03/05/09

Great for Drinks

by STaylor921

My friend and I came here for a drink while we waited for a table at the restaurant next door. The bartender was so nice and talked to us for a while. The place seemed pretty busy. The lady next to us said the food was great, so we promised the bartender we'd come back. But the best part...they had PBR! Any place that has PBR wins an extra point from me!! It was the water of the gods at my Sorority back in school. lol.

• Pros: PBR

06/25/08

NY Vibe + great food+ LA location= great evening

by privilege

Went with a friend before hitting the Hotel Cafe-- Great little places that has the NYC vibe down pat.

Great wine list and had a terrific prosecco for the same price as a chardonnay. Service was attentive but not overwhelming.

food was amazing: steamed mussels was plenty to share -- (fries, bread). had the corn/crab fritters which were ok.... not mind blowing and the jalapeno remoulade wasn't spicey at all. I would recommend this as a pre- event place to grab a bite and kick off an evening since it's close to many destinations.

Parking was a bit of a trick (during LA film festival) but we were able to walk over.

I would definitely go again.. just wish it had some outside dining-- or a piano bar . I really enjoyed it.

• Pros: speedy food, nice attentive service
• Cons:  had to send back a chipped glass -- but they returned promptly with a FULL glass

06/10/08

A good time!

by apanicara

I had been here before just for drinks, so we decided to have dinner after a movie at the Arclight last weekend. I wasn't expecting anything but your typical bar food and was very pleasantly surprised! We started with the shrimp app and corn fritters app, which were both prepared really well. Then my husband had a burger, which was recommended to him by the bartender, and I had a salad. My salad had this warm bread/melted cheese combo that was very original and yummy. And my husband has been craving the burger ever since we left! I think we ate TOO much because then we sort of fell into food comas...so we hung out for a while and had a couple drinks and chatted with the bartender. He was really nice, which is pretty uncommon for this area of town, so for that reason alone we will return. He informed us that the owner had recently opened a new restaurant further down Sunset, an italian place, which we plan on checking out next weekend. All in all, we had a great overall experience and will certainly be back for dinner.

• Pros: Service and Food
• Cons: Parking

06/04/08

Big Bummer-- go next door to Magnolia

by ketelonerocks1

I was really looking forward to dinner there-- we've been searching for a late night spot in Hollywood (other than Magnolia, which we like a lot). I guess it's always a bad sign when the food gets there before the drinks. I ordered a bacon cheeseburger medium. I bit in and got a raw mouthful of beef (and no bacon, btw). I sent it back, it came back extra well done. Rather than send it back a third time, I just started to eat it. The waiter came by and said, "Better?" I said, "Truthfully, no. Look-- " and I showed him the uniformly grey middle. He said, you want to send it back-- I said, no-- no worries. Then the bartender/manager came over. I was going to let it slide, but the guy was, frankly, a bit of a tool. Not apologetic, but instead saying we tend to undercook our burgers a little because our beef is higher quality. I said, "OK, but I wanted it medium. If I send it back, shouldn't you then make it medium?" And he says-- again, not a hint of apology: "Well, if it gets sent back, we sometimes lean towards overcooking it a little." So that's there policy?? I said, "You're a burger place. You're telling me I can't get a medium burger?" He says, "Look, I'll give it to half off." No I was geting a little steamed. I wasn't going to say anything, but now I've spent my dinner with friends arguing with a manager and waiter-- forget it, charge me for it-- but half off? I said, "Half off?" He says-- "Well, you're eating it." I said, "Yeah, I didn't want to send it back a third time. It's embarassing." Then I said, "Here" and handed him the plate. Which he just took. And walked away. The irony? They took off the burger from the check, but still charged me $1.00 extra for the bacon-- which I never got. As for the other food, my friends split a salad-- which they said was "fine," but my fiancee's soup was cold (and bland) too. Nice looking place though...

