Prince O’Whales
335 Culver Blvd.
Playa Del Rey, CA 90293
map

There are only two dive bars left this year, and Prince O’Whales is a new addition to the Tour that shouldn’t be missed. The "P.O.W." (as the locals call it) is actually 2 bars, one for live music and a larger one with TVs and dining tables–we encourage any sampling from their respectable bar menu. The bifurcated bar is separated by a dark, filthy, "outdoor" hallway soaked in puddles of spilled bud light, which also doubles as a smoking area, though don’t be surprised if inside the bartenders are ashing while pouring your drinks.

The clientele consists mostly of baby boomers who roll in from their ocean view homes up the hill and LMU students who never cease to harsh the mellow of anyone looking for a quiet drink. The latter is more of an issue on Tuesdays when a band is playing. Have a seat at the bar and you will most likely end up next to a crusty ol’ regular who started drinking long before you and will be arguing with the barkeep for another one long after you leave. Needless to say, some of the best conversations start with these loyal patrons.

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 crowd in there, friends aside, seemed more like it was 1 p.m. on a Tuesday and acted as if they were just drinking as much as they could before they had to go back for the rest of their shift at the slaughterhouse."

-Yelp.com reviewer

The Harbor Room
195 Culver Blvd.
Playa Del Rey, CA 90293
Map

The next time you get into an elevator with several people, take a moment to think about what it would be like should the power be interrupted and you’re left stranded between floors for an indefinite period of time. Only the dim glow of an emergency light fills the tiny space. You acknowledge the girl next to you and pretend like you know how to get the elevator going again. After pressing some buttons and a few failed attempts at open a nonexistent panel in the ceiling, you relent and sulk onto the floor. The close proximity to your fellow passengers inevitably aids in your getting to know one another. The conversation picks up and the mood lightens, but at no point do you forget the inescapable predicament afflicting everyone.

Now, imagine "Hunka Hunka Burnin’ Love" begins to play softly from an old speaker above and everyone is suddenly holding a cocktail. A gentle, ocean breeze blows through the room. In the blink of an eye, the elevator car has been bisected by a wet bar, and the girl next to you is now a 55-year-old mustached man, wearing a USC polo, drinking Cutty Sark. You are immediately reminded of your favorite bar in Playa Del Rey, The Harbor Room, LA’s smallest licensed drinking establishment. This low-key, cash-only hole-in-the-wall is a popular nightcap for the baby boomers who live on the nearby bluff overlooking the sand. It offers many stiff, top-shelf drinks at well prices; and, for those of us who enjoy a Jim Beam, splash of coke (the "Tarr"), Harbor Room proudly serves only Beam Black.

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

There are many things in LA that bring happiness and peace to the hearts of its inhabitants. Be it the copious dining establishments featuring some of the finest cuisine from around the globe, one of the best indi music scenes in the country, or some of the best cocaine and heroin this side of the Mississippi, there’s a little something for everyone here. And, despite the joys of a vacation, the challenges of a business trip, or agony of losing your life savings in Vegas, when the plane’s tires make that final thump onto the tarmac you’ve arrived in the sprawling, over-populated, smog-filled, decrepit city you call home.

As you taxi in, your travel weary bones ache to stir, both from the cramped seats and the itch of impending hell that awaits you in your "real life" LA existence. However, luckily for you, your good friend picking you up at baggage claim knows of your woes even before you arrive. As you leave the airport, your empathetic pal veers away from the freeway entrance onto a side road, quieting your protests with a simple "trust me." In no time you’ve arrived in the secluded hamlet of Playa del Rey, where the smell of brine and beer meld like turkey and gravy, and the smallest bar in LA county is open and ready to serve, The Harbor Room.

With quite possibly one of the greatest juke boxes on the Tour and a friendly bartender pouring well drinks with top shelf liquor, those memories of the 300lb land monster spilling into your window seat and the measle-infected 3-month-old wailing behind you will quickly melt away — as will the trepidation of telling your wife that you have to take out a second mortgage on the house because there was an "incident" at the Venetian.

Harbor Room is cash only, but there’s an ATM if you forget. Bring plenty of singles for the music, put on some Roy Orbison, and listen to an old timer makes conversation as twilight falls. Everything’s gonna be okay.

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

I’m sittin’ on the dock of the bay
Watching the tide roll away
Ooo, I’m just sittin’ on the dock of the bay
Wastin’ time

- Otis Redding