1886 Bar occupies the former caretaker's cottage of The Raymond on South Fair Oaks Avenue in Pasadena, a low Craftsman bungalow that hides one of the most serious craft cocktail rooms in the San Gabriel Valley. The name marks 1886, the year Walter Raymond first opened his hotel on the hill above.
Who would love it: a spirits drinker who wants hand-cut ice, fresh-pressed juice and a bartender who treats a stirred drink as a discipline rather than a flourish. Who would not: anyone chasing a loud night out, because this is a quiet, low-lit room built for the glass in front of you.
The citable history matters here. LA Weekly covered the opening when Aidan Demarest and Marcos Tello built the bar from concept to cocktail menu, the first room the pair designed floor to ceiling, and it landed as one of the early anchors of the modern Los Angeles cocktail revival. The program has changed hands several times since, but the standard set in 2010 still holds.
The drinks reward a reader who knows agave. Tello's Saladito pairs mezcal with lime, honey, salt and chile, served with an actual salted plum on the side, while the Medicina Latina builds tequila over fresh lime, house ginger syrup and clover honey with a mezcal spray across the top. The seasonal menu turns over with the produce, so the smart move is to ask what is being cut and pressed that night.
Marcus Webb's read for the connoisseur: order the Saladito. The salt and chile frame the mezcal without burying it, and the bartender's restraint with the honey keeps the smoke legible from first sip to last. It is the clearest argument that 1886 still earns its early reputation.
The room is small and the bar seats fill first, so a weeknight arrival before the dinner rush is the way to claim a stool. Service runs Tuesday through Sunday from 4pm, with weekend brunch service in the restaurant beside it.
Best time to go: an early Wednesday evening, when the bartenders have time to talk through the off-menu builds and the cottage stays calm. 1886 Bar reads as a destination worth the drive east, and the hand-cut ice is the receipt.
See where it sits among the best cocktail bars in Los Angeles and the hidden gem bars across the city, and read our wider guide to the best bars in Los Angeles for the full picture.
The cottage setting is the key to using the place well. The bar runs as its own room, separate from The Raymond's dining tables, so a drinker can settle in for a flight of agave drinks without committing to a full dinner. Walk-ins work on a quiet night, while a weekend visit rewards a reservation through the restaurant.
What guests highlight across the reviews is the precision of the builds and the calm of the space, a contrast to the harder-charging cocktail rooms downtown. The fair caution is the location and the price, since the bungalow sits a fair drive from central Los Angeles and the drinks run in line with the city's top rooms.
Who it is for: a spirits drinker who wants agave handled with care, a couple after a quiet and adult night, and a cocktail traveler willing to cross town for a room with real history. It is not a place for a large group or a late, loud finish, so a crowd chasing volume should look elsewhere.
Pair this bar with
For more in the city, compare The Varnish Los Angeles, Death and Co Los Angeles and The Roger Room Los Angeles.
Sources
The Raymond 1886 official site · LA Weekly: 1886 now open · Discover Los Angeles: 1886 Bar · Google Maps and Yelp reviews (2026)
Reviewed by Marcus Webb, barsforKings. Published Mar 10, 2026 · Last reviewed Jun 14, 2026.
