L'Chaim Part II
[Disclaimer: sorry for the delay. I drafted this several days ago, but work's been busy, I had to get the bounty hunter to bust me out of the Mexican jail my neighbor and I wound up in, and...]
OK, I lied, no jail was involved. The story of our night out may not be quite so interesting as you had hoped, but we had a very enjoyable time. After debating what car to take to the Arsenal, we went with the Jag (not mine; my neighbor's). My motto: if you're going to a biker bar, you may as well stand out.
My first hint that things had changed at the Arsenal was the valet parker that greeted us.
Valet parking? Also, the restaurant now had doors opening onto the street instead of being accessible only from the parking lot. When we got inside, I was delighted to see the decor was unreconstructed 1970's with deep red walls and black Naugahyde booths. The bartender had dreadlocks, and the bar's glass shelves were decorated with neon backlighting in lurid orange. We eyed the drinks menu and were amused to find
Pink Squirrels on it, as well as Sex on the Beach and all those other oddball drinks so popular in the late 70's. (Major disappointment: no Harvey Wallbanger listed.)
My friend surveyed the bar denizens, the decor, inhaled the ambiance and announced, "In a place like this there's only one drink to have." She got a shot of tequila. I stuck with white wine - boring, I know, but I like it. No bikers were to be seen but several guys in polo shirts and caps, looking as if they'd just come off the local public golf course, strolled in over the next half hour. We talked about our jobs - a friend of hers who's managed to get in trouble with the IRS over her investments, and the game plan my friend planned to get her out of it; and some of my patients, and my house project. (She's put up with all the noise and mess for months, so she has a vested interest in it.)
We relaxed to the point that we decided to stay for dinner, which was as good as advertised. A 6 oz. filet mignon with Bearnaise and potatoes was $13, 11 oz. was $20. And it was good. No veg on the plate - that was extra, but we were happy with our meat, potatoes, and booze. No wonder guys like this place! As we prepared to leave, we made plans to spend the summer going on a "retro restaurant cruise" of West Los Angeles. Next stop: Billingsley's, also on Pico but half a mile west of the Arsenal. I hear they're also known for good cheap dinners...
posted by Dr. Alice at #
