Many drinkers find absinthe an acquired taste, that's why we were reluctant to try the new absinthe cocktail at South in Santa Monica, the Southern Spell ($12). The green liquor tastes like black licorice, our least favorite thing in the world but since this cocktail is new we thought we'd give it a shot in the name of research. Made of Lucid Absinthe, peach schnapps and ginger ale, it sounds like the nasty taste of......

When we first heard about Upper Manhattan Lounge in Manhattan Beach, we had to check it out. Apparently, they have a long martini list. Sure it's not a list with anything really intriguing on it (just one Manhattan cocktail) but it IS something unusual for MB. The lounge opened up this past July but we weren't able to get there til just this Friday. Hey, MB is FAR! Farther than downtown is from us. There's......

Ever want to experience what a speakeasy must feel like? Descend the depths of underground downtown bar the Edison for its new weekly bar night called Speakeasy Sundays. Only the bar's Radio Room will be open (entrance is a couple of doors down from the regular entrance in Harlem Alley) while the main bar area will be closed. This means that there's only a 125-swank-person capacity so get there early as doors will close......

It is striking, stacked, summery, and, dare we say sashimi-y? LAist Featured Photos contributor hinducow found this Tuna Sashimi Avocado Stack at the X-Bar in Century City. It's located at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza, and focuses on small plates and desserts. Over on Yelp the folks seem to really like the nighttime only spot's outdoor fire pits and the tasty cocktails made with real fruit juice, although some prefer when the tab is......

We think we found our new favorite Manhattan cocktail: It's the Blood Orange Bitters Manhattan at the new Culver City restaurant/bar, Rush Street. Most versions of this drinking man's cocktail come on kick-ass strong but here at one of the busiest bar in the heart of Screenland, this one is tempered with the blood orange bitters making it lighter and dangerously drinkable. Our new favorite drink is just one of the many yummy libations on......

It's summer, so getting your celebration on before the weekend isn't unheard of (oh, and, yeah, it's LA--we like to celebrate!) which is why if you enjoy tequila, you should be ready to honor the south of the border beverage import tomorrow. Who knew tequila had its own National Day? But it does, and we'd like to encourage you to partake in the festivities (while drinking responsibly, yo!). If you are in the environs of......

Friday night's grand opening party for the highly anticipated Rush Street in Culver City was an evening of fun food and drinks; inside the incredible space on Washington Boulevard were gathered friends of the restaurant, folks from the neighborhood, local dignitaries, and a handful of LAisters, all eager to get a taste of the new bar and eatery. LAist Featured Photos contributor Michael Ngim (aka hinducow) was on hand along with our Caroline on Crack......

It's hard to imagine a more un-L.A. cuisine than German food -- it's heavy, it's meaty, it's about as vegetarian-unfriendly as you can get. So how does the Red Lion Tavern in Silver Lake stay so busy? A few reasons, actually: beer. Beer! Also, beer (bier!). The Red Lion has a number of great brews -- pilsners, bocks, weizens, and so much more. These Germans value their beer so much that the interior of......

Neptune's Net Seafood Restaurant in Malibu is a biker hang. But that doesn't mean you have to be one to enjoy crab and fried scallops (unless, Malingering, who took these photos, is living a secret life as a biker). Need more options? A little closer to home? Check here. Submit your Eye Nosh food 'porn' photos and mini-reviews to LAist via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr.......

Over the last couple of weeks, the scene at the Viper Room has been changing -- bartenders were let go, one of the bookers is gone, and now the internal publicist and talent buyer announced a seemingly abrupt departure. Former publicist Annie Geyer writes in an e-mail: As of Friday, June 6, 2008 Melissa Renee Hernandez and I are no longer affiliated with the Viper Room. We appreciate everyone’s support over the last 2+ years......

Photo by pink_fish13 via LAist Featured Photos Pool on Flickr BARGAIN BOOZE For those of us who would prefer to have cheap drinks at a happier hour than early evening, The Mint has the answer: Midnight Happy Hour. Finlandia drinks are only a $1. ART OPENING The work of 30 artists is presented in this brand new mixed-media show at the Santa Monica Museum of Art that is focused on puppetry. Participating artists include:......

Photo of a burger from The Counter by Malinger/LAist There's two bits of good news and one part bad. First, the good: The Counter, of Santa Monica make-your-own-burger fame, is opening a location in Studio City at Laurel Canyon and Ventura Blvd. It was supposed to open this past Winter, but due to stringent health code standards and rumored pressure from future competitors making it harder for them to start business, the opening of......

Photo by ~db~ via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr SALSA & MERENGUE DANCING Dance Downtown kicks up its heels tonight for the first installment of the summer-long Friday night series. Free admission to anyone who feels like trying a little salsa out on the Music Center Plaza. Beginner lessons are at 6:30, and a live DJ provides the tunes from 7:15-10. 6:30-10 p.m. // Music Center Plaza // 135 North Grand Avenue,......

The Mexican/Spanish restaurant-lounge Senor Fred has cemented its reputation as a Ventura Blvd. hot spot for drinks, but it's also a nice lunch destination for those of you trawling the Sherman Oaks area. The place fulfills at least two requirements of a good Mexican restaurant: spicy salsa that tastes homemade (their version has a nice smoky flavor to it), and strong, simple margaritas. The food is far superior to Mexicali's questionable menu, but about......

Last night we hit downtown L.A. for the Edison's weekly event, Incandescence, where vaudeville circus/dance troupe Lucent Dossier was performing from the stage, from the rafters, from the floor amid the audience. We sampled the absinthe cocktails which were served to us in vintage-looking glass bottles that we were allowed to take home. And even some of the liquor shots were handed to us in corked glass bottles that resembled those miracle elixirs con men......

