The Best Bars Near Dodger Stadium

Hope springs eternal for baseball fans on opening day, none more so than those who claim the Dodgers as their own. With a stacked team that has come painfully close to the mountaintop only to fall just short, there’s an even greater sense of anticipation that this year is the year the boys in blue go all the way.

So in honor of Opening Day and the promise that comes with, we’ve collected a neighborhood guide for all those looking to make the trek to the third oldest ballpark in the country. What follows is not just a list of watering holes near Dodger Stadium, but a guide to help you know what to expect at each location, so that you can find the vibe and turnt-up-ed-ness you’re looking for — be it a temple to baseball or just something to take your mind off the game.

Whether it be pre-game or nightcap, dive or dinner, let this list properly prepare you for the season that lies ahead.

Let’s play ball.

HOW TO USE THIS MAP

We’ve got all the info you need to know what you’re walking into before you walk in. Each entry includes what the place has to offer in terms of drinks and food, whether there are Dodger-related specials or activities (or if you can catch the game there), and the vibe of the spot (measured in Keys). Most important, we’ve provided the scenario best for visiting each spot, as well as an item on the menu worth checking out.

Image via Mohawk Bend

MOHAWK BEND

Hours: Mon-Thu 11:30am-11:30pm, Fri 11:30am-1am, Sat 10:00am-1:00am, Sun 10:00am-11:30pm
Happy hour: Mon-Fri 3:00pm-7:00pm | Dodger specials: Happy hour extended 1hr before and after game
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, Full Menu, Small Menu
TVs: Many for any game that’s on (including the Dodgers), with a large projector for big games
Key: Medium Key
The skinny: Mohawk Bend is part-bar, part-restaurant, and fully cavernous. If you’re rolling up to the game 10 deep and looking for a place to park the whole crowd, Mohawk is the spot for you. All of their beer, wine and spirits comes from the great state of California, so grab a couple pizzas — we suggest PB&J, Pineapple, Bacon and Jalapeño — an impossible Big Mac-style burger and a M’Oaxaca to wash it all down. If you’re group is the kind that needs some extra space, ask about their private room.

2141 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

321 LOUNGE

Hours: Mon-Fri 11:30am-1:00am; Sat, Sun 10:00am-1:00am
Happy hour: Mon-Fri 3:00pm-6:00pm | Dodger specials: check with bar
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, Full Menu
TVs: One, tuned in to the boys in blue
Key: Very Low Key
The skinny: Dimly lit with dark wood grain, 321 has a definitive old-school vibe for a reason. Nestled inside Taix French restaurant, the establishment has been around 90+ years. Baseball is the sport passed down from generation to generation, and 321 is a place for you to bring your father or grandfather, grab a martini and a calamari or escargot, and transport yourself to another time with America’s pastime. Bonus points for conversations about Fernando Valenzuela, Tommy Lasorda, Kirk Gibson or Jackie Robinson.

1911 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
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BABY BLUES BBQ

Hours: Mon-Sun, 11:30am-10:00pm
Happy hour: Check | Dodger specials: no
On deck: Beer, Wine, Full Menu
TVs: Several
Key: Low Key
The skinny: Bit of a cheat here, Baby Blues BBQ isn’t much of a bar, but BBQ and baseball go together just as well as any Dodger dog could. If you’re looking for a place to pack it away with a few hungry fellas in before getting into the ballpark and facing extortionate prices for sub-par ballpark food, this is it. Everything from the pulled pork, beef brisket and ribs is a hit, just make sure to figure out which of their sauces is your favorite (ours is the XXX) and use liberally.

1901 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

Image via the Semi-Tropic

THE SEMI-TROPIC

Hours: Mon-Sun 9:00am-2:00am
Happy hour: 9:00am-5:00pm | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, Full Menu
TVs: Projector, but only comes down during big games (think World Series)
Key: Low Key, Medium Key on weekends
The skinny: Dodger games are sneaky great date spots, and The Semi-Tropic is a great place to unwind with that special someone once that 27th out is recorded. DJs regularly keep the place from going too quiet in the evenings, and the chic exposed brick wall and beams tap into that east side aesthetic for better or worse (we think better). Try a Mango Cart with your favorite tequila and match it with Barbacoa Sandwich on a buttery brioche.

1412 Glendale Blvd. (Map)
Website

THE HOLLOWAY

Hours: Mon-Sun 12:00pm-2:00am
Happy hour: Mon-Fri 3:00pm-7:00pm | Dodger specials: check with bar
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, Full Menu
TVs: Couple of them; if sports are playing, it’ll be the Dodger game
Key: Low-Medium Key, up to Medium on weekends
The skinny: Folks are serious about the Dodgers at The Holloway, even if it doesn’t scream sports bar when you walk in — hell, anytime the chef takes the day off for opening day, you know what kind of place you’re dealing with. However, like The Semi-Tropic, Bar Caló or El Prado, the main focus here isn’t necessarily a baseball game. Big points for the decent-sized shuffleboard table. Bring a couple friends, maybe a date, knock back a couple Shiner Bocks and share the poutine, and if it’s late enough, enjoy the DJ spinning near the end of the bar before heading home (or wherever else you might end up).

