The Best Bars in Venice Beach

The Brig has anchored the Abbot Kinney bar scene for years and earns its position every weekend. The back patio fills up with a mix that reflects Venice genuinely — artists, tech workers, old-school residents, and people who drove in from elsewhere. The cocktail menu is reasonable and well-executed. The real reason to come is the energy, which builds slowly from 9pm and stays consistent until close.

Order: Whatever the bartender is clearly most proud of that night

The main bar upstairs operates as a no-frills Venice dive with a pool table and a jukebox that has not been updated in a decade. The real draw is the Del Monte Speakeasy downstairs, which has been operating since Prohibition and books live music several nights a week. Order a beer upstairs, then find the staircase. The basement is low-lit, loud, and one of the most genuine drinking experiences on the Westside.

Order: Domestic beer upstairs, whatever they have on draft downstairs

One of the best craft beer bars in the best bars venice beach los angeles category, with 28 taps rotating through California and national breweries. The rooftop deck gives you an ocean view without the boardwalk price premium attached. They know their beers and will walk you through the current draft list if you ask. Go for lunch and stay for the afternoon — the patio is genuinely comfortable in the way outdoor Venice drinking should be.

Order: Ask for the current IPA flight — they almost always have three on simultaneously

A true dive bar that has been in the same location since 1962 and has resisted every attempt by its surroundings to become something more curated. The burgers are better than they have any right to be, the beer is cold and cheap, and the pool table is always occupied. Jim Morrison and Dennis Hopper used to drink here, which the bar mentions only on a small plaque near the door. Cash only, no reservations, no attitude.

Order: Pabst Blue Ribbon and one of the burgers — non-negotiable

Primarily a pizza spot but with a bar that the neighbourhood uses as a genuine local. The wine selection is better than you would expect from a pizza place, and the beer list rotates through California breweries sensibly. The tables outside on Abbot Kinney catch the afternoon light in a way that makes an early-evening drink into an event. Low pressure, easy to get into, and reliably full of people who actually live nearby.

Order: Glass of whatever natural wine they are pouring by the glass that week

A beach bar that has the view without the tourist markup — somehow. Surfside sits close enough to the water that you can hear it, serves frozen drinks that are better than they need to be, and does not make you feel like a mark for sitting there. Go in the late afternoon when the crowds have thinned and the light is doing its best work on the Pacific. The frozen paloma is one of the better versions we have had anywhere on the coast.

Order: Frozen paloma — specific request, not a substitution

Starts as a coffee bar at 7am and transitions into cocktails by evening. The conversion is seamless and the cocktail programme is taken as seriously as the espresso. The outdoor seating on Abbot Kinney is some of the best people-watching real estate in Venice. The evening crowd skews younger and more design-aware than most bars in the area, and the noise level stays at a point where conversation is still possible.

Order: The espresso martini — a cliche they have earned the right to serve well

The Hotel Erwin's rooftop is where Venice's boardwalk bar scene actually earns its price point. Four floors up with unobstructed views from the mountains to the south down to Malibu on a clear day. The cocktail menu is competent rather than ambitious, but you are not here for the menu — you are here for the view at sunset. Arrive at 5:30pm on a clear Thursday and you will understand immediately why this place has a wait on weekends.

Order: The house spritz — light, refreshing, appropriate for the setting