I end up in hotel lobbies more than clubs these days, and I do not think that is a downgrade. A good chair, a real drink, you can talk. Hotel bars are underrated in Los Angeles, which lobby should I be sitting in?
I already know the Polo Lounge. I want the other rooms people actually go back to.
Spare Room at the Hollywood Roosevelt. Bowling upstairs, a proper bar, and it does not feel like a club. That is my Hollywood lobby night.
The Culver Hotel lobby on Culver Blvd is the one I add to the rotation. It is right in Culver City so I am not making a night of parking in Beverly Hills. I have had a drink there before dinner and never felt rushed.
The Maybourne in Beverly Hills makes great cocktails. It's never overrun. Cocktails are around 30 dollars. That might be why it's never overrun. 
Hotel Bel-Air on Stone Canyon. The bar is quiet, the room is the point, and I leave before it gets precious. That is enough for me.
The Rooftop at the Waldorf Astoria on Wilshire if you want a view with the drink. I have taken dates there, it is dressed up, and you should go early because the room fills.
Not a dive. Not trying to be. That is fine with me.
I go to hotel bars only when I want a quiet night out. The bar at Hotel Bel Air is perfect for that. You can enjoy the private garden sanctuary with a grand piano (live jazz). The Polo Lounge is, of course, also always an option.
If I am already west I do Hotel Bel-Air on Stone Canyon. You go for the room and a drink you do not have to shout over, and you leave when you are done. I would not make it a three-stop crawl.
Spare Room is the louder Hollywood version if the group wants something to do with their hands. Two different nights, both worth sitting down for.
Culver Hotel for me when I want to sit down without a velvet rope story. Lobby, a drink, then I go home to the Marina and I am not mad about it.
I am past the club thing. This is the version of going out that still works for me.
Okay, let me share one too. This one is a bit of a drive. It’s called the Tap Room and it’s inside the Langham hotel in Pasadena. Great ambience and classic style. Kinda cigar lounge vibe with dark wood paneling. Has an outside patio as well. Perfect for dates or business talks.
Tap Room is probably one of the nicest hotel bars on the entire Eastside. It’s one of my all time favorites.
Love the Club Bar at the Peninsula. They make really tasty cocktails. Great wine selection. Try their French dip sandwich or the beef sliders.