1320 Echo Park Ave. (Map)
Website

GOLD ROOM

Hours: Mon-Sun 12:00pm-2:00pm
Happy hour: 12:00pm-5:00pm | Dodger specials: Wear your gear, get a polaroid on the wall
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, BYOF (bring your own food)
TVs: Tuned in to the Dodgers
Key: Medium Key and up, depending on the jukebox choices
The skinny: We’ve got our first entry on the list that really feels like it caters to Dodger fans. On game days, the neon lights inside this dive-bar-with-a-facelift turn blue, and there’s a chalk scoreboard on the wall to help the patrons keep track of the game. It’s also the first on the list that doesn’t provide any food (other than complimentary peanuts), but is BYOF — patrons can get whatever they want delivered to the bar and brought inside. Bring your Dodger fanboys and girls, take advantage of their $8 shot-and-a-beer special and pray that whoever put money in the jukebox has the same taste in music as you.

1558 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
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Image via Wonho Frank Lee/Bar Caló

BAR CALÓ

Hours: Mon-Thurs 4:00pm-12:00am, Fri 4:00pm-2:00pm, Sat 3:00pm-2:00pm, Sun 3:00pm-12:00am
Happy hour: Mon-Fri 4:00pm-7:00pm | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, Small Menu
TVs: No
Key: Low Key like a baritone
The skinny: Sometimes a Dodger game is exactly enough Dodgers for one day. Enter Caló, where it’s all about mezcal and the company you keep. If you’re looking to watch a ballgame, talk about a ballgame or catch highlights of a ballgame, you’ve come to the wrong place. A great place to go after a devastating loss, or with that date of yours who wasn’t interested in the game in the first place. Split a mezcal flight and listen in as the bartender gives you an education on the smoky brother of tequila that’s taken the country by storm for some time now, then pair it with some authentically delicious esquites to serve as a base for your booze. There will be plenty of time to worry about the Dodgers later.

1498 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

SUNSET BEER

Hours: Bar Hours: Mon-Thur 4:00pm-11:00pm, Fri 2:00pm-12:00am, Sat 1:00pm-12:00am, Sun 1:00pm-10:00pm; Store Hours: Mon-Thur 12:00pm-11:00pm, Fri-Sat 12:00pm-12:00am, Sun 12:00pm-10:00pm
Happy hour: No | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Snacks
TVs: One, chances are good it’ll have the game
Key: Low Key, sliding up to medium on the weekends
The skinny: Part suds supermarket, part craft beer and wine bar, Sunset Beer Company has a little something for everyone, unless that something is hot food or a cocktail. However, the beer list is extensive, and if you can’t find what you like, you can BYO beer or wine (for a small cork fee on weekends). It’s a livelier place than next door at Caló, and the type of place a group of buddies can stop by to tie one off and talk about the game, then buy some brews for a post-game activities as well.

1498 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

LITTLE JOY

Hours: Mon-Sun 5:00pm-2:00am
Happy hour: No | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, BYOF
TVs: One, dedicated to Dodger games, oddly positioned
Key: Medium to High Key, especially on the weekends
The skinny: Don’t let the pool table fool you. If you’re looking for a bar-bar — a no-frills, no-craft, no-bullshit, black paint and utilitarian furniture bar — this is the place for you. Expect alcohol that you’re familiar with and a DJ rotation to fit your musical needs. Too big to be a dive, but too dive to be a club, Little Joy is for you and your friends who are willing to get into a scrap in the upper level at Dodger Stadium.

1477 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
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THE SHORT STOP

Hours: Mon-Sun 5:00pm-2:00am
Happy hour: Mon-Sun 5:00pm-9:00pm | Dodger specials: always opens 2 Hours before gametime, micheladas and bloody mary specials for day games, check with bar
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, BYOF
TVs: Many, always tuned into the Dodger game, with a huge projector/viewing area for big games
Key: Mariah Carey High Key, there’s a line out the door on the weekends
The skinny: With a name like The Short Stop, one would think that this is as Dodgers as a Dodgers’ bar can get in LA. And for the most part, you’d be right, with the wall draped in Dodger decor, and the opening of the bar in tune with the game times during the season. However, as much as The Short Stop is a Dodger bar, it’s equal parts not a Dodger bar. A huge dance floor, combined with heavy rotation of Rap/Hip-Hop DJs and a smoking patio, give the place a club vibe. Imagine if a dive bar and nightclub had a sloppy one-night stand, and you’ve got the idea.

