J. Fergus

While the experience of dating in L.A. can feel like navigating land mines, apparently Californians are the most primed for dating opportunities. With some of the best cocktail bars around and scores of fun date ideas within reach, the hardest part of dating is just finding that special person. We’ve scoured the city for the best places to lock eyes with someone from across the room (or across a few pinball machines), from the dark dens that create a natural filter to the dancefloors glittering under spinning disco balls. If you’re looking for your next partner in crime, here’s where to clink your way to success. RECOMMENDED: The best bars in Los Angeles Update July 2026: The Bungalow has undergone a bit of an identity crisis in recent years with even longer lines and a brief flirtation with pricey cover charges, and the reduced hours make it so that you can’t even escape to a chill weeknight. We’ve removed it from this list along with the shuttered Mama Shelter, Harlowe, and The Friend (The Little Friend is still up and running in Venice). How we curate and review at Time Out.

Every year, it feels like the number of wine bars in L.A. multiply at a rate that seems unfathomable. With so many options and different approaches to wine, from mellow to just a touch of snobbery, it’s easy to get overwhelmed.  We like to focus on wine bars that marry ambiance with a great list without getting so crowded that you can’t hear yourself think (sorry, El Prado and Voodoo Vin). Food is always another welcome addition, whether it’s a charcuterie board or a flatiron steak. So when you need to slow things down for a date night or you’d rather get a bottle for the table than go through rounds of cocktails during a dramatic debrief, look to these wine bars for a helping stem.  RECOMMENDED: Where to go wine tasting in Los Angeles  Updated July 2026: Visits to Lolo have been uneven of late, but it when it hits, it’s like an Otani homer. We still recommend it, but can no longer consider it among the best with its growing inconsistency. Melody, Esters Wine Shop & Bar, Holcomb, and The Ruby Fruit have all gone to the big wine crate in the sky. As much as we love La Pharmacie du Vin, it’s temporarily closed until September 2026 and may return to this list should it actually reopen.  How we curate and review at Time Out.

Even though L.A. is a younger American city, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a rich history. We can’t get enough of museums during the day or some of our oldest bars at night, including several dating back to pre-Prohibition times. Many of these institutions have survived by digging their heels into dive bar culture (and owning instead of renting the space) while others have adapted to the times with their cocktail and programming options. If you want a glass of history on the rocks, look no further than these L.A. drinking dens. Update July 2026: Sadly, a few of our oldest bars have shuttered in these trying times, including Alhambra Cocktail Lounge, The King Eddy Saloon, and Cole’s.

The days of smuggling bathtub gin in tunnels under City Hall or rum-runners playing 20th-century pirates off the coast of San Diego are long behind us, but Los Angeles still can’t resist a secret bar. In a city under siege in recent years, with many regular bars shuttering for good, it’s harder for speakeasies to resist the siren call of social media or the urge for a more practical entrance. Even in these trying times, L.A. continues to reward those willing to venture into dark basements or visit barber shops in the dead of night.  With spaces like K-town’s R bar ditching passwords and Melrose Station adding a neon sign to the hookah lounge it was once hidden inside, it’s more important than ever to define a true speakeasy. Every bar we’ve included has a hidden or unmarked entrance just for those in the know (or with a reservation). Inside these standout bars, you’ll find DJs spinning vinyls, dazzling burlesque dancers, live jazz, and even fiery cocktails. Step into another time or another world in Los Angeles’s best speakeasies.  June 2026: Adults Only has closed and been replaced by the vibrant nightclub Detour. Though Detour has a dramatic tunnel entrance, it’s decidedly not shy about what or where it is, making it ineligible for this list. We’ve added the laidback Pasadena speakeasy 10 1/4 and updated everyone’s hours for summer, for when you need a dimly lit break from rooftops and patios. How we review at Time Out.