Tonight the circus is in town...at the Edison. Every Wednesday night, Lucent Dossier, vaudeville circus/dance troupe, will be hanging from the rafters and performing on stage for the well-dressed Edison patrons in the upscale downtown bar's weekly happening, Incandescence. (Get it? Like the lightbulb.). To get a sense of what Lucent Dossier is like, check out an early LAist photo gallery. And if the night isn't crazy enough, maybe a little absinthe will do......

One of Los Angeles' best, and perhaps the most inventive, vegan restaurants is Pure Luck. Located in the unofficial Bicycle District, also casually known as Hel-Mel (for its Melrose and Heliotrope location), the restaurant, simply put, serves up pub food and micro beer. Above, LAist Featured Photos contributor sadjeans shares these jackfruit tacos, which LAist can confirm as delicious. Instead of tofu, jackfruit is a staple ingredient at Pure Luck and also makes an......

Photo of Next Door Tapas interior by Zach Behrens for LAist Next Door Tapas is a swanky and intimate little lounge in Studio City, perfect for a weekend or late evening bite -- just don't plan on being there before 6pm. Despite the 5pm opening that's advertised on most review websites, we showed up at 5:30 only to find half-dressed tables and an unready staff. The wine menu was quick to arrive once we......

Last night Father's Office II in Culver City* Los Angeles finally opened to the thirsty and hungry, but mostly thirsty, masses. It was supposed to be a soft opening but word got out and the bar/restaurant filled up right quick. A line formed outside the front door but patrons who finally made it in said the wait wasn't too bad, just about 15 minutes.......

Hey, there, beer fans! The word is out on the street, Father's Office II in Culver City finally opens its doors tonight! You heard me. Rumors say 5pm. Our coverage of the preview party probably left you wanting more but starting tonight you get to see it for yourself, taste the gastropub fare goodness for yourself, choose from what looks to be a gazillion beers on tap and guzzle, I mean, savor, for yourself.......

Update: The Doheny sent over some fun facts regarding items mentioned in this piece. You can read about the biometric fingerprint reader, Sheperd Fairey's artwork and other information here. For the record: In the original story below, it was said that the initiation fee is $4,950. To clarify, $2,750 is a one-time initiation fee. When combined with the annual $2,200 membership fee, the total for the first year only is $4,950. I did it!......

...Or at least most of it is! Finally, a first look at the inside of the second Father's Office. My husband, one of the most ardent FO groupies I've ever met, drives past the new location at the Helms Bakery in Culver City everyday, in the hungry hope of catching the plywood coming down, or (gasp!), the "open" sign beaming beer & burger hope into the night sky. Today, at least part of his prayers......

An afternoon bar fight yesterday in Orange County's city of Cypress left a man in critical condition and on life support. Steven Keith Toole, 45, was hit in the head with a pool cue, knocked unconscious and found to be not breathing when first responders came to the bar. Police arrested a bar regular, Richard Lee Thompson, 46, who after the fight left in his vehicle to his Lakewood home where police convinced him over......

Photo by Sister72 via Flickr It's 8:30 a.m. and by the count on this list, at least five Irish bars are open right now: Brennan's Pub, Casey's Irish Bar and Grille, Clancy's, O'Brien's Irish Pub, Patrick Molloys and Tom Bergin's Tavern. Whoops, make that six (derrr, the morning O'Doul's is already kicking in). Oh, speaking of that non-alcoholic beer, O'Douls is sponsoring the Pershing Sqaure celebration today starting at 11:00 a.m., which happens to......

Seven Grand is kicking things off early for St. Patrick's Day with East L.A. band Ollin performing at the beloved downtown whiskey bar tonight at 9pm (see a video of them below). Ollin is known as "The Mexican Pogues" for their fiesta-festive take on the English/Irish band's songs. Think Irish Mariachi music. Ollin has performed at Mr. T's Bowl and Spaceland and even opened for the Pogues last year at the Wiltern. They would have......

Old Blue Eyes is the most expensive cocktail at Mediterranean restaurant/lounge NeoMeze in Pasadena. A $21 concoction standing apart from a list of $12 drinks, this one is made of 2 parts Bombay Sapphire Gin and 1 part Johnnie Walker Blue Label and it is some potent stuff.......

Van Hunt plays the Temple Bar tonight, the third and last in a series of LA shows | Photo via his MySpace page The Guide to March Rock Music Residencies has been updated with a few more listings -- it seems as if residencies are catching on, which is a good thing. Meanwhile, Howlin Rain plays their last LA concert before a tour promoting their new album, Magnificent Fiend, that was released yesterday. Nicole......

Can you re-imagine the LA Riverfront? Then checkout tonight's lecture at SCI-Arc. / Photo by Lush.i.ous via LAist's flickr pool. FILM* A classic Japanese double feature plays at the New Beverly tonight and tomorrow. While these films were made more than 50 years ago, the themes are timeless: Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice (1952) focuses on a housewife who’s sick and tired of her boring life with her business-minded husband as her niece......

Want your date to pucker up? Take her to the Hungry Cat in Hollywood, well-known for its innovative and freshly juiced cocktails, and order her up a Sourpuss ($12). I had tried one on the recommendation of the bartender. She swore that despite its ingredients of 1792 Bourbon, fresh orange juice and lemon with caramelized simple syrup that it was far from tart. I don't like tart, ya see. According to the bartender, the......

Test Your Reflex plays this month at Hotel Cafe on Wednesdays | Photo by Luke Wooden via their MySpace Despite SXSW starting up this week with 100+ Los Angeles based bands heading over there, residencies are growing stronger and more venue-diverse across the line, especially on Monday nights where the volume makes it hard to choose from. Here's to a great month of residencies, rock on. Mondays The Chapin Sisters @ The Echo (Free),......