6 Best Bars in The Valley, Los Angeles

The Baked Potato might seem like a strange name for L.A.'s oldest continuously operating jazz club, which has been holding nightly performances of well-known acts under its roof since the '70s. But one look at the all-ages venue's cheeky menu makes it make sense. That's all they serve—24 varieties of souped-up spuds. The taters range from one-note cheese-only numbers to more creative compositions piled high with maple ham, corn, and pineapple or hot dog and sauerkraut. Each comes with sour cream, butter, and a simple salad to offset that carb intake.

L.A. has something for everyone. Case in point, this delightful pub touting a predominantly vegan menu tasty enough to satisfy the most steadfast meat lovers, more than 20 California-crafted beers at any given time, bar games including the titular pastime, billiards, and the occasional chili cook-off or adult spelling bee. 

Although this live comedy club doesn’t have as long a history as others in town (it opened in 2010), it's attracted an impressive list of big names like Jerry Seinfeld, Whitney Cummings, and Adam Sandler thanks to its Celebrity Drop-In Tuesdays. Laughs can be had by adults every night of the week but all ages are only allowed at the family-friendly Saturday afternoon sets. All shows require both a ticket and a two food-or-drink minimum per person.

With footie on the screens, full English breakfasts and fish-and-chips coming from the kitchen, and pints aplenty (16 imported beers on draft and 12 in bottles to be precise), this pub is as British as it gets—though they do also air American football and basketball. There's a daily happy hour and weekly trivia, karaoke, and naughty game nights.

Drinking an old fashioned inside a whisky barrel-shaped bar might seem gimmicky, but Idle Hour, which opened back in 1941 on the outskirts of NoHo, is actually a history lesson in SoCal architecture. As the car became king and people stopped walking in L.A. as the song says, businesses turned to programmatic architecture, where structures take the form of their product or service, to grab attentions as they whiz by. Most of these are long gone but 1933 Group, known for their era-themed establishments and preservation projects, restored the cask, installed another programmatic example—a pipe-smoking bulldog—on a great patio, added a kitchen to pump out stick-to-the-ribs food (like burgers, tenders, and sloppy tots), and stocked up on quality craft beers.

Step through a bookcase at Vitello's restaurant and into a 1930s speakeasy full of intimate curtained booths and leather chairs. It’s a member’s club with pretty laid-back rules about nonmembers joining for Classic Movie Night screenings, holiday gatherings, and live performances by velvet-throated crooners, all of which are bolstered by themed cocktails and five kinds of cake. As long as you're dressed to impress, that is.