Los Angeles continues to show off its resilience as bars from Long Beach to Mar Vista bring their A game to its embattled residents. Dimly lit lounges and raucous beer halls alike are bringing communities together over great drinks, showing off their creativity as they attempt to keep prices as approachable as possible. Best Los Angeles bars at a glance: For impeccably made cocktails: Vandell – a buzzy cocktail lounge geared toward local walk-ins with destination-worthy bites and drinks (Los Feliz) For standout martinis with a sunset view: Dante Beverly Hills – the ritzy 90210 outpost of an award-winning NYC cocktail bar (Beverly Hills) For drinks on the Westside before midnight: Accomplice – a standout restaurant bar program with killer non-alcoholic options (Mar Vista) For a classic night out in Koreatown: Dan Sung Sa – a divey, always bustling classic known for its sprawling food menu and soju selection For when you can’t choose between a Negroni and a boilermaker: Shim Sham – a cocktail dive where everyone knows your name (Historic Filipinotown) The happy-hour programming across town remains strong, even at newer bars facing rising rents. The L.A. dive is far from dead—though you’re more likely than ever to find a great martini at one—and a skyline view with a Spritz is always an elevator ride away. In fact, there are so many great options, we knew we had to narrow them down for you to highlight the best bars in Los Angeles.   Updated June 2026: As the nights get shorte

The tiki craze took hold in America sometime in the late '40s and early '50s, but its origins lie in California. Nearly a century ago, on McFadden in Hollywood, Donn Beach opened the world’s first tiki bar in 1933. Though his last California location closed in 2018, his legacy lives on in the hearts and tiki mugs of Southern Californians. Tiki never truly dies in this town, with new bars and old brands rising from the grave like a well-balanced Zombie every few years. The best L.A. tiki bars cut through the fog with their kitschy interiors, dedication to tradition, and their ability to deftly break from it. RECOMMENDED: The best bars in Los Angeles If you’re looking to get three sheets to the wind with a Three Dots and a Dash, we’ve found the best L.A. County has to offer tiki sticklers, scorpion bowl guzzlers, and craft cocktail sippers alike. Whether you crave a bright red maraschino cherry garnish or housemade orgeats that cut through the high-proof vapors, there’s probably a bamboo-covered hut not too far away from you. We left out Orange County bars for this list, but we have a lot of love for the ship-like Strong Water in Anaheim and the group-friendly Stowaway in Tustin. Whatever floats your boat, pull up a wicker chair and an oar as we navigate the boozy, choosey, and even sober-friendly tiki spots.  May 2026: We’ve added Lucky Tiki’s new Highland Park location, which brings some theatrics to Northeast L.A. Sadly, Kahuna Tiki has closed, and Kahuna Tiki Tu doesn’t qui

With the massive sprawl of Los Angeles and its diverse culinary offerings at every price point, it can be tough to find the perfect place to slink into a martini and a Caesar, or a boilermaker and some nachos, after a long day. Some happy hours are for snagging a deal on an otherwise luxurious experience, while others are simply a way to meet up with friends after work without losing that day’s pay.  RECOMMENDED: The best bars in Los Angeles We’ve taken the gas-work out of finding the best happy hour deals around L.A., so all you have to bring is the gossip and a good attitude.  Updated May 2026: The Morrison, The Misfit, and Esters Wine Shop have closed, replaced here by Highland Park’s Hippo and The High Low in Atwater Village. Redbird leaves this list as the Lounge moves to a permanently more budget-friendly menu all night long with $12–14 cocktails, most bar bites under $20, and a Waygyu burger for $22.

While many other cities tend to have a rooftop bar season, Angelenos crave cold drinks with a scenic view year-round. Why settle for a street-level patio when you can take in sea breezes, towering skyscrapers, or a squinting glimpse of the Hollywood sign? L.A. rooftop bars are so beloved that the best ones usually stay here for both a good long time, and their closures are felt for years (we're still mourning Mama Shelter and the DTLA Standard). But don't worry, there are still plenty of poolside cabanas for your day drinking and glittering vistas for your nightcaps. RECOMMENDED: The best bars in Los Angeles We narrowed down the best of the best, focusing on bar-forward establishments because the rooftop restaurants this town has to offer needed their own stage. So pull up a stool or a lounge chair to sip your way through Los Angeles’ best rooftop bars. Updated April 2026: For this seasonal update, we've removed Bar Bohemien and E.P. & L.P., which have closed permanently, and moved up relative newcomer Bar Florentín, in part to reward its consistency and frequently packed dance floor—which we love. To learn more about our process, check out How we review at Time Out.

