First off, this was supposed to be an actual review of the RokBar since I didn’t get to check it out yet. But after an hour of driving around looking for street parking in Hollywood on a Wednesday night of all nights, we walked up to the cute, friendly door guy at the RokBar to be told, “Sorry, there’s a private party. But you’re welcome to come back at 10.” Nooo, we’re not coming back at 10! Well, maybe.

So instead we wandered over to the Geisha House which was around the corner on Hollywood Boulevard. I’ve heard about this place for awhile, read reviews, saw it on Punk’d but never actually checked it out so I was sorta excited to finally see it in person.

We walked in through the unmarked side door, not sure if it was an actual entrance or the kitchen staff’s entrance. But as soon as we stepped in and paused to assess what exactly was going on here a friendly coat check guy said, “Yes, you’re in the right place.” So we proceeded down this red hallway and emerged into this beautiful bar scene where a grid of white boxes filled with TVs and liquor bottles backlit by white light highlighted the 50-foot-long sake bar.

Along the facing wall was one long cushy bench with little box cocktail tables and boxy stools. And the connecting rooms were the dining room (fore) and the sushi bar (aft). And I even glimpsed an upstairs where there were more dining tables. Lots of space. Apparently there’s a dj perched somewhere up there and an upstairs bar called the Moon Bar that has a retractable roof.

After our frustating quest to find parking, we were eager for a drink. Geisha House has a list of specialty cocktails, most involving sake of course. The bartender asked us if it was our first time there and when we said, “Yes” she said, “Welcome!” and proceeded to offer us her suggestions for a cocktail. All the cocktails are $12. Yes, a pretty penny. There’s also a wine list and flights of sake where you can order tastes of three premium sakes for $20. I decided to try out the Geisha’s Kiss which was a mix of sake, lychee, Chambord and champagne. It was dee-lish! Fruity and light.

My friend and I easily found a place to sit to take in the bar scene. Lots of beautiful women impeccably dressed in typical young Hollywood fashion. There were lots of guys…many, many guys. But no cute guys, unfortunately. So we just sipped our drinks and enjoyed the atmosphere and great people-watching vantage point.

The other thing that stood out about this place was how genuinely nice the staff was. None of this “I don’t have time for you” attitude.

Excerpted from LATimes:

Waiters sporting some designer’s vision…wish everyone a wonderful time, and they actually seem to be sincere about it. As Geisha House is owned by the Dolce Group, the same outfit that owns Dolce in West Hollywood, that’s surprising. Dolce’s front desk is notoriously rude….At Geisha House, everyone from the doormen to the hostess who patiently waits while you decide if you want to sit upstairs or down to the runners who bring your plates is free from even a smidgen of attitude. This definitely is not business as usual.

I would definitely come back here again, this time with more friends to have more drinks on a weekend night or maybe to actually have some dinner which I heard is pretty good too.

6633 Hollywood Blvd
Hollywood, CA 90028
(323) 460-6300
Cross Street: Cherokee Avenue
Mon-Sat 6pm-2am