"I think the increased number of 1920s themed parties caused the current economic crisis. There i said it." - Alexis Brodey
I love old timey things. I even love the term old timey. Whenever I
hear it, everything turns into sepia tone and rag time music starts
playing. Then my iPhone rings and I realize I need to update my blog
and twitter. I'm happy I wasn't born in the 30's but I enjoy many
things about it. Mainly the influx of bars that seem to embrace that
old timey feel. Did Mad Men have something to do with this? Probably.
I'll be the first to admit prior to watching Don Draper I never had an
Old Fashioned. I now love Old Fashioneds. I even make a really good Old
Fashioned.
Since I'm not the biggest drinker, I never really want to visit a
random Hollywood bar and order a gin and tonic that tastes generic. I
tend to stick to very specific bars that do very specific things. Let’s
say I want a tropical drink. Easy, I go to Tiki Ti in Los Feliz. The
bar’s been open since 1961 and challenged Trader Vics for the best tiki
bar ever (and won). Currently I’m really into bourbon. This led me to
the great bar SeVen Grand on 7th and Grand downtown.
SeVen Grand is a mix between an old timey bar, a hunting lodge, a
gentleman's club and a place where stockbrokers hang out after ruining
peoples lives. They have over a hundred types of whiskey and really
great bartenders. My favorite bartender is a guy who I refer to as
"Last of the Mohicans" because he has an indie mohawk. One night I
decided to talk to him and we conversed for about 15 minutes. I use
that term loosely because I could only hear one out of fifteen words so
I had to keep on taking huge leaps when it was time for me to respond.
I guess I said the right things because the next time I came in he made
me a special drink that took him around 10 minutes to make. Even though
SeVen Grand makes the best Old Fashioned, it's not my favorite bar. The
problem is they can't decide exactly what they are. My favorite bar on
the other hand knows exactly what it is.
There's been a huge rivalry going on in Los Angeles that started way
before the Bloods and the Crips and has been even more violent: who
invented the french dip? Philippe's & Cole's both say they invented
it in 1908. I tend to side with Philippe's because it's better and has
sawdust on the floor. I'm a very loyal guy: I sided with west-coast rap
and still have beef with Biggie, I hate the Celtics and Liverpool FC
because of my love for the Lakers and Manchester United. I also will
not drink Pepsi. If it’s not Coke, I’ll just have water. For all these
reasons, I never ate at Cole's.
This all changed 3 weeks ago when I found out about The Varnish. It's a
tiny bar in the back of Cole's. At the back there's a door that looks
like a closet door except it has a tiny framed drawing of a highball
glass. Once you open it you walk into something that looks exactly like
a speakeasy. It smells like wood, it holds about 50 people and they
have old timey drinks. They don't even have ice cubes: they only have
huge blocks of ice that they have to pick at. The Varnish doesn't serve
big name brands either, only smaller ones. All the cocktails are $11
and each one is great. One of the best parts of The Varnish is once
you're nice and drunk, you can walk outside and eat a juicy, fatty
French dip. There's something about being drunk that makes anything
juicy amazing.
Last night while I was inhaling my lamb French dip I started thinking "Were people doing the same exact thing 100 years ago?" I mean have things really changed that much? Downtown is very busy these days, the stock market isn't doing well, and people love getting drunk and eating food. That's what's so great about The Varnish, it actually transports you back in time. Granted not even J.D. Rockefeller would probably spend $11 on one cocktail and $8 on a sandwich, but still.
SeVen Grand
515 W 7th St
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 614-0737
Cole's/Varnish
118 East Sixth Street
Los Angeles, CA 90014
Benjamin Chinn is a Los Angeles native who currently works as an editor at www.Causecast.org, a nonprofit that connects individuals with charities. You can visit his blog at www.benjaminchinn.com and follow him on twitter at www.twitter.com/benchinn.