As some of our best bar programs end up inside of restaurants, new bars are becoming far and few between in Los Angeles. Some are still trying to make it on their own while other newcomers embrace the siren call of the bar bite. Some of the bars on this list serve food, but we try to highlight places where you can simply drink without feeling out of place or melting under the glare of staff desperate to turn over your seat in favor of a hungrier customer. We also prefer it when our drinking establishments stay open past 10pm on the weekends, but we make exceptions for the exceptional. Above all else, we aim to show you true hot spots with drinks you'll talk about for months or an ambiance you'll never want to leave, and we love it when a venue nails both. These fledgling bars and lounges have only been on the block for the past nine months—any longer and they're removed from the list. We always visit each bar to ensure they're worth the pricelessness of your time and energy as well as the rising cost of a stiff drink. Updated March 2026: This quarterly update welcomes Sid's Bar in South Pasadena, Vandell in Los Feliz, Yi Cha in Highland Park, and the revamped Bar Franca in Downtown L.A. Most of the list has aged out: Bar Benjamin, Damn, I Miss Paris, Daisy Margarita Bar, Untamed Spirits, Bar Avoja, Force of Nature, and Florentín Rooftop Bar are seasoned veterans now. You can find Florentín in our best rooftop bars list, while Vandell and Bar Benjamin have already made it onto

When it comes to queer nightlife options in Los Angeles, there’s lots to choose from—and not just in rainbow-dipped West Hollywood, home to countless gay bars. To help you pick the best spots for dancing, boozing, flirting and cruising in Hollywood, Silver Lake and beyond, check out this list of our favorite queer bars and clubs in L.A.—there are even Pasadena, Venice and Valley options, for those sick of the party-hearty WeHo scene. Now get out there, tiger. May 2025: Just in time for WeHo Pride, I’ve updated our guide to the city’s best gay bars. This list removes St. Felix, Stache and Redline, all of which have unfortunately closed, as well as the Ruby Fruit (which has recently been revamped to a neighborhood grill) and Revolver Video Bar. The newest addition is Kiso, a welcome entrant to Downtown’s queer nightlife scene. Time Out has also instituted a sitewide change in review policies. All food and drink venues included in guides now have star ratings, with five stars corresponding to “amazing,” four to “great” and three to “good,” and we’ve also standardized how most listings are structured. For more on our new policies, feel free to check out How we review at Time Out.

Dive bars in Los Angeles are as varied as the city’s neighborhoods. Even the definition of a dive bar varies, from somewhere with low lighting and cheap beers to a place for locals to meet up, week after week, year after year. From tiki drinks in El Segundo to a storied biker bar in Hollywood, we’ve got your guide to the city’s diviest dives, where you can sing your heart out with karaoke, drown your sorrows with a couple stiff drinks and, quite possibly, kick off one of the best nights of your life.  RECOMMENDED: The best bars in Los Angeles

Above Sunset Boulevard sits this popular bar from Karla Flores-Mercado that started as a pop-up. Occasionally skewing towards being a queer hub, Bar Flores offers fun drinks at solid prices. The vibe: Once you head up the tile-lined stairs, the space evokes the feeling of a hillside casita with its ceiling fans helping air flow through its open windows to the street and across the bar to a bougainvillea-draped patio—which feels like another world unto itself. The crowd skews towards millennial and Gen Z professionals and queer patrons can often be found outside of their sapphic-forward queer events.  The food: You can inhale $5 tacos and shareables like nachos from the taco cart off the patio when that third margarita starts hitting a little too hard. The cart offers its food menu Wednesday through Sunday, but drinks need to be ordered at the bar. The drink: Their menu typically includes fresh takes on margaritas or crushable concoctions like the prickly pear and peppercorn-forward Spritz No. 4. The cocktails skew lighter and longer, likely the most refreshing tack for the indoor-outdoor establishment. Time Out tip: On a packed night out with your friends, order a margarita or paloma pitcher to streamline the experience.

