Harvard & Stone
$$ Bars
5221 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
For three years I’ve lived as close to Harvard & Stone as some people do to their mailboxes, but for three years I never get to visit because I am usually wearing shorts.
Harvard & Stone Dress Code:
No Shorts
No Athletic Logo T-Shirt
No Flip Flops
No Baseball Cap
I wear shorts almost everyday, not because I’m bro-ish, but because it’s Los Angeles. I always imagine that some business would capitalize on this, open nearby and become a late night men’s boutique clothing store since the dress code is heavily weighted against the ubiquitous bro. I’ve seen a lot of people, not bros, but middle-aged men and Mexicans with baseball caps, turned away. The men’s boutique clothing store can offer special discounts for those turned down from Harvard & Stone due to their clothing faux pas and dress them appropriately for the bar. Since the gentrification virus has affected almost all of Hollywood Blvd., there are maybe four or five abandoned storefronts due to the horrendous company that owns their building and the neighboring building substantially increasing rent prices and wiping Little Armenia off the face of Hollywood Blvd. One of these expensive vacant holes can be a boutique shop that not only offers fancy clothes but also discounts for matching pants and fedora combinations. Maybe a free mustache with purchase too.
Now you, yes you, can look as dandy as the Harvard & Stone hipster for $59.99 + tax!
When I decide I want to come inside, I walk 50 feet to my apartment and cover my bare legs. Then I come back here and it’s usually fun to see free bands and burlesque dancers. During the week is more fun because it’s less chaotic and more of a lounge experience that emphasizes the handsomeness of this bar. The bands are usually local and draw a small enough crowd for it not to be ridiculously crowded (usually). The people are less pretentious than one may think if only a notch. The hipsters are not the dangerous crowd at Harvard & Stone. It’s actually the drunk west-siders who come here and try to stand out as they think the hipsters of the east do. It’s revolting to bike back from Echo Park at 2 am and find a passed-out blonde with her hair halfway lodged in the door to my apartment building. And oblivious west siders beside her loudly chatting and entering any westbound Uber ride that they see, assuming that that ride is theirs. “Hey does this person belong to any of you?” Since Harvard & Stone is located on the west-bound side of Hollywood Blvd., the front is often crammed with taxis heading in that direction. So she’ll probably be heading closer to where she lives.
Their drink specials are special, like the ones this week: try the Wizard Piss (bourbon, lemon juice, apricot), Whore Island (rum, coconut, pineapple, lime) or F*ck You, And Good Luck (mostly tequila) are all for the price that their drinks are offered for $10. Their drinks are as boutique as the dress code entails and appropriately good for their price, as is the consensus for some of my friends. For me though, I’m all about the Thai food a la Pranom Popup being served on the back patio (sometimes there is a pad thai vendor outside) on Monday nights. For the same price but more food and delectable options, at least five Thai restaurants within a two-block vicinity stay open until 2 am and at least two of those stay open until 3:30 am (Hollywood Thai, Ruen Pair, and sometimes Sanamluang).
Useful: 2 Funny: 5 Cool: 3
5/22/2014