1455 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Instagram

Image via Button Mash/Facebook

BUTTON MASH

Hours: Tue-Thur 5:00pm-12:00am, Fri 5:00pm-2:00am, Sat 4:00pm-2:00am, Sun 4:00pm-12:00am, Closed Monday
Happy hour: No | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, Full Menu
TVs: Yes, likely flipped to the boys in blue on gameday
Key: Straight down the middle
The skinny: If you haven’t figured it out yet, Button Mash is for folks that had to be dragged to the game and hated every minute of it. It boasts a robust list of classic cabinet arcades, seminal games such a X-Men, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Street Fighter II, NBA Jam, Mortal Kombat, Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker (gulp, but for how long?), Contra 3 and more. The beer list has more than 30 selections, and that’s just for the canned options — so we recommend a tall boy of Eagle Rock Prickly Pear Gose, pick Nightcrawler or Colossus when you hit up X-Men, and try to forget that baseball even exists.

1391 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

EL PRADO

Hours: Mon-Fri 5:00pm-2:00am, Sat-Sun 3:00pm-2:00am
Happy hour: No | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Snacks
TVs: No
Key: Low Key
The skinny: Very much in the mold of Bar Caló, El Prado is for those who are done with Dodgers baseball for the day. However, unlike Bar Caló, or most anywhere else on our list, El Prado is an unusual force to be reckoned with when it comes to wine — like a lefty submariner coming out of the pen in a tight game. That unusual element? Natural wines. One of which is an orange wine. A bit of a misnomer, orange wine is actually white wine where the skins of the grape are not removed during the fermentation process, giving the wine a distinctive orange color, and the time spent with the skins lends these whites some typically red-wine characteristics: bigger body, better legs, more tannins. Despite these general guidelines, it’s important to remember that orange wine is just white wine made with the skins of the grape (like red wines). So practice your five S’s of wine — see, swirl, sniff, sip, savor — but do leave off the sixth: snob.

1805 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

BAR HENRY

Hours: Mon-Thur 5:00pm-1:00am, Fri 5:00pm-2:00am, Sat 12:00pm-2:00am, Sun 12:00pm-1:00am
Happy hour: No | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails
TVs: No
Key: Low Key, up to Medium on the weekends
The skinny: Small and dark, with a menu that leans on the mixology side of life. Again, this is the type of spot that isn’t going to have any overlap with your baseball experience — for better or worse. Bring your date here after the ballgame is over, ask the bartender to make you one of their signature cocktails using whichever poison you prefer, and take in the atmosphere of this Echo Park spot vying to provide you with an intimate experience.

1228 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

Image via Winsome

WINSOME

Hours: Tue-Thu 8:00am-3:00pm, Fri-Sun 8:00am-2:30pm, 4:30pm-10:30pm
Happy hour: Fri-Sun 4:30pm-7:00pm | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, Full Menu
TVs: No
Key: Low Key
The skinny: Physically closer than anything else on the list, Winsome is really more restaurant than bar, but still a place you can get a drink if need be. Our suggestion though: go before a day game and grab brunch — either a fried chicken sandwich or corned beef sandwich. Winsome is a good family spot to fill up before heading to the ballpark.

1115 Sunset Blvd. (Map)
Website

MELODY LOUNGE

Hours: Mon-Fri 5:00pm-2:00am, Sat 2:00pm-2:00am, Sun 5:00pm-2:00am
Happy hour: 5:00pm-9:00pm | Dodger specials: Open 2 Hours before first pitch, drink specials 2 hours before first pitch through the game until 1 hour after last pitch.
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails, BYOF
TVs: Yes, the Dodger game is always on.
Key: Medium to High Key on the weekends
The skinny: Though one of the few bars with actual Dodger-related specials and considerations, Melody Lounge leans heavy on the music, so bring your friend who loves a good spin from the DJ. Latin oldies, hip-hop, rap, funk and soul, Melody Lounge is too big to be considered a dive and too local to have the label “cocktail bar” associated with it. Our advice? When you’re ready for a bite, order Burger Lords (Chinatown’s In-N-Out, seriously), one of LA’s best-kept secrets.

939 N Hill St. (Map)
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GENERAL LEE’S

Hours: Tue-Sat 6:00pm-2:00am
Happy hour: 6:00pm-9:00pm | Dodger specials: No
On deck: Beer, Wine, Spirits/Cocktails
TVs: Not unless it’s the World Series, and even then it’s hit-or-miss.
Key: Medium to High Key
The skinny: Nestled inside of Chinatown, General Lee’s is housed in a building that has been either a restaurant or bar since the 1940s. Two floors with two different DJs provide the soundtrack all night long, but if you’ve got a special spot in your heart for the ‘80s and ‘90s, every third Thursday is Sade night. If you’re with a group looking for a bit of a hybrid bar/club night out after a game, this is the spot for you. Grab a Sapporo on draft, pick which floor’s music vibes best suit you, and dance yourself clean.

475 Gin Ling Way (Map)
Website

EXTRA INNINGS: ROGER’S HOUSE from TRAINING DAY

We know it’s not a bar, but we can’t help but suggest you brown bag a 40-oz. and pour some out at a location from one of the most iconic movies in Los Angeles film history. Just a stone’s throw away from Dodger Stadium, we won’t blame anyone who brings a shovel to check if Roger might have buried some extra cash somewhere that Alonzo neglected to look.

1031 Everett St. Los Angeles, CA 90026 (Map)