This neighborhood dive slings fairly cheap drinks all week long to the local Cypress Park crowd. The dimly lit interior gets a spot of sparkle from a disco ball while the risqué art and leather booths give the place a sultry vibe. Weeknights will likely be met with jukebox fare or the occasional vinyl, but the weekends are ripe for DJs spinning anything from italo disco to punk music. Wells, shots, and beers are your best bet for affordability, but you can likely get a dive version of any classic cocktail for much less than at a trendier spot. The back patio has its own buzzy energy, often primed for friendly interactions—with or without a cigarette.

Just beyond Echo Park Lake, this storied wine bar radiates its history and community while serving a rotating list of wines and craft beers. You would walk right past it if you didn’t know what you were looking for, thanks to some subtle signage. The vibe: Dimly lit by a mix of kitschy fairy lights, tea candles, and vintage gas lamps, this chill hangout spot gets romantic after the sun sets, especially once the live music starts. The small bar with its Moroccan accents and weathered walls can get packed fairly quickly. The food: Outside food is allowed from local vendors or even through a food delivery app, but otherwise you’ll have to get by on chips or their spicy pickled eggs. The drinks: Their drinks menu lives on a chalkboard where regulars can watch beers and wines come and go. With rare exceptions, their beer tends to stay below $10 while glasses of wine average $13, along with a few similarly priced non-alcoholic options. The selection runs the gamut from simple comforts to surprising gems and you can always try the wine before going all in on a pour. Time Out tip: This is a neighborhood spot that does its best to keep things accessible for the regulars, so leave your pretenses at the door and enjoy the music.

Once the standout in a sleepy Chinatown, General Lee’s heartbeat has remained constant over the years as the neighborhood’s nightlife has grown to match the tempo of its weekend DJs. Fridays and Saturdays are the most club-like in this storied split-level building that was once a Frank Sinatra haunt. Downstairs has more room to groove while upstairs is more of a loungey vibe. Weekdays slow down a bit with social events like mahjong on Mondays and groovier DJs playing to a diverse crowd. Tropical signature cocktails like the Sloe & Easy pull rarities like sloe gin and tamarind together with breezy pineapple for a fun dancefloor concoction, while classics set the tone for a loungier evening. If you’re tired of traditional bottle service, reserving a section will allow you to order a dangerously delicious punch bowl (or two, if you dare) for your group. There’s not much in the way of non-alcoholic drinks, but their house ginger beer won’t leave you minding too much.

The earthy, mixed materials of Ramona Room combined with verdant plants in every nook and a roaring wood oven establish a level of coziness most new wine bars could only hope to aspire to. A duo of loaded tacos on freshly made tortillas pairs with amaro and wine cocktails during the weekday happy hour from 5pm to 7pm. From the Portside Sour (a port-based digestif for Trinidad Sour nerds) to their light and breezy Ramona Spritz, there’s no end to the low (or no) alcohol imbibing one can enjoy here. A slim but well-tailored wine menu shares the spotlight with amari, vermouths, sherry, port, and a few crowd-pleasing beers, bringing the fun of a full bar with a more moderate pace.

Heading down the stairs inside Pasadena dive The 35er, you’ll think you’re on your way to the bar’s storeroom only to find an old-timey phone booth at the bottom. Once you pick up the phone and give the bartender the size of your party, with luck, you’ll be buzzed into one of the smallest speakeasies in Los Angeles. Tiny slivers of tables line the walls with barely enough space for a couple of rounds of classic cocktails, while a few coveted four-tops sit beneath the glow of Edison bulbs with pewter monkeys hitching a ride on top of them. Here you can find drinks made the way they were intended to be enjoyed roughly a century ago, including less popular refreshments like the minty Queen’s Park Swizzle. With no dress code, only capacity can keep you out of this space that slowly turns into a rowdy watering hole as the night gets boozier. If you’re more into mid-century modern drinks that pack a punch and feel nostalgia for Xzibit’s “Pimp My Ride,” this bar in a bar also contains a tiki speakeasy pop-up on Friday and Saturday nights.

