Redwood Bar & Grill

I had wanted to check out the Redwood for a long time, so one day I went in for lunch on a Saturday. I ended up staying four hours! I had such a great time hanging out with the staff that I'm going there every Saturday now.
The food is very fresh, and it isn't that run-of-the-mill frozen and reheated bar food. Very delicious. I think today I'll try their breakfasts. They're not on the menu yet, but you can still order them. Even the cooks are friendly!
Try the grilled chicken. mmmmm.
But, yeah, this place is definitely more a bar than a restaurant. Come here to drink and eat, not eat and drink if you know what I mean. And to hang out with all the awesome, chill, unpretentious people.

Pros: Friendly, cool staff, fantastic food, chill patrons

Cons: no where for large parties to sit together

Posted 10/24/08

I had hoped there would be more pirate stuff at this bar but I still had a good time. The drinks are good and I especially like the fish and chips. I just want some more pirate stuff!

Posted 09/10/08

I used to like the Redwood bar, especially for the fish and chips. Until this past saturday, the fish and chips stayed good but the atmosphere and the music was shocking!! I dont know who in their right mind put the entertainment together but the MC a mister "Old White Man" was offensive to say the least. Along with the other "entertainers" as well the only word you heard out of their mouths was either X-rated, or blasphemous or both. From sexually perverted ABCs to describing sexuall fantasies on stage, it was just waaay out of hand. The fact that there were children present did not seem to phase neither the performers or the staff either. What a shame!I will not recommend this place again nor stop by for any reason at all.

Pros: None

Cons: Drink prices

Posted 08/17/08

I ate at Redwood Bar & Grill while visiting in town this past Saturday night. I'm formerly an LA resident and moved away several years ago. I had heard downtown was built up but had no idea what to expect. Several friends took me out and we started our night at Redwood. I was super impressed. We wound up staying the whole night despite our big plans, the place just drew us in. Dinner was perfect, that burger was incredible - my friends talked it up and they were right on. Gotta say, I've done all the fancy LA joints and it didn't turn me off one bit in that way, it gave the sweet comfy cool vibe of being a local bar. It was packed but the service was excellent which is seriously a rare find in this town. We loved our server and our eventual bartender was wonderful and much too charming. Sigh. Thank you, Redwood, you have renewed my faith in LA bars!!!

Posted 05/20/08

I was lured downtown to visit the Edison but was turned away when the bouncer said my $300 tennis shoes didnt fit the dress code. Hmm.. not having any moccasins on hand I strolled down the street to my car and saw a load of action up ahead. The Redwood didnt look like much from the outside but once I stepped inside I was glad that the Edison had rejected me. The place was lively and hopping and packed with a young and attractive crowd of predominantly females. A dream come true!

I was a bit famished from a long day and ordered myself a burger. A decadent journey into culinary snackery that really satisfied. The perfect blend of meat and bun and a nice cold brew to wash it down. I ordered the sweet potato fries and loved every minute.

Then the music started up.. a local artist named the Gray Kid got everyone moving and the bar suddenly transformed into one of the best intimate venues I had ever been too. The nautical decor and wood panelling made it feel like you were at someones very cool uncles house party. So all in all.. check out the Redwood. Its a great place to catch a show and a bite and maybe reel in one of the many fish in the sea.

Pros: great music great food

Cons: parking can be tough

Posted 05/12/08

I gave this place a few goes. At first I was charmed by it's quirky props and "new downtown LA" location. Slowly but surely, like a series of progressively worse dates, the charm soured into a sincere distaste.
I've lived in London and Australia, places where the word "Pub" is more than a cute marketing hook and the term "Gastro Pub" a brave statement, best backed up with very good food. So General Manager Jennifer Frizzell's brags about her "Gastro Pub" should be ignored wholesale.
It's better to describe this place as a Pirate Fantasy Camp - complete with worn-out furnishings, food not even fit to throw overboard and staff that would slit your throat for the two gold coins in your pocket, the second you turn your back. You'll be begging to walk the plank.

