I love the Library Bar for its awesome beer selection, which was hand-selected by the Beer Chick herself, Christina Perozzi, the former bar manager of Father’s Office. But turns out they now have a brand-new specialty cocktails list. For me? You shouldn’t have. The good news? There are 10 lovely old-school-inspired concoctions to choose from, ranging from the Moscow Mule to the ode to Trader Vic’s Mai Tai. The bad news? $12 each. H’yeah.

But I thought I should suck it up and give their list a shot. With literary names to keep in theme with the bar, I was intrigued. But what’s the inspiration behind “The Bitchin’ Manhattan”? And why couldn’t the Blueberry Daiquiri and Pear Lemon Drop have literary names, too? A tad inconsistent, don’t you think? And it would have been cool if they included a one-liner describing the cocktail and why it was called “Paradise Lost” or “Lady Chatterley’s Lover,” which by the way sounds scary. (Hendrick’s Gin, olive juice, Vermouth, Tabasco. Yikes.) Instead you’re left searching for a double meaning in the cocktail’s ingredients.

In any case, I started things off with the bar’s chocolate martini, the Willy Wonka (of course) — dark and light Godiva, Stoli Vanilla and Chambord with a cocoa powder on the rim. I was skeptical at first. I thought it would be like most chocolate martinis, too sweet and sickeningly creamy. But instead it was pretty good and so potent. The cocoa powder on the rim was a nice touch instead of the typical chocolate syrup all over the place. But for those who do expect something chocolatey and sweet, you may be disappointed. I’d say this was meant for dark chocolate lovers who like the bitterness. At first I rejected the addition of Chambord thinking it would be too much berry in my chocolate martini, but actually it wasn’t too bad. Come to think of it, I don’t remember tasting it at all. Good thing?

Next up was the Pear Lemon Drop since the bartender raved about it calling it her absolute favorite. All right, I’ll give it a shot. I usually steer clear of tart drinks but I figured the Absolute Pear Vodka would soften the tang of the lemon. And it did somewhat. I’d call this a nice springtime cocktail what with the pear vodka, triple sec and fresh sour mix. And, it was a unique lemon drop in not only its addition of pear flavor but for its lack of a sugar rim, standard for such a cocktail. The sugar rim would have helped with both the flavor and the presentation of the cocktail which showed up without a garnish.

Lastly, I sampled a bit of my drinking companion Nancy‘s Blueberry Daiquiri — Bacardi Silver Rum, simple syrup with fresh lime and blueberry juice. Damn, this was good, and deceptively innocuous, like downing fresh blueberry juice! It’s good for you, I say. Has lots of antioxidants. Heh. And this, unlike the Pear Lemon Drop, arrived with a sugar rim. It would have been nice if they gave the lemon drop the sugar rim and dropped some blueberries in the daiquiri instead. But having that bit of sugar didn’t hurt the taste.

So, yeah. I like that they have a specialty cocktail list to offer the masses. Every bar should. But in all honesty, I’d be more apt to order up a Craftsman brew, any Craftsman, than the $12 cocktail. Something about the library chairs and bookshelves says brown ale to me, if not a brandy in a snifter. And, damn, the beer is good.

630 W Sixth Street Ste 116A
Los Angeles, California 90017 Map
(213) 614-0053