Steps away from the roaring hearth at Betsy, Bar Betsy is an all-day café and wine bar offering a leaner, reservation-free alternative to its sibling restaurant.  The vibe: The rustic-chic bistro offers patio tables, a few bar seats, a coveted large table for groups, and a long wooden booth. Despite being your standard rectangular wine bar, Bar Betsy creates pockets of privacy without completely disconnecting you from your neighbors. Ready for any mix of companions you can imagine, this space is a little less for creating a Canva deck at 1pm and more for grabbing a glass of well-curated wine at 11am.  The food: The daytime menu outshines its nighttime counterpart with a rotating menu that typically features decadent sticky buns, hearty egg-based dishes, and market-fresh salads. In the evening, you can start mixing and matching meat and cheese tapas or nibble on other light, vegetable-forward bites. For something more substantial, their house burger has a strong fajita effect—seeing one travel to a table inevitably invites several more orders. The drinks: In exchange for frills, you get well-executed espresso drinks in the waking hours. At any time of day, you can get glasses of mostly Western European wine and you can drop in on a winemaker takeover on occasional evenings. Time Out tip: The carrots. Whether they’re in a lunchtime sandwich or a starring side in the evening, these tahini-drenched marvels will stay in your memory, even after a bottle or two.

You’d never guess this cozy coffee shop and wine bar used to be a smoke shop. Reunion & Company maximizes its space without feeling cramped, from an eclectic mix of seating on the patio to the plush interior beyond the archways of the marbled bar. Serving the company’s own wines while also managing to keep lattes under $8 (even with milk alternatives) in Silver Lake, the all-day café works hard and plays harder. The Kalimoxto, a red wine and Mexican Coca-Cola cocktail, gets a lift from a pillow of vanilla oat milk foam floating on top, blending barista and bartender techniques. The food menu has grown from daytime pastries to more robust flatbreads and sandwiches for when your coworking day inevitably turns into a natural wine-soaked social call. If you need to keep the good vibes rolling, you can even grab a bottle for the after-party at a discount.

Practically hidden in a residential sea of apartment complexes, Noun Coffee gives a sleepy side street in Marina del Rey a dose of energy.  The vibe: Despite its austere design, the coffee shop and wine bar could hardly be described as soulless. Most of the day, you’ll find your standard mix of remote workers, friends catching up, and awkward first dates. Once happy hour starts at 5pm, the sake, gossip, and natural wines start flowing.  The food: Their popular “girl dinner” charcuterie platter struggles in its presentation. With nary a carb in sight, the grazing tray reaches for chic, silver servingware and lands on a human-sized dog bowl whose enormity draws attention to the portion sizes. Their cachapa is the actual cult favorite, offering a light and bright take on the gluten-free Venezuelan dish.  The drinks: The wine selection, currently skewing light and natural as summer approaches, is inoffensive, but café beverages stun in their balanced simplicity. The Short Stack finds the not-too-sweet spot for a salted maple cappuccino or you could choose your own adventure with a pourover ranging from “easy drinker” to a dealer’s choice “wildcard.” Time Out tip: For the liveliest evenings, Fridays, Saturdays, or special events featuring winemakers or local food pop-ups will draw people to a communal table or out on the patio. 

Nestled in the beating heart of Leimert Park, Harun Coffee offers the local community a chance to explore Afro-Arabian coffee techniques and traditions. The bright yellow space itself blends a coffee shop and a gallery, allowing guests to interact with the space rather than sip and dash. Whether it’s sweet or savory, the biscuits are not to be missed, from their breakfast sandwiches to their fruit-forward spreads. After procuring one of the excellent espresso drinks or layered matcha concoctions, you can push open a bookshelf to access a moody speakeasy lined with plush seating you can sink into. Many evenings find the speakeasy alive with music, whether from DJs or local artists, where you can sip and sway with less or non-caffeinated non-alcoholic drinks long after the standard 7pm closing time. The sober-friendly spot finds its buzz in the friends you make along the way as you experience something new.

