Michael's Pub

A neon sign "Michael's Pub: Cocktails" beckons to the lonely souse stumbling down the streets of Los Angeles. Within is a scene straight from "Barfly": A dimly backlit bar, jukebox playing "Beer is Better then God", patrons that look like they have crystallized in the form of stalagmites from the condensed whiskey on their bar stools, and a sticky bartop perfect for hunkering on in a miasma of self-loathing. Its the perfect place to artificially experience rock bottom, if you're into that sort of thing, which I am.

Drinks, in keeping with the skid row ambiance are ridiculously strong, and obscenely cheap. My whiskey ginger was probably 9/10ths whiskey, as was my buddies whiskey sour (both of which were made with Ten High). My Martini? Straight gin. The total? 12.50, not including tip. I would be hard-pressed to find that sort of deal anywhere else in Los Angeles, much less in the state of California.

Michael's provides the sort of gloriously perfect Bukowskiesque experience I no longer thought could exist in Los Angeles as a bastion of an almost extinct LA drinking culture more interested in a stiff drink than the vapid status-mongering so seemingly prevalent in bars across the area. Without a doubt, this diviest of dives gave me one of the finest drinking experiences I've ever had in a city which I was certain had lost its soul.

The place looks ok on the inside it's a bit small but it's alright to chill with your friends. The people that go there are chill..older crowd but it's ok I just go to play pool with friends not to pick up :) Anyways 75 cents per game $2.00 for a soda, I don't drink beer so I don't know about the beer prices.

No drink specials.  A double jameson was $12.  Dark even in the day.  Pool and darts.  Boy, did I take a dive, I'm glad I could swim back to shore.  Admittedly, it was day drinking - so take your clinical depression vaccine before entry is my tip.