86

04/26/2008 Posted by ducebigolow

Read the great reviews and decided to visit 86 on a Saturday. I invited a few friends and actually had my B-Day dinner here. We arrived early (8:30PM reservations). The doormen, host & server gave us outstanding service. Very friendly and accommodating. The menu is small, but everyone was satisfied with their meals. The jazz band was good, but Carolina (burlesque dancer) made the show. The band ended @ 11PM and thats when the 86 turned from Lounge to Club. A few of my friends arrived late and they had the bad experiences everyone is writing about. Apparently, the Doormen turn from friendly to your typical rude Hollywood bouncer after 11PM. My friends eventually got in (since I had dinner reservations). I highly recommend 86 if you are looking for a nice meal and good show. Arrive early to avoid the hassle.

Pros: Great show, good lounge

Cons: Club after 11PM

04/24/2008 Posted by Delizius

I was excited to go see what all the buzz was about at 86, a hollywood lounge with no attitude, no stuffy doormen and great prizes, so the review for city search implied. So, I decided to go on a date and went to on Wed. night, got there at around 11 pm valet my car and that was an experience. I should have known how the rest of my outing was going to turn out. I was haggeled by the valet for preference parking or regular parking. Then there are two doors and you don't know which one is the main entrance because you see people going in through both. We make it to the right one and we are standing infront of the doorman for 5 min. before he even acknowledges us being there and there was no line,here goes the great doorman with no attitude out the window. Then he asked us what he could help us with, I was thinking isn't it obvious we're here for the lounge. He then looks at both of us and saids we are at capacity and unless you know the promoters I can't help you. So, I said fine and stuck around to see what was going on, still remembering the city search rave on the place of no attitude and then a group of 10 people who obviously didn't know the promoter were let in. So, be warned this place is just like every other wanna be hip bar. And to top it all off it took us 20 min to get my car. It was unbelieveable that it took longer to get my car then to get turned down at the door. So, like I said city search got their rave wrong about this place, like I said not all it's cracked up to be.

Pros: None

Cons: seedy parking service, attitude at the door

04/24/2008 Posted by LAgal90035

This is one of worst experiences I've had in LA nightlife. This lame and seedy lounge is not worth the trip. If you want to have to bribe everyone from the valet guy to the Good Charlotte wanna be guys who work the door to get into a mediocre bar and hang out with B list actors, go ahead, but there a million better options in LA, starting with staying in. We went on a Wednesday night to have a drink, having seen the good reviews City Search gave the lounge--way off. Consider yourselves warned.

Pros: n/a

Cons: Attitude, general weirdness

03/31/2008 Posted by JY90046

I went to 86 based on the Citysearch reviews posted here. Polite doorman? No line? Not a chance! I went on a Friday with my girlfriend for a drink. Ten fifteen. Just the two of us. Walked up to the door. The doorman just shook his head. They were all "guest list" or "reservation." He offered me the chance to buy a table and then he might be able to make something happen but otherwise, we were out of luck. I was hoping to find a place that, according to reviews, had the feel of a New York lounge. The kind of place that Hollywood is so desperately missing. And that's what was so disappointing. Same old door nonsense. Really disappointing. Just wanted other readers to avoid the same lost evening that I did.

Cons: Door drama

03/26/2008 Posted by kairi

One of the best surprises in years! I'm pretty sure I haven't enjoyed another L.A. bar/club half as much as this one - EVER!!! I didn't eat, therefore I can't comment on the food. (Couple people in our group arrived earlier to have dinner there and they said that the food was very good, too.) The place is gorgeous; the jazz and burlesque show last Saturday were wonderful; the DJ later in the evening had a great mix of dance music (no rap-crap, hip-hop or jungle music! That was certainly icing on the cake and made the already amazing place even more special!!! I sure hope it will remain that way...). The crowd was a good-looking and sophisticated mix of different ages and types. (Not too many youngsters, posers or wanna-be's - I kept thinking that it feels like Manhattan or Chicago!) I cannot wait to go back!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

03/25/2008 Posted by chadmmiller

For once a new club got it right the first time. I've been living 2 blocks away from where 86 is for about 9 years and this is the kind of place that has always been lacking. Escape a bit from the throngs of ditzy 18 year olds adjusting their push-ups at the doors of the other clubs litered around Hollywood and sit down for a dark retreat into what a speak-easy in the 1920s must have felt like. No windows, no sign, yet cozy and upscale. The menu is VERY short, but the point of this place is less the food (which as quite good), and more the atmosphere. Good date place or a place for you and a small group of tight friends to kick in a weekend with some drinks and eats and jazz. And our server, Matt, made the experience one that we'll be seeking out again. Go before it gets nutty with posers. It'd be nice if it retained a secluded, in-the-know feel. But it's on CitySearch already, so not much chance of that now I suppose. Cool digs, I'll be back for the honey desert that they were out of and more of the delicious looking crowd. And the jazz band cooked up one super cool version of "Welcome Back Kotter" that's still kicking around in my head.

Pros: Upscale yet comfortable, reasonably priced.

Cons: Dark to the point that reading the menu was very difficult. Small price for a great place.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful