Down town LA is the diamond in the rough. In between the fashion district, the art district and not to far from skid row, DTLA has somewhat of a night life to offer.
Last Friday, my friend and I explored DTLA and did a little bar hoping. As we exited the 110, and drove down Spring street men flashed dollar signs and arrows to direct parking. I was happy to see that the numbers didn't read $20 and above but most of th parking was advertised between &5-10 dollars. We went for the five dollar one,and we got what we paid for. As I entered the parking structure and had to turn quickly to avoid the pillar so inconveniently placed in the middle of the structure, next we drove up a very narrow drive way, bumper nearly scarpping the walls, just to get to the third floor, When we got to the top we realized we are on the roof. And as gazed over the horizon we weren't overwhelmed by flashing lights, just lights from cars, street lights in insides of buildings. A calming ambiance.
The first place we went to was
the falls. A very small bar with very upscale decor. Not the place for a large group of people but a nice place to sit and chat.
Our next endeavor brought us to
Silo Vodka bar. Not a fan of vodka myself but wanted to give it a try none the less. The bar is known for it's wide variety of vodka's some made in house some made from around the world, Silo is also known for their tasty appetizers. Still a small bar, with a loft style layout, had a very nice decor and definitely a place for small groups. The most intriguing part of the bar was the walk in freezer , where guests including myself, can go in a try over a 100 different vodkas from around the world.( not all at the same time though) I can't remember the origin of the vodka we tried, but the flavors included mountain dew, root beer and bubble gum The taste matched their names.
The next place we went to was called Las Perales. " The pearls" Authentic Mexican decor and hand written menu's written on cardboard pieces, this is definitely the place for margaritas. A little more spacious then the previous bars, this a place to sit down and eat or dance around a little bit.
The most refreshing thing about all three bars were one, the bouncers were actually nice to you, and many of the drinks are made with fresh ingredients.
Until we meet again DTLA.
Saturday I committed double sins. I first attempted to eat at Simmzy's in Manhattan Beach. A very small, cozy and very popular place located right off the strand. So popular that we waited 45 minutes for two people to be seated. However, after the 45 minutes we decided to head elsewhere and came to and was sat very quickly at Brewco the Manhattan Beach Brewery. There I had a turkey burger and my ultimate guilty pleasure, french fries. My friend had a veggie burger which she devoured in an instant. I also had the Acai Berry beer. Not to sweet despite the berries mixed it. The nice little perk to it was that it is organic and locally brewed.
For dinner I ended up at another highly populated place. This place actually had some media coverage in the L.A. Times but luckily I didn't have to wait no more then 10 minutes to order my food. Chego, is definitely the spot for foodies, or anyone that wants to try something they have never had before. I had the Sour Cream Hen House which included: marinated grilled chicken rice bowl w/ fried egg, Chinese broccoli, sour cream sambal, Thai basil, toasted sesame and red jalapeno. I opt out of the Jalapeno. It had a slightly spicy taste, but the basil definitely made the bowl sweeter.
Sunday, while passing through one of my favorite cities, I had to stop by the Greenhouse Cafe in Long Beach for the Green House Panini which is packed with locally and organically grown ingredients.
Needless to say, soups and salads for the rest of the week.
