Hollywood: Good Times at Davey Wayne’s

 

Recently I was spoke with someone from San Francisco who loved all the themed bars he visited in LA including La Descarga, Pour Vous and Good Times at Davey Wayne’s. What’s the key factor between all three of these bars? They’re owned and operated by Houston Hospitality, led by twin brothers Mark and Jonnie Houston.

This SF guy confided this wouldn’t fly in SF because of the “techbros” who already had all the money and therefor fantasy they wanted. He was fine with these themed bars in LA though because this is after all the land of movie magic. I could argue with him about what I consider theme bars of SF but those tend to look like the bars from the gold mining days and perhaps it’s a nod to history rather than a made-up world.

In any case, the 70s themed Good Times (or you could call it Davey Wayne’s for short) has a giggle-inducing way of entering the bar much like its sister bars La Descarga and No Vacancy. It feels like a house party from 1978 and the “backyard” was a nice touch.

 

My friend ordered the Smoke on the Water, a typical brown, bitter and stirred drink loved by old men and cocktail writers like us.

Smoke on the Water – Monkey Shoulder scotch, Laphroaig 10-year scotch, Byrh, Angostura bitters, Scrappy’s celery bitters

 

This particular night, I actually went with a more refreshing drink since Davey Wayne’s gets super crowded (even at 11:30 p.m. on a Tuesday) and it was (groan) gettin’ hot in ‘ere. Luckily, Davey Wayne’s opens at 4 p.m. daily and you can enjoy it in relative peace on the earlier side. I haven’t tried the BBQ yet but hear it’s a good option for grub.

 

Eric B Goode – Elijah Craig 12-year bourbon, sage-infused Amontillado sherry, blackberries, lemon, Peychaud’s bitters

 

 

Good Times at Davey Wayne’s 

1611 N El Centro Ave.,  Los Angeles, CA 90028  —  (323) 962-3804

 

© The Minty 2014