Finding Dives Between the Lines and Cocktails in the Crevices with Jade Bustamante.
So, you’ve made it to Los Angeles! You’ve seen the stars and surrendered to their studded slums long enough to side-step south for a day into our beloved Long Beach. Here in SoCal, we all regard Long Beach as the cool collective of Orange County and Los Angeles where anything and everything is available if you know where to look. After the sun goes down, our sleepy beach town shifts gears from summer post card chic into a bustling bar scene. Wherever you may land in the city, there is a drink waiting for you less than a few blocks away. It can be overwhelming to suss out which bars are worth your limited time in Long Beach, so I’m here to guide you through your drinking dilemma. Trailheading our itinerary is a new school wine bar with divey bones. 4th Street Vine is a neighborhood spot where locals congregate on a spacious patio drop lined with twinkly lights to listen to live music and indulge in a ragbag of rad wines. Next up is a crowd favorite and critter classic, The Grasshopper. A cozy cocktail focused space featuring romantic lighting and captivating art. Here you can sip on a Paper Plane and lose yourself in their iconic grasshopper stained glass window stationed just above the bar itself. Last on our list is our rising star, Midnight Oil. A new addition to the LB bar scene, Midnight Oil is a sleek, red and black detailed cocktail lounge with multiple concepts underway. Try one of their many original concoctions at the main bar or head deeper into their labyrinth for a frozen strawberry daiquiri. Riddled with eccentric townies, these three bars are sure to leave you with a close connection to our beloved city and desperate to discover more.
Jade Bustamante Writer, creative consultant, cocktail artist.