Pros: alcohol

Cons: staff, food

Posted 02/27/08

Seriously one of the worst dining experiences ever. If stale buns, burned patties (ordered medium) and cold fries = a gastro pub, im never going to one of them again. The only thing colder than the fries was the service when these problems were pointed out to the staff. And this is not a cheap place, a Grey Goose martini costs $12.50 and an Absolute vodka is $8.50. And just as a final (somewhat technical) point, over 6 people they include the tip (ill let you guess why), and while on the menu it says 18% they really charge you 20%. If you question that, they'll point you to a sign at the bar. I think you know what im talking about here.

Pros: props

Cons: food, service, cost

Posted 02/26/08

Me and two other friends went to the Redwood bar on Friday around 6pm. It's very fun to walk into the place, the decor is great. We ordered a couple drinks and sat down for awhile. I know it's silly, but we poured a little hot wax in our hand and watched it dry. The waitress apparently told the bartended who came over and started scolding us. He was so condescending. I realiz we were acting a little childish, but we really had the situation under control. There is totally a nice way to say "quit playing with the wax!". He was so concerned about the wax getting on the black carpet in a dark bar (by the way, there was only a tiny bit of wax in my hand and that was it). I would be more worried about the grease from the food getting on the carpet, rather than the wax. He totally ruined my feelings about the bar.

Pros: Fun decor

Cons: A-hole staff!

Posted 09/24/07

I went here the other night with my honey. The outside looks kind of random, but once you come in its dark and homey... just like all those pubs I used to go to when I lived in London. The bar top is sticky, but the drinks are good and the bartenders are nice. They have a very good selection of beer (on tap and in bottles), as well as wine, and cocktails. My boyfriend had the burger (which was huge and very good, make sure to order the sweet potato fries!) and I had the wedge salad (great dressing) and the crispy barbecue wings (soooo good, and definitely had leftovers for the next day.) Overall, it was a great experience, very chill and unpretentious, and a crowd that was friendly and relaxed.

Pros: Food, service, ambience

Cons: No happy hour

Posted 06/20/07

After thinking long and hard about where to go for my birthday I decided on The Redwood Bar and Grill for the Downtown location and Pirate theme. When I arrived, the place wasn't very busy but like others said, there are very few seats which seems especially strange since on this website their video raves about what good food they have which makes the place sound like more of a restaurant than a bar. There were 7 of us and we did end up getting a table pretty fast but our waiter disappeared right after he sat us and came back about an hour later. When he got to our table, he literally threw a tantrum because we had gotten up and ordered drinks from the bar. He then proceeded to place a little sign on our table to let others know it wasn't occupied. It was actually laugh out loud funny because I couldn't figure out how he was planning on removing us from the table and why the owners would want us removed considering the amount of drinks we were purchasing. If he had only just slowed down a bit and been friendly about it we would have ordered more drinks from him and compensated him for his trouble but after that I don't know what kind of tip he was expecting. I have to say that the managers were so nice about the whole thing and apologized but I can't figure out why that guy was working there? Also in the video they go on about the nautical themed drinks but when I asked for the menu the bar tender didn't even seem to know one existed (although when he found it he made the drinks like he had done it before, they were great!)

Posted 06/12/07

I loved Redwood Bar and Grill's atmosphere. It is funky and fun with sailing and pirate paraphernalia all over the place. My friends and I got a kick out of it. This place is great for large groups of people because it is the kind of place where people are milling around mixing and mingling. However, if you do go with a large group, you probably won?t end up sitting at the same table. There aren't many tables and it gets really cramped around the bar with everyone vying to put in their drink orders. Everyone ends up standing around in groups talking. I didn't get to try the food but it looked really good.