This shapeshifting destination spends its waking hours as a coffee shop. After 5pm, the lights dim, tapas dishes start flying out, and the drinks get stiffer. The vibe: As if you were being dipped in terracotta clay, sitting in ¡Salud! manages to feel distinctly and vibrantly Latin without steering too hard into the Tulum Effect, taking over Los Angeles. During the day, the coffee shop bustles with locals working remotely, but in the evenings, it springs to life for events like a comedy show or their weekly loteria night. The food: No matter the time, executive chef Dario Pantoja has the cure for whatever ails you. The daytime menu features showstoppers like a churro waffle and a loaded breakfast sandwich. The Latin tapas strike a balance between portion sizes and affordability, so the flavor can be the star. The Albondiga Burger left me nostalgic for the equator-hugging burgers of my youth (though it was hardly wagyu beef when I was nine).  The drinks: The caffeinated drinks are presented with the same care as the evening’s cocktails, often served in stemware or other specialty glassware, such as the Nutty Mazapan Latte. The force carbonated Mami Chula, a Paloma-inspired cocktail, is popular with regulars, but the La Bruja is a drink that stays with you. The earthy, epazote-laden martini riff still feels like a martini while offering a depth of flavor typically avoided. Time Out tip: The empanada options rotate out, but if you get lucky, a rare spinach-and-cheese empanada wi

This Chinatown coffee shop flips from a plush, coworking lounge into a jazzy speakeasy during the evening. From the owner of Loop Espresso Club, Kissaten Corazon serves its best during the day, but the nighttime energy outpaces the actual menu. The vibe: Mismatched vintage furniture creates cozy pockets from the front room back to the bar area, where you can meet your deadline or play some chess. Generally, easy listening pours out of the speakers, but Friday nights typically let loose with live jazz. The food: With everything coming in at $12 or less, it’s hard to resist the suite of Cafe Tropical pastries or the more substantial dishes like their curry rice. Rotating food pop-ups in the evenings bolster their somewhat uneven offerings. The drinks: The strawberry sesame latte passes muster without being particularly memorable, and a mostly pleasant wine menu is offset by the pour's substantial size. Thankfully, the other espresso and matcha options raise the bar. A slate of affogatos, boosted by a collaboration with Servet ice cream, steals the show with classic vanilla along with fun flavors like toast, strawberry chamomile, and nurungi (scorched rice with a nutty profile).    Time Out tip: The sake list wins out on the boozy side of the aisle, from the approachable Shibata Black Junmai Ginjo to the bracingly dry Karakuchi 80 from Kirei. 

Many have argued that Los Angeles is a morning city, full of cafés and smoothie shops, rather than a thrumming hub of nightlife. But increasingly, new proprietors don’t think people should have to choose. Various coffee shops and tea houses around L.A. are mastering a day-to-night hat trick that keeps guests buzzing on caffeine and often something a little stronger.  Some of these shapeshifting locales get quite raucous at night, some encourage a bit of day drinking, while others still keep the vibes lifted and the drinks spirit-free. Determining which spots to include involved threading a needle, shying away from all-day restaurants or bars that open a little early. This trek unearthed third spaces that transform, inviting community from near and far to gather around great drinks, music, and each other. RECOMMENDED: The best bars in Los Angeles The earliest example of this trend was Steep LA, which launched its Steep After Dark program as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the years, their bar program has expanded and become increasingly intertwined with their tea service. “Till this day, we are still one of the very few tea-focused cocktail bars in the United States,” says Samuel Wang, who co-owns the Chinatown tea house with Lydia Lin. Now with a wide range of intriguing tea-based craft cocktails, Steep has given itself a bit of a breather in between services to adjust to the pace: “The day is much more relaxing, like a cafe, with tea ceremonies happening throughout