Good Luck Bar

My Take: From the outside, Good Luck Bar looks more like a seedy opium den than a bar, but, undaunted, my roommate and I entered, determined to get drinks nearby after discovering that Tiki Ti is closed on Tuesdays. Inside, to our pleasant surprise, the bar more closely resembles a dimly-lit Hollywood lounge, with backed barstools and Chinese lanterns hanging from the ceiling. Service was quick, our drinks were well made, and a new neighborhood watering hole was discovered. The Scene: Good Luck Bar has two rooms, the main room, with a large center bar and barstool seating around it, and a back room off to the side with comfortable lounge-style couches. The red-hued, East Asian-themed bar isn’t massive by any means, but it can still hold a decent amount of people and tends to be less busy than Tiki Ti down the street. The bar has a jukebox playing everything from David Bowie to The Black Keys at a volume that’s certainly noticeable, but not too loud to talk over. Cocktails: Good Luck Bar has a full bar, including spirits and both imported and domestic beer, but where the bar stands out is its 14 signature cocktails, all of which are infused with fruit to some degree. Some even come in interesting glasses like coconuts, but all of them sounded delicious. I thoroughly enjoyed my Hillhurst, made with Bullit Rye, grapefruit juice, and pomegranate syrup, which is one of the more tame cocktails on the menu. Good Luck Bar doesn’t serve any food. Prices: Cocktails are all $10, imported beer is $5, and PBR is $4. What to Wear: Catering primarily to Los Feliz and Silverlake locals, Good Luck Bar is a casual spot, with plenty of t-shirts, jeans, and casual button-downs. Feel free to wear whatever. Insider Info: Monday nights feature $7 cocktails and $3 PBR all night.

I wandered into Good Luck Bar one night and have been back countless times since. The vibe feels like something out of Joss Wheadon's "Firefly". It's dark with red wood carvings and Chinese lanterns., the ceilings are low, and they make Tiki cocktails. Their menu is refreshing and a great bang for your buck, and the staff is professional and easy to chat with about pretty much anything. Good Luck Bar is a great way to end a good night out with friends. Also, they let you bring in outside food, which is a huge plus. The only downside is that at peak hours it gets too crowded to find a seat or move around comfortably. However, if you wait a bit, you can usually grab a couch after not too long.

For me, Good Luck Bar in Los Feliz is right down the middle. Don't love it, don't hate it. Inside the bar is a Chinese motif with hanging red lanterns and simplistic design touches throughout. The venue layout is a little odd with scattered nooks that serve as rooms and a bar smack in the middle that divides the venue into quadrants. The drinks here are relatively cheap and the clientele relatively chill. Because it's Los Feliz, you get a ton of hipsters, but it skews a little older. Not the best, but not the worst, if you're just looking for a simple drink, check out Good Luck.

To be fair I should qualify this review with the forewarning that I have only ever come here pretty late in the night on odd days. I work up the street so it's a quality after work drinks spot for my co-workers and I, especially when we are trying to avoid the karaoke going on at The Drawing Room further up Hillhurst Ave. Despite the sparse crowd in the late night hours, this place is the perfect spot for a drink in the wee hours. The bartender's and staff certainly take care of you, and they're open to building rapport to locals. Although the concrete exterior gives you the average hole-in-the-wall dive bar impression, the interior is a a somewhat muted oriental explosion, bordering tacky (in the best sense). The drink selection is also unexpected because they actually have cocktail/specialty drink whereas most dive just stick to the common compendium of lack luster basics like margaritas or vodka red-bulls. Though I'm sure on a weekend this place is more hopping, I am completely satisfied with the atmosphere of the late night crowd: people getting off work, or stopping in for a quiet casual drink, or ending their night in this intimate cubby of a bar. Come here to meet the real drinkers, and make bar friends with the regulars.

Located in Los Feliz, Good Luck Bar is filled with the hipster-ish crowd you would expect to see around these parts and the place is cozy enough that you’re bound to get into conversation with somebody. The main bar area is pretty cool with Chinese lanterns, specialty glasses for specialty drinks, and a generally energetic crowd who’s there to chat with friends. The dark red ambiance can make some people a little hard to see (or maybe make them look better than usual) but just adds to the cool vibe this place has. I suggest grabbing a stool at the bar and enjoying the flow of people that will continually saddle up to the bar. And one word of advice about parking…there is a small parking lot on Hillhurst immediately north of the bar…the signage is confusing and makes it seem like you can’t park…but it’s ok to park there in the evening…for free…it’s small though so you may need to get there early to get a spot.

Some people call this place a dive but I think it’s a bit too nice for that. The décor is kind of hilarious, with red walls, Chinese paper lanterns, woodblock furnishings, and basically every stereotype you can think of when it comes to an “oriental-themed hangout.” I use the term in jest, because this place is totally laid-back and fun. Fall into one of the plush couches with a ridiculously sweet cocktail and before you know it, LA feel a thousand miles away. Lots of hipster types, who I guess think drinks like the “All Wong” are funny. I’ll forgive them, though, because that thing tastes so good it makes everything allwight….sorry. For those who remember, the sign outside was featured in the opening credits to the short-lived HBO series LUCK.