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"Mark, I don't know what any of these dishes are," my very Texan, very non-foodie mother said a few years ago while looking over a menu. I'd dragged her to my friend's new restaurant and reassured her that she didn't have to recognize a single thing on the menu: Anything she ordered would be worth it. It was, and she's now been to a few Michelin restaurants because of it.
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That's a similar experience to what's happening at the revived The Holloway, the Echo Park sports bar in the former Lonely Oyster space. The menu cover is a giant smiley face; inside, the offerings range from items like "chicken park sando" to "little gem wedge." This time, you think you know exactly what you're getting. Basic bar food, right? Yeah, not with chef Andrew Rodriguez in the kitchen.
That chicken parm? Served on focaccia. The fries are dusted in Cool Ranch seasoning and the wedge salad comes sprinkled with nutritional yeast and everything bagel seasoning instead of onions because, well, why not? The whole menu is heavy on taking the simplest, most generic bar food items (fries, sandwiches, nachos) and elevating them without getting hoity-toity.
That’s an attitude that’s always appreciated, but never more so than lately, when it feels as if restaurants are going out of their way to be precious and/or expansive. Does L.A. need another three-digit tasting menu? No, but Angelenos need, nay deserve, the kind of magic that chef Andrew is performing in the Holloway kitchen to get that perfect crust on his fish and chips.
That was one of the last menu items my friend, J., and I tried before we both tapped out. I’d actually pushed my plate away a few minutes before to sprawl backward in the booth and catch my breath when he took one bite and rolled his eyes. “Nope, you have to,” he ordered, so I gamely speared a chunk of the white fish and crust, swirled it in the homemade tartar sauce, and popped it in my mouth. No regrets other than that I was already so full I couldn’t appreciate more of it.
The whole menu is a little like that, the dining equivalent of FOMO: You think you’re OK skipping something like the nachos because you’re an adult in the world; you’ve had nachos before. But not like this, where the chips are dusted with “cool ranch seasoning” and paired with thick avocado slices, green onions and crema.
Likewise, the chicken wings are unmissable. I have a fairly strict policy about eating chicken wings in public (read: I don’t, because I have a beard and it’s just a question of how badly I’ll embarrass myself rather than if I will), but these looked so appetizing I had to indulge in a delicate nibble. The nibble turned into something a little more voracious because the wing boasts both tenderness and an outside crunch, thanks to a throw on the grill.
One of the spot’s selling points remains its relative proximity to Dodger Stadium, so consider this your go-to for pre- or post-game, where you can have a margarita with Dodger blood (blue curaçao) and a chili dog that handily beats anything you’d get in a stadium. And with NFL season kicking off this week, The Holloway hopes to be your destination for all sports-related viewings. You might come for the game, but you’re going to end up staying to try just one more bite.
Oh, and that chicken sando? It’s off the menu, but they’ll still make it if you ask nicely. You’re welcome.
The Holloway is located at 1320 Echo Park Avenue and is open Sunday–Thursday, noon–midnight, and Friday and Saturday, noon–2am.