Best cocktail bars for a date in Los Angeles
A proper drink between dinner and dessert.
140 spots · Jump to the list
These are bars you go to for the drinks themselves — a considered menu, careful technique, a bartender who can make you something that isn't on it. They sit best in the middle of a night: after dinner, before dessert, or as the nightcap. Restaurants with a strong bar are on the restaurant lists instead.
This guide ranks 140 cocktail bars in Los Angeles, from Downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach and Pasadena. Editors' picks come first, then the rest by rating, and the plans below build a whole evening around the best of them.
The list
Editors' picks first, then by rating.
The Stache
4.4(9)Long Beach · $$
The Hula Hula Room
4.4(9)Torrance · $$
Mitsi
4.4(8)Downtown Los Angeles · $$
The Dungeon
4.4(5)Pasadena · $$
Ladies and Gentlemen
4.4(5)Pasadena · $$
Harvard & Stone
4.3(26)Los Feliz / Griffith Park · $$$
Remix Room Hollywood
4.3(26)Hollywood · $$
Abbey
4.3(25)Beverly Hills · $$
Bonsai Coffee & Bar
4.3(21)West LA / Brentwood · $
Roxanne's
4.3(20)Long Beach · $
Ladies and Gentlemen - A Cocktail Experience
4.3(20)Pasadena · $$
The Lincoln
4.3(13)Venice · $$
Monte Carlo Bar
4.3(12)Koreatown / Mid-City · $$
Secret Island
4.3(12)Long Beach · $$
Good Times at Davey Wayne’s
4.3(10)Hollywood · $$
R Bar
4.3(9)Koreatown / Mid-City · $$
Alter Ego
4.3(6)Long Beach · $$$
ÜCA
4.2(21)Downtown Los Angeles · $$
The Bungalow
4.2(19)Santa Monica · $$$
Las Perlas Mezcal Bar
4.2(14)Downtown Los Angeles · $$
The Holloway
4.2(14)Silver Lake / Echo Park · $$
Bar Chloe
4.2(5)Santa Monica · $$$
Bar CDMX
4.1(23)Downtown Los Angeles · $$
Broken Shaker at Freehand LA
4.1(17)Downtown Los Angeles · $$
Showing 49–72 of 140 spots
Good to know
- What's the best cocktail bar in Los Angeles for a date?
- Our top pick is The Stache in Long Beach, rated 4.4 out of 5. The Hula Hula Room and Mitsi round out the top 3.
- Which Los Angeles neighborhoods have the best cocktail bars?
- Downtown Los Angeles (5), Long Beach (4) and Pasadena (3) have the most spots in the top 24.
- Are there affordable cocktail bars in Los Angeles?
- Yes — The Stache, The Hula Hula Room and Mitsi are all $$ or under.
- What should we do before or after?
- Make it a cocktail night: dinner, then cocktails, then something sweet. The plans on this page pair each top spot with the best-rated places within about a 20-minute walk.