Three Clubs

Three Clubs does not have a sign out front. What you look for instead is the Bargain Clown Mart painted above the door on Vine Street, and that small disorientation is deliberate. This place does not need to advertise. Opened in 1991 by nightlife veterans Marc Smith and Matthew Webb in a building that has been a bar since the 1940s, Three Clubs was built as an homage to the Rat Pack era and the martini lounges of 1950s and 60s Hollywood. The deep red interior, carpeted floors, velvet wallpaper, mahogany paneling, black leather seating, and a sparkly black ceiling are not retro affectations; they are what this room has always been. The venue operates two stages: a main showroom that seats 150 and a separate lounge stage with its own bar. The entertainment programming is nightly and genuinely eclectic: live bands, burlesque, cabaret, immersive theater, comedy, karaoke on Tuesdays, live-band karaoke on Thursdays, and DJ nights woven throughout the week. Three Clubs is a major venue for the Hollywood Fringe Festival and a longstanding presence in LA's independent theater scene, which means the crowd on any given night might include actors, musicians, directors, and people who simply appreciate a well-made cocktail in a room with atmosphere. The bar itself is no afterthought. The Manhattan is a classic, the Negroni is locally celebrated, and the spirits selection favors quality over novelty. Time Out named it the best bar in Hollywood in 2014, and the room has been a setting for Mad Men, Swingers, and countless other productions drawn to its perfectly preserved aesthetic.