One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
You Can Finally Drink Beer And Wine While Watching A Movie At Arclight
Who needs a bar when you have Arclight? (Photo by Rossano aka Bud Care via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
Rather than downing a drink before seeing a movie at Arclight, you can now leisurely sip booze in the theater. Five of the six L.A.-area Arclight Cinemas now let you bring beer and wine from the theaters' concession stands, according to the L.A. Times, and soon, the Sherman Oaks location will be added to the mix. The company spent the last 18 months revising permits and licenses so that you can get your buzz on while catching the latest flick.
At the Santa Monica, Culver City, Pasadena and El Segundo Arclight locations, you can order a glass of vino, or choose between Stella Artois and two craft options, including one local brew. Currently, Arclight Hollywood only offers bottles of Stella and Allagash White, but they plan to offer a wider selection once they remodel the concession stand later this year. At all the location—except for Sherman Oaks as of now—you can also order a cocktail or any other drink at their bar and bring it into the theater. According to the Times, the 12 oz. Allagash goes for a reasonable $7, though I.D. checks have slowed lines, which is likely to change once they get the routine down.
The Arclight move was partly inspired by the growing popularity of drink-and-dine-in theaters like iPic in Westwood, where servers will even bring food and drinks (including cocktails) to you in the theater. But it seems Arclight doesn't plan on adding that service feature anytime soon.
“We don’t want to offer any food that’s too loud or distracting,” Steven Ramskill, senior manager of food and beverage operations for Arclight tells the Times. “We want to preserve the integrity of the movie-viewing experience.”
With that said, you probably don't want to put back too many of those beers at your next screening, lest you become too loud or distracting for your fellow moviegoers.
Editor's Note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that you cannot bring cocktails into the theater, but Arclight informs us that this option is available at all of the locations, except for Sherman Oaks.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
