Swingers

05/29/2008 Posted by lalocalsince86

I've eaten there on several occasions, and had great service and great food. Recently, I had the unfortunate circumstance to be waited on by a young man who couldn't care less about any of the diners he was serving. Not only did my five friends and I all have something to complain about with this waiter, the table next to us were shocked as well. The bus boys were doing all of the work, and when our waiter came around (only once) to check on us, we had already been taken care of by the bus boys. I wanted to tip the bus boys but couldn't do that without tipping the lousy waiter. I served drinks and food in LA since 1990 and tip really well, since I lived off tips for many, many years, but this was one of those rare circumstances where I actually brought something up with the owner/manager, and he was even rude with me. If you go there, only get waited on by anyone who's not a young, thin man who likes to flirt with other men. Wish I knew his name. It's too bad one lousy server and a encounter with an angry manager/owner can ruin a fun place to go after a movie.

03/01/2008 Posted by MIkeNY27

I live in Chicago but I fly back and forth to Santa Monica all the time for work. Whenever I'm in the area I always end up making at least a few trips to Swingers. It's not easy being a vegetarian and having to travel for work. When I found Swingers I was really happy to find a good restaurant that actually has a huge selection of vegetarian food, and not just "veggie burgers" like a lot of other places. I also go out for drinks with friends sometimes and since Swingers stays open late, we always go there afterwards to sober up. It can be a little crazy busy at that time of night, but it's still a good vibe and usually filled with a lot beautiful women. They also have a great selection of music in their juke box from stuff like Cold War Kids to Radiohead to The Beatles . If your visiting, live in the area, or just a vegetarian trying to find a place with a wide range of options. I highly recommend checking this place out.

Pros: Vegetarian options, music, staff

Cons: They don't have one in Chicago.

03/01/2008 Posted by juicyjizzel

Love, love, love this place. It’s the only place that I can bring anyone of my dieting friends, vegetarian, vegan, or the hungry burger man. It has awesome salads that would keep any healthy eater happy or burgers, milkshakes, and fries that are great for any diet free day. All of the staff was laughing and eager to help us during our visit and they were slammed. It was nice to see a smiling face amongst all of this busy diner's commotion. VEGAN COOKIES!!!!

Pros: AWESOME MENU! Open early, open late

01/04/2008 Posted by beatrice109

I've eaten at the Hollywood Swingers and had a fine experience. The Santa Monica Swingers, however, is Greater L.A.'s worst restaurant. I've read other reviews that call the food fun and the waits long. Both true. And I will say that the menu is creative and the vibe singular. But... The service is beyond abysmal. Staff is rude and inattentive. There is no care nor craft. If you eat here and are not a young clubber, you will be totally out of place. Granted, a tough place to work. Swingers thrives on the rowdy after-two-a.m. crowd. But that's just it. We were the few adult lucid sober people in there. And they threatened to kick us out. We were quietly and privately discussing the service at our table (three of us packed into a booth for two). Note that this is a loud and bustling place. And if it matters, our comments were not overly disparaging. I had said that Swingers is not a place you go for service. It's not even a restaurant, really, it's a place that serves food, and at that time of night you know exactly what you're getting. We even took the time to tell one food runner / busser that he was doing a great job. He was the only one paying attention to us. Next thing we know, our server is telling us that, under the manager's orders, they've heard us speaking ill of their restaurant and if continued, will ask us to leave. We didn't get angry; we just said okay. We told our server we were going to write the L.A. Times and Citysearch about our experience, and our server said, "Yeah, you do that." (While this was happening, the people one table over were complaining to their server about being overcharged.) Swingers won't care -- they do high volume business -- but I'm never setting foot in either location again. I'm an adult male pushing 40 who has dined in fine establishments around the world. And the one time I almost get kicked out is at Swingers? Almost hard to believe they're not in the Michelin guide.

Pros: Open late.

Cons: Everything else.

11/18/2007 Posted by marpop

We just went for breakfast this morning, after driving past it maybe a hundred times - and glad we finally stopped to try it out! And No, it has nothing to do with the movie Swingers! The decor is amusing and fun, with interesting tile work on the walls, and purple cow heads painted against a yellow wall (very Andy Warhol). There are counter seats and booths (a somewhat tight fit for my large fiance)... The food was great - no complaints! I had a very tasty turkey burger, while my fiance tried the eggs, bacon and multi-grain banana pancakes (served with real maple syrup) - everything delicious. Our server was very cool, and as they all are, dressed in a very retro-short skirt! We will be back!

Pros: good menu, friendly staff, served hot, tasty food

Cons: small booths, tight fit

09/25/2007 Posted by oceandance

Any time I'm craving diner food, I go to Swingers. The prices are great, the foods great, the staff is cool, and the customers are just as awesome. On occasion, a celebrity spotting can occur. I was just there the other night when their power went out, and everyone was chill and fun about it. They just pulled out a box of candles and listed off the things they could prepare and serve without electricity! It's a great place to hang out with friends, bring the parents, or go to solo with a book at their counter.

Pros: Everything!

Cons: Can get really busy sometimes.

08/25/2007 Posted by marinao

Love, love, love this place. It’s the only place that I can bring anyone of any diet, vegetarian, vegan, or the hungry burger man. It has awesome salads that would keep any healthy eater happy and burgers, milkshakes, and fries that are great for any diet free day. All of the staff was laughing and eager to help us during our visit and they were slammed. It was nice to see a smiling face amongst all of this busy diner's commotion. VEGAN COOKIES!!!!

Pros: delicious food, awesome service

Cons: sometimes really busy

08/12/2007 Posted by gripdxd

This is a cool diner that's open late night (thankfully). We would have starved after arriving on a 3hr. delayed flight from NY. It was busy in the A.M, but we were seated promptly and it seems to be full of wannabe stars. Our waiter was super perky and provided good service. The food was good, as well as diner food gets. The menu had a lot to offer as well. Check it out.

Pros: Open Late Night

07/31/2007 Posted by funkymonk

I've been to Swingers multiple times, mostly after I've been out drinking and am starving, yet I am yet to have any food there that makes me happy. I'm not too picky a person, but the food just doesn't cross that line of average into great. It's food though, and open late, and the vibe is cool, so it's not a terrible choice. If there are other places open, you should go somewhere else, but if it's late and you want some average diner food, enjoy!

Pros: Open Late, Cool Vibe, Good Music

Cons: The Food just isn't that great. Decent, but nothing to get excited about

07/03/2007 Posted by kkb20

great diner in santa monica. most food there is really good. they have a number of veggie options that are tasty - my gf's fav is the grilled cheese w/ veggie bacon. the red velvet cake is good as well. cool vibe, interesting look, worth checking out - not to mention the late night hours!