The newly opened 33 Taps has a very different vibe from its former iteration, City Tavern. Under new owners, the local sports bar offers a wide beer selection and a a small but varied food menu. There are two points of entry into the restaurant, from the back on Washington or from the front, on Culver. Upon entering at 5:30 p.m. on a Saturday afternoon, the middle section of the bar was packed with 20-30 somethings excitedly and happily chatting with their group of friends. This was a very different vibe from City Tavern which at 5 o’clock had to entice people with a happy hour menu. I noticed that the young crowd favored drinking to eating and the booths were filled with a slightly older crowd enjoying actual meals along with adult beverages. Upon being seated, my husband was asked for a credit card, requested to order everything by scanning the QR code and ordering through the platform. Once ordered, the beverages and food came out quickly.
Our first starter, the Brussels sprouts, had a slightly bitter smoky flavor but were perfectly cooked, not too crispy and not too mushy.
My husband’s chicken burrito arrived with chips and dipping sauces. The chicken burrito was beautifully presented with a nice nice cilantro sauce intermixed.
My lettuce wrap burger had a perfectly cooked beef patty covered by a thick crisp lettuce leaf and adorned with crunchy tater tots. Though the bacon could have been crispier, the mushrooms on top of the patty were plentiful, savory and silky and the Swiss cheese was melted onto the burger which was seasoned to perfection.
I was hesitant as 33 Taps’ menu seemed limited but what we ordered was expertly prepared and presented so no complaints on that front. 33 Taps is walk in only which could become problematic during peak dining times but if they can maintain the level of service from the kitchen staff to the servers, it will be a quick turnaround on orders once seated. We would happily return to this local haunt and are happy they’ve joined the neighborhood!
Many moons ago, the Manchester was the local Loyola Marymount haunt, the Fireside. It’s where fake ID’s were honored and where staggering drunkards whittled their time away. Since then, the location has been reinvented into a few other iterations, but it wasn’t until it morphed into The Manchester that I finally decided to return. Long gone are the dark, dank walls where I walked between for my 21st birthday and was nearly forced to drink a disgusting shot of Jagermeister. What emerged was a contemporary, dimly lit, very popular spot with the locals and millennials alike.
Fortunately, I was able to get a last minute dinner reservation on Resy on a Friday night. When we came in, the place was packed. We were a few minutes early so we had an opportunity to look around. The space is not that large, but it didn’t feel oppressive. It took a few minutes for our table to become available but once that freed up, we were taken care of the rest of the evening.
Fernando, one of the owners, had set us up with our cocktails before our table was ready, which arrived just as soon as we were being whisked to our table.
After reviewing the menu, we opted for the burger and fries to start and the chicken and salmon from the large entree menu. Our appetizer was quite savory.
The burger patty was slightly salty and the meat was fairly tender. The fries were crispy, per my request and the aioli dip hit the spot.
Our entrees also were quite good. The salmon was moist and flaky. The accompanying vegetables, the eggplant and baby bok choy, were lightly seasoned and perfectly cooked.
The chicken had a surprisingly crispy skin and moist, tender meat with a savory and a slightly crispy broccolini as its accompaniment.
We ended our meal with a very chocolatey pot de creme. It was quite creamy and could possibly cause one to stay up all night.
All in all, the food and service were quite good. Truth be told though, the prices were high for what we ordered. I’ve eaten at other restaurants like Prospect Gourmand on La Cienega or Lunetta All Day on Pico where comparable entrees are closer to the $18-$22 range so we felt the prices were a bit inflated. Other than that, the service, ambiance, vibe and the food were quite enjoyable. Though we would likely not return as there are better values for the experience, the Manchester would definitely be one to try.
The Manchester
8522 Lincoln Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90045
https://themanchester.la
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Grace Gambin
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