Los Angeles offers countless attractions and date night activities, although if you’re looking for something a bit exclusive, check out our LA Hidden Bars and Speakeasy Experience.
Back during the Prohibition era in the 1920s and 1930s, speakeasies were secret, underground establishments that illegally sold alcohol. They were usually difficult to find since their locations had to be concealed from authorities and you had to say a password to enter such bars but you have to speak easy.
After offering the LA Hidden Bars and Speakeasy Experience for years, we have visited some of the best hidden venues, and it’s always so much fun sipping experimental cocktails in a one-of-a-kind bar tucked away from the rest of the city!
In this article, We’ll share the 10 best speakeasies in Los Angeles California, so you can have your own adventure discovering these hidden gems and sipping some of the best cocktails.
10. The Obscure LA
Amidst the industrial surroundings along South Santa Fe Avenue, you’ll find an ominous black building that will lure inquisitive souls. Every inch of its facade is covered in opaque, black paint, giving you no indication of what lies behind its doors. Once you find the entrance, illuminated with a dim amber lantern, you’ll be welcomed into The Obscure. That’s if you have an invitation.
9. Adult Only
Adults Only is an upscale dive bar tucked away in the apropos corner pocket of a Hollywood strip mall. As the neighboring businesses’ lights dim down, a pink neon sign illuminates, and new life begins to brew in the quiet plaza. Guests enter through a corridor adorned with an eclectic curation of VHS tapes, choice movie posters, and small televisions exhibiting a variety of cult classics. Reupholstered church pews and handcrafted furniture provide an ample lounge area. The common thread that weaves throughout the venue is an admiration of the entertainment industry. One can travel through the video store lifestyle of the 90’s to arrive in the golden era of film, appreciating the impact of entertainment on culture and society. One can and create their own experience in an elegant, yet unpretentious environment.
Bonus: Lilly Rose (inside The Wayfarer DTLA)
Whimsical. Wonderful. At times, a bit on the wild side. Step into Lilly Rose, our underground bar in Downtown LA where, well, most anything can happen. A magic act, a live music set, a bit of burlesque - all playing out while bartenders put on their own kind of show.
8. Bathtub Gin
Discover the secret door on Melrose Avenue and walk up an unfinished staircase. Enter a decadent space, imbued with ornate wallpapers, Oriental accents, and the iconic copper tub. This is where the glitterati of the Roaring Twenties gathered. This is where stars were made.
Enjoy a live jazz performance. Peruse a 1920s first edition with your Negroni. Catch the eye of Louise Brooks. Here at Bathtub Gin LA, nothing is impossible.
7. Death and Co.
Death & Co brings its New York City roots to Los Angeles’s vibrant Arts District neighborhood. The third outpost of the bar, Death & Co LA is a return to the intimacy of the NY original, offering a night world-class cocktails and delicious small plates.
6. Blind Barber
Culver City has the crisp white barbershop in the front and the same exciting secret lounge in the back. So if a cut, shave or trim aren't in the cards, you'll be steered through a nondescript door revealing a relatively spacious speakeasy bathed in dim lighting and adorned with old wood paneling and yellow fading wall-paper. Leather booths line the back walls with ample tables and chairs, but regulars like to congregate at the bar sampling seasonal cocktails.
5. Lock and Key
Check out this neighborhood cocktail den in the heart of KTown. The theme here is doors — find the red neon sign of a lock and a key and walk through the doors to be presented with more doors. The entrance hall is covered in locks and keys until of course you find the right one to turn. Once you're inside, find lounge seating indoors and an outdoor patio, where you can dance to DJ sets and live bands. Order seasonal cocktails and punch bowls from the bar, or from a pizza window serving up Chicago deep dish, New York-style and Sicilian pies, as well as fries, wings, and more munchies.
4. Black Rabbit Rose
Come and explore the only magic themed lounge in LA with weekend magic shows, table side magic and nightly live music. Black Rabbit Rose, a sexy cocktail bar that mixes a little magic with their cocktails and offers a crave worthy menu of Thai/Chinese classics from Crying Tiger. Highlights include jade noodles with roast duck, crispy rice salad, tamarind orange chicken and egg rolls made from Mark and Jonnie Houston’s mother’s recipe. Get craft cocktails and delicious Thai/Chinese food all at once.
3. Good Times at Davey Waynes
David Wayne Houston, father to Mark and Jonnie Houston, was a blue-collar pool shark who enjoyed late nights in his garage building and fixing things–some of the brothers’ best memories. Known by his friends (and the ladies) as Davey, this 70’s bar is a tribute to him and to all who have lost their dads.
And at Davey Wayne’s, your route is through a run-down refrigerator in a garage. And on the other side of that run-down refrigerator? The 1970’s house party of your drunken dreams. It’s all insane and gimmicky, but if you can’t find fun at Davey Wayne’s, we can’t help you.
2. No Vacancy
There are certain things about No Vacancy that must remain secret until you visit and all the celebrities in Hollywood that check out this place!
Swanky, shadowy bar mixes sophisticated cocktails amid decor recalling the bygone days of Hollywood. No Vacancy is one of LA’s best kept secrets. This venue provides a unique feeling as it is extremely hidden and takes you to an almost alternate reality. No Vacancy has some of the best booze and bartenders in town.
1. La Descarga
Transport yourself to Cuba at this Havana-themed bar.
La Descarga is a Cuban-themed nightspot with a dress code offering a cigar lounge & burlesque-style salsa acts.
Descend the spiral, wrought-iron staircase and take in the Cuban band, dancers, roving cigar servers, and back rooms with more contemporary Latin hits and reggaeton music. The setting is dimly-lit and sultry with chandeliers hanging from the ceilings, cozy booths, and an overhead balcony where dancers appear alongside live musicians Thursdays through Saturdays.
Thats it for now folks! If you are looking to experience 3-4 speakeasy hidden bars in LA with some amazing drinks,
Book the LA Hidden Bars and Speakeasy Experience now!