Pros: Great Atmosphere

Cons: Very little parking in the area, Limited seating

Posted 06/06/07

Being in Downtown LA on a Thursday evening after a long day of meetings can be gruelling. How refreshing that I was able to find such a place as the Redwood in order to avoid the traffic. I was immediately greeted by a young lady behind the bar with a warm smile. I usually sit at tables but opted for the bar this time no doubt due to this 'original' greeting (it's hard to find smiles in LA these days). Famished, I asked for a menu and an opinion. Without hesitation she recommended the Fish&Chips. I myself am a connoisseur of this dish. I've had it in London, Scotland, New England (all over the East Coast), as well as many other places and I must say that these are, indeed the best you'll ever have. As excited as I am to find a place with such great food, I am equally impressed with the service. It is so nice to be greeted so warmly and taken care of as if I walked into the bartender's own home. That is the way she made me feel! Thank you and I will definitely be back.

Pros: Service, food, and drinks

Cons: parking (it's downtown)

Posted 05/30/07

After wasting 40 minutes of my time waiting to pay for a parking ticket, I wind up walking into this huge (from the outside you can't tell how big it is), cozy and cool bar, wich made me feel like I was on a Hollywood movie set, keeping my expectations to see captain Sparrow at any given moment. I sat at the bar when the bartender asked me..."Do you want to have lunch or just a drink?". "So you guys serve food too?", I replied while he was giving me the menu. I've got to tell you, I was quiet surprised with the variety of the menu, from short ribs to garlic tiger prawns. I ended up ordering the lunch special, which was a "pizza margarita". It was maybe the best pizza dough I've ever had. The crunchiness was unbelievable and the tomato sauce had a garlic kick that was off the wall.
I can't really speak for the rest of the food since I haven't try it but if everything else taste like the pizza I'm down on it.
Pros: food, staff, atmosphere
cons:restrooms extremly dark, is hard to tell is also a restaurant

Pros: food, ambience

Cons: parking, restroom too dark

Posted 05/13/07

It's not really a lunch place, even if they do serve lunch.

It's a bar. With bar food. Wit bar decor. With bar service.

The wait staff has attitude, yes, but they are hardly rude. If you want great restaurant service, go to Patina, or the Water Grill.

If you want pirate decor, good food, good drinks and great people watching, the Redwood is a great bet.

Posted 05/08/07

Had a res. Still waited 15minutes after res time for a lunchtime table. They tried to seat our group of 9 at a table for 6. Waited some more. After ordering, waited over 40 minutes for our burgers.....at lunch!!! (Although the 6-top adjacent to us ordered after we did, they got their food a whole lot sooner). Empty glasses all around. Food was grossly overcooked, cold and generally just plain poor. Service was very poor. Seemed to be loads of staff wandering about, just not near our table. Would definitely not return. Under the new ownership, this place is seriously overrated. Where's Alice when you need her?

Pros: unusual decor

Cons: poor service, slow service

Posted 03/13/07

I love to eat fish.
I also have a highly acute olfactory sense.

I am the guy who drives to Baja more than a few times a year just to eat fresh fish.

I am talking about driving over the mountains to the remote fishing villages on the coast. I will spend all morning out on the panga boats catching snapper, bass, and lingcod. If we are lucky enough to land a yellowtail, it is sushi before we get back to the ramp.

By 3 in the afternoon it's cooking on the grill. I thought there was nothing that could match the taste. Until I had the fish at Redwood. I also like the fact that I can save a great deal of money on gas, freeway tolls, and fishing gear.

When Some places have lines and attitued that look like the US border, Redwood is the best place to anchor and "make-port".

If anything stunk the night that last writer was there, it had to have been attitude.

