World Dive Bar Tour » Culver City

September 10th, 2008: Tattle Tale Room

World Dive Bar Tour — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 06:03:55 +0000

WEDNESDAY, September 10th, 2008

Tattle Tale Room
5401 Sepulveda Blvd.
The City of Culver City, CA 90230

As with the higher concentration of sweat shops, oil-burning, Toyota pickups, and dollar taco stands, in LA, the preponderance of quality watering holes grows exponentially as one nears the outskirts of the WDBT’s radius. This is no doubt due to the fact that, likewise, Los Angeles seems to be a more appealing place to live, the further you venture from it. Tattle Tale Room is no exception to this rule, quaintly situated abreast the Scarlet Lady (a WDBT favorite) on the southern end of the City of Culver City, which technically isn’t LA to begin with.

This year, Tattle Tale Room celebrates 43 years as pillar of the community and beacon of local history. Home to neighborhood regulars and cordial to cross-towners, bars like this stay open for decades because they offer something that few drinking establishments in LA can; we at WDBT like to call it class. Karaoke, pool, stiff drinks and a large selection of cheap beers are all part and parcel of this Dive Bar experience; but it’s the patrons that make Tattle Tale Room the joy it is. Don’t be surprised if you see a hunchback crone at the end of the bar serenading a green mina bird on her index finger.

As usual, the casual debauchery starts around 9PM an gets really interesting by 10:00. Come for one drink, or stay for one too many. Bring anyone and everyone, and join us for a great time in the middle of the week. If you arrive early or late, look for the people having a damn good time (it’ll be us), or start having a damn good time on your own (we’ll find you).

Carpe Drink’em,

Alex, Damien, & Travis, WDBT Co-Czars

"The code of the schoolyard, Marge! The rules that teach a boy to be a man. Let’s see. Don’t tattle. Always make fun of those different from you. Never say anything, unless you’re sure everyone feels exactly the same way you do." - Homer

April 9th, 2008: Cozy Inn

damien — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 00:42:49 +0000

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9th, 2008

Cozy Inn
11155 Washington Place
Culver City, CA 90232

The Cozy Inn has always been a WDBT Culver City favorite, known for its subdued character, precarious location, and colorful clientele. There is always at least 1 Harley parked outside and a quiet group of hard-boiled, blue-collar geriatrics inside drinking Wild Turkey and Bud. People keep to themselves, but it’s always possible to make a new acquaintance for the night over a game of shuffleboard or darts.

In the two years since we last visited the Cozy, it would seem business has increased–and the douchebag quotient has risen slightly–as more post-college 20-somethings discover the Washington and Washington nexus. Nevertheless, the ambiance remains the same, and the drinks remain stiff and cheap. The Cozy is still cash only, and you can still bet on seeing bored, Culver City PD patrolling the parking lot when you leave. So be prepared for both, and remember: always drink and drive responsibly.

For quality pre-dive eats or a post-dive sobriety snack, hit up Jonnie’s Pastrami or the famous Tito’s or Cinco de Mayo taco stands, all within walking distance.

As usual, the casual debauchery starts around 9PM and gets really interesting by 10:00. Come for one drink, or stay for one too many. Bring anyone and everyone, and join us for a great time in the middle of the week. If you arrive early or late, look for the people having a damn good time (it’ll be us), or start having a damn good time on your own (we’ll find you).

Carpe Drink’em,

Alex, Damien, & Travis - WDBT Co-czars

"Beer makes you feel the way you ought to feel without beer."

– Henry Lawson

July 11th, 2007: Backstage Bar & Grill

admin — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 00:38:00 +0000

WEDNESDAY, July 11th, 2007

Backstage Bar & Grill
10400 Culver Blvd
Culver City, CA 90232

Don’t let this establishment’s proper name fool you. Unlike other "Bar & Grill" establishments you may come across that feature the bar-going atmosphere of an Applebee’s, the "& Grill" portion of Backstage is strictly there to put the face of legitimacy on bar tabs expensed by Sony lot employees from across the street. Here at the Backstage, the motto written across the biker gang tattoo-esque logo is "Dedicated to Pleasure", and once you step through the doors, it’s clear that the pleasure of alcohol consumption is the real focus. That’s not, of course, to minimize the glory of their extensive menu of top-notch pub food, and if you’re lucky, you just might get to witness a Co-Czar chowing down on a row of sliders.

