27 Best Bars in Los Feliz and the Eastside, Los Angeles

This romantically lit hole-in-the-wall is easy to miss, but you should aim to check it out if you're a discerning wine connoisseur or looking to experience the best of California's microbreweries. Perfect for first dates, come here to experiment with craft beers or to warm up with wine while listening to some live old-time fiddle tunes.

With swaths of fabric draped from the ceiling, this low-lit bar with a bohemian vibe is the perfect backdrop (and mood) for a date. Groups of locals also come through for the night, making for a good mix of people and energy. The bartenders pour drinks that are both tasty and potent. There's plenty of seating at the tables and stools along the central bar, which gets crowded on the weekends. 

Don’t be turned off by the glaring log cabin theme (which is intensified by signature cocktails called Scout’s Honor and Roasted Marshmallow). Bigfoot Lodge is beloved by Eastside denizens, and despite appearances, it’s every bit a low-key, unpretentious neighborhood bar that specializes in shots and beer and welcomes the occasional tourist that happens to stumble inside.

Once an ambitious restoration project, Highland Park Bowl now serves as a massive throwback to its Prohibition-era roots as an alcohol-prescribing doctor’s office and drugstore with its own bowling alley. That bowling alley remains, complete with the original pin machine. The hooch-pushing doctor and druggist, however, are long gone. But now there's an Italian restaurant that serves excellent pizza made from scratch using a mother dough brought all the way from Italy.

There are plenty of reasons to stop by Mohawk Bend: 72 craft beers on tap, a wide range of California-only liquor, a vegetarian and vegan-friendly menu that includes tailored-to-your-wants pizza, and a buffalo cauliflower that—rumor has it—started the whole trend. There might be a long line to get into this 100-year-old former theater in the evenings, but it’s worth it.

Echo Park is peppered with music venues, but if you want to be in the heart of the neighborhood's live music scene, you should head to the Echo. With a full bar and recurring theme nights, the spot hosts cutting-edge music from both up-and-coming local and touring acts as well as well-known bands.

Recently updated Akbar is not your fancy L.A. cocktail bar filled with sipping model types and beautiful celebrity-adjacent people. This local haunt is every inch a neighborhood bar, one that serves fast, cheap, and strong drinks; is inclusive of all people; and engages the local community through fun, unapologetically outrageous events like Craftaoke, Gaymer Night, and queer disco nights.

This laid-back spot is the embodiment of an unpretentious wine drinker's wine bar, complete with non-judgey staff. What else would you expect from a spot with repurposed furnishings and a vintage motorcycle mounted to the wall? There's a new menu of wine and locally sourced beer every week as well as delicious appetizers like the popular deviled eggs and charcuterie plate.

Latina-owned Bar Flores may look like any indoor--outdoor bar you'll find in sun-kissed Puerto Vallarta in Mexico, but the elevated cocktails served here are very Los Angeles. Formerly, the pop-up speakeasy Sip, Bar Flores found its home in Echo Park back in 2012 and has established itself as a popular local hangout. Margarita Wednesdays are a must; the back patio has a taco stand in case you get hungry.

This Highland Park outpost of an NYC institution started an arcade bar revolution in Los Angeles, serving elevated yet accessible (and more importantly, affordable) cocktails and American fare amidst rows of beloved retro arcade games and pinball machines. Barcade LA has built a community here, holding events like a pinball league to encourage loyal patrons to form bonds with like-minded individuals. The food and cocktail menus are fantastic as they are, with offerings like crispy fish tacos, the super smashburger, and Parmesan cauliflower wings being highly addictive. But, this spot loves to keep things interesting, which means dishes and cocktails are subject to change. You may want to block off the entire day as you visit or revisit classics like Pac-Man, Marvel VS Capcom 2, and Mortal Kombat 2.

This spot fills the beer-garden need in Highland Park, and it does it very well, with a large shuffleboard and a massive screen projecting LAFC matches, along with plenty of picnic tables where you can chug (or nurse) beer and wine. The selection, from small-batch and craft vendors, is on point; the more adventurous may want to grab a michelada and paleta combo.

If chaos and the assortment of ill-matched furnishings and decor is something you can forgive—or revel in—then this import from Seattle is a Silver Lake staple you should check out. Grab your (cheap) poison then meander through the Mexican fiesta--theme bar. Foosball tables, a photo booth, and a vending machine will give you plenty to occupy your time.

This bar's 1940s lounge decor makes it a favorite with folks in Los Angeles. Another reason to wander in is the Blood and Sand cocktail, self-proclaimed to be "the world's most tantalizing drink." 