• Pros: Nice room
• Cons: Bad food & service, argued with us when we sent it back

05/26/08

Overall - Meh. But stay away from the battered shrimp. Ick!

by rosesarah

We stopped in for a quick bite and drink before a show at the Arclight. I think most would agree the ambiance is nice. It's a nice little spot. But having said that, our experience while there was so so at best. My friend ordered a drink, which was almost all ice (he drank it in two drinks!). Not okay for a $10 drink. I only wanted a small bite to eat. I ordered their beer battered prawns. They were just AWFUL! I've had beer battered shrimp before. They should have a light batter and deep fried to make them nice and crispy. These were drowning in batter, greasy and soggy. I began taking the breading off to find the shrimp. After eating the shrimp and leaving all the breading, my plate looked just as full as when I got it. The homemade tartar sauce was good though. Our waiter was jovial, if maybe a little overly so. (A bit weird for a waiter to be THAT touchy feely with everyone). So, overall, this place was meh. I'd probably go again if it's before a show, but maybe just get a glass of wine.

02/23/08

Be here now

by bobsacamano

My friends took me here for my birthday, and what a treat. Wine was pouring, great music, and lots of fun.

I prefer reds and they had a nice selection. Ambiance was perfect. Close enough to rub elbows with the locals but enough space to enjoy your own crowd. 5 stars!

02/23/08

Addicted after one night

by benstauffer

This place was awesome. Weny over for dinner and drinks - the burger was phenomenal and the service was great, especially considering how busy it got. Best martinis I've had in a while.

We'll be back very soon....probably tomorrow.

• Pros: Food, Service, Ambiance

11/24/07

The feeling of New York, included being crowded!

by jericsmall

My friends and I stopped into The Bowery one night just to check out the place. We got seated up in the window which was nice, because the rest of the place was a bit on the claustrophobic side. The service was good, especially given how packed the place was. I'm betting its a great place when it's not so busy. All in all though we had a good time, especially laughing along (or at) the neighboring tables antics.

10/26/07

Great Comfort Food, Beer with New York Attitude

by lifeserial

New York, New Yawk. LA is so not New York. But if you're like me, I bet you kinda wish LA had a bit of that Big Apple-ness every now and again. A bit of the close city livin', less of the sprawled out neighborhoods. Enter The Bowery. Tiled and reminescent of a NYC subway, albeit waaay more clean--and with beer!--The Bowery is my favorite New York-esque hangout on the left coast. Sure, all of the tables and booths are situated on top of one another, but it's still pretty great for any occasion. It's both an after work drink spot and a place to grab a quick snack before your flick at the Arclight two blocks over. They have a giant selection of beer and wine listed on a chalk board near the bar, and their menu is stocked with comfort food. The burger, while insanely messy, is a major bonus. And, as a cheese lover, they've got plenty of "normal" and "fancy" varieties to smother it in. The best, though, is the mac and cheese. I have made it my mission to try all the mac and cheese in L.A. With a sizeable portion, crunchy top and a cooked-to-creamy-perfection center, The Bowery's mac ranks in my top three, friends. This is the stuff.

Less appetizing, unfortunately, is the middle of the road service here. Some of the servers are nice, but more often than not, they project the vibe that they're doing you a favor by serving you. Prehaps they've taken the NY vibe alittle too far? Regardless, this is a no frills joint, so you ultimately gotta look past the indifferent 'tude and just enjoy yourself.

• Pros: Mac & Cheese, Burgers, NYC Vibe
• Cons: Boring Servers

10/01/07

We won't be back.

by kkb210

I will start by saying the ambiance is GREAT. Noisy, but a great vibe, and a great place to get a drink before a movie at Arclight. A mixed drink, or beer...if you enjoy wine, don't order it here. Our server knew nothing about wine (and was a bit rude about it, and made it out that we were too picky because we DO know a lot about wine and asked for details about the wine other than "I like that one") and out of 4 wines we tried, only one of them was kind of ok. The server was also a bit aloof and condescending, particularly to me, and even if the food was fantastic, none of the 4 of us will ever come back because of that. I would have spoken to a manager but I didn't want to miss a movie at Arclight. My partner's entree was excellent (Pork with Lentils) and my friend's hamburger was apparently great also. I was unfortunate in ordering a proscuitto salad (a special)...the salad itself was mediocre at best, but the procuitto was inedible (passed it off to the boys despite my hunger). It was CRISP, extremely salty, and tasted like overcooked turkey bacon. Just aweful. I just got back from Europe, and while I never expected the same standards, that isn't what a guest expects when ordering proscuitto, and I would have liked to know that ahead of time. There also was only had one option for fish, and almost everything else was red meat. In the future, we'll take our money elsewhere. I left mad and hungry, and that won't happen again.

• Pros: Ambiance
• Cons: Food and Service