When it comes to treating its patrons right, the Backstage does it right, designating Tuesdays as "Regular’s Night", and effortlessly creating a Sam Malone-worthy environment on non-Tuesdays unparalleled in the LA bar scene. Karaoke is offered up 3 nights a week, with the notable exception of Wednesdays. In a town where every dive bar seems to place its karaoke on our night, this offers us a welcome reprieve from "Cheeseburger in Paradise" at a bar that knows Wednesdays are for one thing only: The World Dive Bar Tour. Please join us this week for one of the true gems of the Tour.

Carpe Drink’em,

Alex, Damien, & Travis, WDBT Co-Czars

"Heaven blazing into the head: Tragedy wrought to its uttermost. Though Hamlet rambles and Lear rages, And all the drop-scenes drop at once, Upon a hundred thousand stages, It cannot grow by an inch or an ounce"
- Yeats

January 24th, 2007: The Cinema Bar

admin — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 00:56:19 +0000

WEDNESDAY, January 24th, 2007

The Cinema Bar
3967 Sepulveda Blvd.
The City of Culver City, CA 90230

To visit a place with a name such as "Cinema," depending on your knowledge of popular LA bars/clubs, one might assume that inside such an establishment a projector, large screen, and ample seating could be found in addition to the requisite trendy atmosphere and overpriced drinks. On the contrary the Cinema Bar is neither trendy nor overpriced and has barely enough room inside for a big screen TV let alone a movie theater. However, the bar still features live entertainment by squeezing a folk or country/blues band into the corner, making it a one-of-a-kind stop on the Tour.

Allegedly one of the oldest in the city so nice they named it twice, Cinema Bar gets its moniker because it’s situated within the borders of the crooked-street, red-light-camera-saturated, and arrogantly-christened "heart of screenland." The soft glow of Christmas lights on the walls and bartenders’ stiff drinks creates a cozy ambiance, crucial for such a claustrophobic space. As the seating is as limited as the standing room, expect to rub shoulders with fellow bar goers as the place fills up. And don’t worry, should either the stiff drinks or an dashing bar maiden/fella keep you from getting home, the Sun Burst motel across the street stays open late.

Carpe Drink’em,

Alex, Damien, & Travis, WDBT Co-Czars

"You can walk into a movie theater in Amsterdam and buy a beer. And I don’t mean just like in no paper cup, I’m talking about a glass of beer." - Vincent Vega, Pulp Fiction

September 27th, 2006: Scarlet Lady Saloon

admin — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 01:04:39 +0000

WEDNESDAY, September 27th, 2006

Scarlet Lady Saloon
5411 Sepulveda Blvd.
The City of Culver City, CA 90230

Among the few things to do in Culveria other than getting a red-light ticket at every intersection is visiting multiple bars in one night on foot and getting drunk within a tight budget. Though the Scarlet Lady Saloon sits literally next door to the Tattle Tale, which we checked out a little over a month ago, we here at WDBT discourage visiting both in one night; and if you must, do it surreptitiously. These two bars are the Capulets and Montagues of dives, bearing their own unique history, patronage, and character, dueling since at least 1965. To be spotted in both in one night could spark an upheaval rivaling the ‘92 riots.

Compared to the karaoke and singing mina bird of the Tattle Tale, The Scarlet Lady could be described as wholesome and relaxed, especially on a Wednesday night when only the regulars keep the bar stools warm and the pool tables are all but wide open. If Jennifer’s busy pouring drinks, you might be first greeted by a customer’s dog who frequents the saloon with his master, sitting faithfully at his feet, making sure no one plays the one Justin Timberlake CD that somehow made it into the jukebox. If you don’t play darts or are the golf shark of Golden Tee, you might simply relax at the bar watching ESPN.

Carpe Drink’em,

Alex, Damien, & Travis, WDBT Co-Czars

"Two households, both alike in dignity / In fair Culver City, where we lay our scene / From ancient grudge break to new mutiny / Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean."

- Romeo and Juliet (kinda)

August 16th, 2006: Tattle Tale Room

admin — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 01:05:18 +0000

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 16th, 2006

Tattle Tale Room
5401 Sepulveda Blvd.
The City of Culver City, CA 90230

This year, Tattle Tale Room celebrates 41 years as pillar of the community and beacon of local history. Home to neighborhood regulars and cordial to cross-towners, bars like this stay open for decades because they offer something that few drinking establishments in LA can; we at WDBT like to call it class. Karaoke, pool, stiff drinks and a large selection of cheap beers are all part and parcel of this Dive Bar experience; but it’s the patrons that make Tattle Tale Room the joy it is. Don’t be surprised if you see a hunchback crone at the end of the bar serenading a green mina bird on her index finger.

Carpe Drink’em,

Alex, Damien, & Travis, WDBT Co-Czars