Pros: Great Food, Never Boring

Cons: No Tecate

Posted 03/06/07

Having been a concierge downtown for several years, I regret to say, I WILL NEVER RECOMMEND the Redwood to any of our residents. I'm very disappointed with the treatment I received from the waiting staff including the restaurant manager. I was doing a self-guided tour of 5 new hot spots with 3 friends, when arriving at the ?Redwood?, it smelled a little fishy, but after a cold Guinness I wanted a taste of the fish & chips. I approached a man standing at the bar who appeared to be a waiter, I asked about ordering food and he pointed to an empty table, so we sat. The waitress arrived at the table stating that it was ?her? table, and that she told someone else to sit there. She insisted that we vacate the table. There?s no need to go on. This restaurant?s staff needs training.

Pros: ?

Cons: Rude Staff, Fishy Smell

Posted 03/06/07

This place is awesome! My friends and I have gone a few times and each time was great experience. The servers are friendly and attentive, the bartenders are supercool and quick, and the management is very involved - which makes for a great experience. The food is fantastic too... at midnight or at 6pm the burgers are one of the best around plus the sweet potato fries are like no one elses, perfect! You have to go for the drinks... great selection of beers, bartenders are good with the mixes and you can't leave without walking the plank...

Pros: food, service, atmosphere

Cons: parking

Posted 03/01/07

Really disappointing food, despite the other reviews. We're wondering what other reviewers ate.

We went for the food and not the bar and so the latter gets no commment, although
my husband had to send his glass of chardonnay back as it was bad. The waitress was gracious, the staff very nice. It's just that what we ordered showed a mediocre kitchen.
It went like this: Wedge salad really awful A terrible tasteless "coconut" dressing with limp lettuce (hard to imagine possible with iceberg lettuce) and unattractive. Hamburger okay, not great. French fries quite awful: mealy and tasteless. My salmon a bit overcooked but good but the accompanying vegetables all wrong (beans, tomatoes) and "camelized onions" a mess. I wanted to go back into the kitchen and offer help: a good garlic, thousand island or roquerfort dressing for the salad, spinich or a crispy vegetable with the salmon, thinner non-mealy french fries.

The booths are very comfortable, our service was okay (no refills in our water glasses). We want it to be much better so we can go back. Right now...no.

Pros: comfortable booths, fair prices, good menu selections (if they tasted better)

Cons: food just off, music a bit too loud (but tolerable if the food was good)

Posted 02/22/07

I'm so glad there's finally a bar with great food. I've tried everything from the starters to the entrees, and I've never been disappointed. The soups of the day are delicious (tomato basil is my favorite!). I've always received great customer service and the staff is super friendly. I love their collection of draft and bottled beers and they have all sorts of liquors. Get there early on the weekends, finding a spot to sit on a Friday/Saturday night can be difficult. They usually have different DJs spinning in the back room, so don't forget to make your way to the back. Overall, great place...

Pros: Food, selection of beers, friendly staff

Cons: Parking (it's Downtown...)

Posted 02/16/07

There are HUNDREDS of cool, fun places in this great City, so WHY go to a place where the people who work there are TOTAL JERKS????? I had The WORST Bar Experience Ever at this ridiculous place. My boyfriend and I went to meet about 6 friends there on a Saturday night. We bought drinks and chatted. We gave our friends invitations to an art opening that was happening in a few weekends, and the 2 extra ones we had, we gave to people we met at the bar. A waitress saw me give one, then YELLED in my face, DO YOU WANT TO LEAVE NOW OR DO YOU WANT TO DEAL WITH SECURITY ? I said, I want to see security. I didnt know what her problem was. Then, security proceeded to PICK ME UP AND PUT ME OUTSIDE WITHOUT ASKING ME--essentially, the MANHANDLED ME WITHOUT PERMISSION, PHYSICALLY HANDLED ME WITHOUT EXPLANATION. I'm about 5 foot 3, weigh about 110 pounds. I hardly cut an imposing physical threat, but apparently armed with PAPER, I was a somehow seen as a threat. I won't go into details about what transpired after, which is actually not that eventful. Needless to say, I only got an apology from said security guard AFTER I DEMANDED IT From the manager, who did NOT identify himself as such, and only did so AFTER I DEMANDED IT and REFUSED to leave the sidewalk in front of this place. THis was humiliating, and sexist behavior. BOYCOTT THIS BAR FOR GOOD.