A small selection of constantly rotating wine and beer ensures you'll get to try something new and interesting each time you visit. A record player serves as the main source of music—while the idea may seem twee, it's the heart of a popular Tuesday night record club, where patrons bring in their own vinyl.

Sustainability and support of local community has always been a big part of this L.A. brewery’s ethos, but more important, so is making great food and, of course, excellent beer. With several core brands, as well as a few specialty and seasonal brands, this is a must-stop for any craft beer lover vacationing in the City of Angels.

Everyone could use a little more mezcal and tequila in their lives, and La Cuevita has a lot of it, often in its collection of tasty cocktails. This Mexico-themed bar—complete with free Taco Tuesdays, a dark red interior, and a picture of a bandito overlooking the patrons—has one of the best happy hours in L.A., making it the perfect place to start your evening.

Rock bands, burlesque performances, comedy sets, and LTGBQ+ nights all have a home at the cross section of Sunset and Silver Lake at a little dive bar called the Silverlake Lounge. This small-yet-famous venue, which received a recent refresh, is a neighborhood spot in the best way possible, with cheap drinks and local talent deserving of their time in the limelight. There are 10 signature cocktails, many of which are riffs on classics, and quite a few tequilas and mezcals on offer. If you come hungry, you can bring food in from the pizza place across the street or look for a restaurant pop-up in the newly updated back patio.

This unassuming spot feels less like a wine bar and more of a neighborhood watering hole where the servers take the time to chat with customers rather than somberly educate them on the complexities of wine. But make no mistake: the wine selection is perfection and the snacks are delightful—they simply want to ensure your enjoyment of your wine rather than have you bow down at the appreciation of their knowledge.

If you're looking for that everybody-knows-your-name bar vibe in L.A., look no further than the Douglas where owners Dave and Johnny warmly wave to patrons, new and old alike, entering the front patio. Bonus that the draft beers and hard kombuchas are affordable enough to keep you coming back. The food is casual and no-nonsense, with chicken wings that are done right and served with house-made blue cheese, crowd-favorite breakfast burritos, and homemade falafels. Be prepared to rub elbows with Dodgers fans on game night.

This is the kind of laid-back pub every neighborhood should have, with an excellent selection of locally focused draft beer on tap, a rotating wine list, and mouthwatering food. To add to its allure, award-winning Highland Park Brewery got its start in the pub’s back storage room and is still featured prominently on the menu.

You wouldn't expect old European charm in the hipster enclave of Silver Lake, but Bavarian style is served right alongside irony at the Red Lion Tavern, just as it has for more than 60 years. So, grab a schnitzel and a bratwurst and wander the many rooms chockablock with German memorabilia or head toward the beer garden for a large selection of German-only beers on draft.

Forget all your misconceptions about dive bars and walk into the Roost, whose comforting elements—a jukebox that comes fully loaded with Tom Petty, Springsteen, and the Allman Brothers Band, cozy leather booths, dimmed lights, and decent hearty food—will make you feel like you’ve flown back to your hometown for the holidays. The cocktails aren’t too shabby either, but do bring cash.

This bar is part fancy Brooklyn café where you might study or linger and lounge over cold drinks with friends and part Instagram-worthy L.A. cocktail bar populated with cool locals. Chicken enchiladas and fajita bowls share the menu with roasted beef hummus and charcuterie. This being an L.A. watering hole, movie and TV show inspirations are everywhere, and being one of the filming locations for popular show The L Word is a frequently dropped accolade. Dana’s Night is held here once a month to provide a venue for the local queer community. The outdoor patio is a newer addition and perfect for those nice Southern California summer nights, and board games are on hand to encourage those linger and lounge vibes.

Since 2007, before Highland Park became trendy, the York has been holding its own as the ultimate neighborhood bar. It’s not just that the aesthetic gives off that neighborhood vibe (think exposed brick and chalkboard menus), but the craft beers on tap are great, and the pub food is delicious—the cheddar burger and the fish-and-chips are favorites.

Tucked into Echo Park’s more residential area where its only other commercial companions are a cactus shop, a tiny neighborhood market, a juice store, and sister property Bacetti, Tilda may not be at the center of the city's buzzing nightlife scene. But wine connoisseurs would agree that it’s the perfect place to sample California natural wines as well as offerings from Italy, Austria, and France. Pair your favorites with the wine bar's modest selection of simple fare.

It’s hard to decide whether the best thing about this place is its selection of 20 craft beers on tap and menu of enticing cocktails or the large beer garden furnished with picnic tables. Be warned, this place can get crowded, but it's worth it, especially on a hot, sunny day (so pretty much every day).