San Francisco
On a chilly evening, squeeze into this narrow, cozy craft-beer bar and give some inventive brews a try. The brewmasters are known for throwing unusual…
Must-see nightlife in California
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Vintage pulp-fiction covers come to life when the Hot Boxxx Girls storm the battered stage at Aunt Charlie's on Friday and Saturday nights at 10:15pm ($5;…
North Beach & Chinatown
Potent potions and lipsmacking quack cures are proudly served at this apothecary-style Barbary Coast saloon. Tartly quaffable Lachlan's Antiscorbutic …
Los Feliz & Griffith Park
Marty and Elayne have been a Los Feliz fixture since 1982 when they first brought their quirky Sinatra style to the Dresden’s mid-century lounge. He…
Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Brentwood & Westwood
You'll be clinking crystal at the Hotel Bel-Air's dark, intimate hideaway, a deco-inspired bar-lounge graced with white-marble fireplace and blown-up…
Hollywood
Less a hotel rooftop bar and more lush, tropical-like oasis with killer views of the Hollywood sign and LA skyline, multicolored daybeds and tongue-in…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Glory hallelujah, beer-lovers: your prayers are answered. Genuflect before the chalkboard altar that lists 40-plus beers on tap and hundreds more bottled,…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Persian arches, One Thousand and One Nights murals, 1930s jazz on the jukebox and top-shelf cocktails at low-shelf prices have brought Bohemian bliss to…
Hollywood
With daily rotating craftsman whiskey, bourbon and cocktail specials, Harvard & Stone lures peeps with its live bands, solid DJs and burlesque troops…
Newport Beach
At upscale, upbeat, much-admired Muldoon’s, choose from indoor, outdoor (under a leafy tree) and bar seating and enjoy decent, if pricey, Irish pub grub,…
San Diego
This Gaslamp hot spot serves sushi and Asian bites five nights a week and turns into a steamy dance club (EDM, minimal, deep house) on Fridays and…
Downtown Los Angeles & Boyle Heights
What's not to love about a rooftop bar with knockout Downtown views, powerful cocktails and a luxe, safari-inspired fit out? Perched on the 14th floor of…
Monterey
Vintage beer advertising punctuates Alvarado Street's brick walls, but that's the only concession to earlier days at this excellent craft-beer pub…
Los Angeles
Clippers and cocktails conspire at this winning speakeasy. The front section is an actual barbershop, complete with vintage barber chairs and inked…
Hollywood
If you prefer your cocktail sessions with plenty of wow factor, make a reservation online, style up (no sportswear, shorts or logos) and head to this old…
Santa Cruz
This locally beloved cocktail parlor is the perfect place for a night of dapper drinking. Settle into a huge armchair amid the vintage-chic decor to…
San Francisco
An airplane crashed on a desert island, and out of the wreckage came this killer Castro tiki bar. Enter through the airplane door to discover a long-lost…
North Coast & Redwoods
The kind of coffee shop you dream of finding in a small town like this with a library of intriguing books, local art on the walls and sturdy leather…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Who's there? Steampunk blacksmiths, anarchist hackers, trance DJs practicing for Burning Man, and other San Francisco characters straight out of an R…
Los Angeles
One of the city's top cocktail dens, intimate ETA serves innovative, complex libations such as its famous Penultimate Word, an out-of-the-box mix of gin,…
Central Coast
Stroll down to the Embarcadero for barrel-aged and sour beers from one of California's most interesting breweries. Lots more excellent American craft…
North Beach & Chinatown
Poetry on bathroom walls, opera on the jukebox, live accordion jams and Beat poetry on bathroom walls: Caffe Trieste remains North Beach at its best,…
Westlake & Koreatown
In the movie Chinatown, Faye Dunaway meets with Jack Nicholson at this snug, retro warren of semicircular booths, quirky lamps and, these days, Gen-Y…
North Beach & Chinatown
Guy walks into a bar, roars and leaves. Without missing a beat, the bartender says to the next customer, 'Welcome to Vesuvio, honey – what can I get you?'…
Hollywood
You'll be pining for the bayou at the hospitable Sassafras Saloon, where hanging moss and life-size facades evoke sultry Savannah. Cocktails include a…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Work it all out on the dance floor with SF's most down and funky crowd – the full rainbow spectrum of colorful characters is here to party. Highlights…
San Diego
Dozens of classic arcade games – pinball to Mortal Kombat, Pac-Man and Big Buck Safari to Master Beer Bong – line the walls of this hipster bar in North…
Downtown Los Angeles & Boyle Heights
Behind Villains Tavern is restaurateur and interior designer Dana Hollister, who turned a run-down Arts District deli into this dark-wood and iron den of…
San Francisco
Tonight's San Francisco weather: partly foggy, with 100% chance of typhoons every 20 minutes inside the Tonga Room. No need to duck for cover – rain only…
Huntington Beach
This Santa Monica landmark of cool has opened a second location here in Pacific City, and with its combination of lounge spaces, outdoor patio, cozy,…
Santa Monica
A Brent Bolthouse nightspot, the indoor-outdoor lounge at the Fairmont Miramar was one of the hottest nights out in LA when it burst onto the scene a…
Oakland
Order a greyhound (with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice) and take a gander at the profusion of antique musical instruments, fake taxidermy heads,…
Marin County
In the heart of hippie Fairfax, settle into a cushion on the floor and order from an extensive menu of medicinal teas as you eavesdrop on locals…
Santa Barbara
Dave, the owner of Municipal Winemakers, studied the vine arts in Australia and France before applying his knowledge in this industrially decorated…
Silver Lake & Echo Park
Eastside stylists, bloggers and musicians flock to this cool, whitewashed coffee shop to talk gigs, browse niche journals and sip superlative, Portland…
The Marina, Fisherman’s Wharf & the Piers
Warm your cockles with a prim little goblet of bitter-creamy Irish coffee, introduced to America at this destination bar that once served sailors and…
Huntington Beach
This been-there-forever, seriously kitschy tiki bar spreads over numerous rooms for dining, dancing, drinking or all three. The Vicious Virgin and…
Pappy & Harriet's Pioneertown Palace
Joshua Tree National Park
For local color, toothsome BBQ, cheap beer and kick-ass live music, drop in at this textbook honky-tonk in Pioneertown, a movie set turned living town…
Anaheim
This chill, dimly lit, atmospheric speakeasy carves its own ice, makes its own juice, does regularly changing (but always creative) cocktails and has live…
Death Valley National Park
This craft brewery in the middle of nowhere is not a mirage but the pint-sized operation of artist and brewer Jon Zellhoefer in a restored railroad tie…