Posted 02/13/07

The Redwood Bar is truly a legend in the making. This great ol spot sat empty for so long I always wondered what was going to become of it and I was excited to the stir of activity there over the last few years. Ever since the opening I make it part of my week to stop in and try something new. Their array of fine Rums make for some great exotic cocktails with definite Tropical flair! I tried to tatse each and every beer but there are so many I only made it halfway through. My favorite was the Craftsman.. a great undiscovered gem.

The food is equally as great! The burgers are huge and juicy and oozing with real burger taste. Its a fancy burger, but it wouldnt be out of place at any barbeque. I was especially surpised with the mussels and fries which has a great broth that really brings out the magic. I have worked my way through the majority of the menu and strongly recommend the inventive Winemakers Steak.

The best thing about this bar is the stunning decor. I dont know who did it but I am sure he is being hunted down by directors to do set design because this place feels just like a movie! The nautical touches are really impressive without being overwhelming.

As for the clientele I am amazed with the great variety of people that frequent the place and the new life of Downtown. No highbrow holier than thou attitudes here just great real people that arent afraid to talk to a stranger. It truly feels like a neighborhood bar.

The service is great and the bartenders knowledgeable and friendly. The waitstaff doesnt mind spending time explaining your options and are very friendly!

So .. drag ol the ol skull and bones shirt and make it down to this new LA legend! Youll be glad ye did matey!

Pros: Great Service Friendly People Amazing Food

Cons: sometimes a little hard to find parking

Posted 02/13/07

So I was totally excited to check out this new bar... most seats already reserved at 7:30 so get there early or call ahead. Waitress took forever, not so friendly, and spilled a drink on a friend and never picked up the mess. Hello. So we continued to make the best of it until we got the bill. The waitress charged us for drinks the table next to us were drinking and they got charged for the same drinks? Yeah. Weird. And how? So what did we do, we asked the Manager how it happend, he was unsure and took a portion off but the waitress got upset and threw the receipt at us. So the fun was over for the Redwood. We traveled over to Hotel Figueroa and much better!!! Oh and one last thing... if you are a party over 6 you must pay 18% gratuity and for what?? And for the forced tip... I believe it was Mr. Pink who put it best from Resevoir dogs!

Posted 01/20/07

Gave the place a few chances! Sat down with a friend at the bar for 10mins! No service! Left, went to a fun place called Hanks! Not a friendly atmosphere!

Pros: None

Cons: Unfriendly staff! Bad customer service!

Posted 12/28/06

big fan of this spot...solid selection of beers on tap, the food is mighty tasty, the space is big with a small feel, the vibe is chill...kinda rustic. i'd say my fav part of the bar is the staff...the bartenders rock. i live in westLA yet find myself out there almost once a week...it's that good.

Pros: vibe, beer selection, staff

Cons: parking

Posted 12/04/06

I live downtown and this is my new favorite bar. Not scene-y (and it better not become it citysearch!!!) and the bartenders rule. Waitress? Ask for Jessica. she's awesome.
It's less like a pirate theme. and more like the insides are decorated with ships rigging. very cool, and the crowd is really diverse, old and young, hipster / not so hipster.
i just wish they'd bring back the jolly roger rum.
arrrrrrrrrrr

Pros: atmosphere, people, JUKEBOX

Cons: downtown, so unless you love it, you have to BRAVE IT whahaha

Posted 10/04/06

Great design, great downtown location, friendly owners and bartenders who are obviously really trying to start a tradition there.

Haven't had the food yet, kitchen isn't open. Lot's of room, great jukebox, strong drinks, and oh, yeah - pirates , lots and lot's of pirates.

Posted 10/03/06