.

Located in the old office of Marilyn Monroe’s talent agent, this tiny craft cocktail bar on the Sunset Strip serves impeccably crafted drinks named for nearby L.A. icons. There’s a clarified paloma rosé spritz inspired by the Beverly Hills Hotel and a pisco and passion fruit ode to the Viper Room—and given the good-for-the-area prices ($18–22 for house specialties, $16 for classics), it’s no surprise Bar Next Door fills up nightly with drinkers enjoying the vintage reel-to-reel sound system and neighborhood watering hole atmosphere. Arrive early to claim a booth for you and a friend, or come later on to watch the youngish see-and-be-seen crowd collide with locals of all ages ending their night with a well-made nightcap. Non-alcoholic cocktails available; extremely limited street parking (we’d recommend ridesharing).

La Fe flips the lighter digs of Ostrich Farm into a wine bar that feels like you’re in an old movie with Vaseline on the lens. It slots in well with its neighbors, threading the needle between an elevated locals’ experience and wanton gentrification. Beyond a well-curated wine selection, bartenders deftly mix up house cocktails as well as classics with a reverence that never feels pretentious. The Dreamy Boy balances gin with florals and earthy sumac while the Dulcinea satisfies a sweet tooth without being cloying. Once the sun sets, a romantic vibe fills the bar, but plush stools and a wall-length booth invite groups to carve out their own spaces. You can snack on Mediterranean bar bites in the evening or swing by for a light Sunday brunch with specialty cocktails to soothe any hangover. 

Shim Sham offers what the mostly residential neighborhood of Filipinotown always needed: a cocktail dive. It’s the kind of bar that takes a pickleback seriously, but has Noilly Prat on the speed rail. More than half the menu rings in under $10, and the rest maxes out at $13. At these prices, the Mayatini may prove legendary among filthy martini lovers while Paige’s Punch offers a tart take on a Jungle Bird. The horseshoe-shaped bar inspires you to make new friends or, at least, do some people watching. If the den-like atmosphere isn’t accommodating your selfie needs, a “mirror” near the bathroom turns your phone into a photo booth shutter — blinding flash and all. Shim Sham’s already robust rotation of DJs set the vibe in the evenings, even on weeknights. The TVs will only distract you from the reverie if they’re playing cult classic films or local sports. Outdoor patio and non-alcoholic options available.