The ever-impeding revitalization of Downtown Los Angeles has for years been a hot topic at Westside cocktail parties, as many Angelinos are waiting for the “All Clear” sign to travel east of Rodeo Drive after 7PM. While Disney Concert Hall and Patina Restaurant have recently given some a reason to traverse the great expanse after dark, the Gallery Bar located in the landmark Millennium Biltmore Hotel has been perfecting the art of the cocktail long before Mickey brought music to Bunker Hill.

The Millennium Biltmore is one of the last remaining examples of the grandeur of Los Angeles’ golden age. Designed in the style of the Spanish Italian Renaissance, and encompassing an entire square block, The Biltmore was the largest and grandest hotel west of Chicago when it opened in 1923. It has served as home to presidents (it was JFK’s campaign headquarters), kings and Hollywood celebrities, even hosting several Academy Award ceremonies. Today it stands as both a reminder and a glimmer of hope of what can become of Downtown.

The beautiful, somewhat narrow Gallery Bar is located just off the hotel’s awe-inspiring lobby. With its oak-paneled walls, dimly lighted chandeliers, plush armchairs and leather couches, you are instantly transported to a different time. With a glorious painted ceiling and carved angels gazing upon the imbibers sitting at the polished marble top bar, if ever there was a bar that called out Martini, this is it.

While conversation is rarely above a whisper, except when an occasional jazz trio is performing, the room lacks the stuffiness and pretension that its elegance warrants. The bartending staff maintains the right mix of friendliness and professionalism that makes it easy to enjoy a post work libation without having to jump through hoops.

As if the stunning surroundings were not enough, The Gallery Bar also has it’s own noir notoriety in Los Angeles lore, as the last place Elizabeth Short, AKA The Black Dahlia, was seen on January 15, 1947 before the eviscerated body of the 22-year-old struggling actress turned up on a vacant lot on Norton Avenue and 39th Street. The bar offers a Black Dahlia cocktail to mark the date. I’ll reserve my comment on the tastefulness of both the drink and the concept.

While a hipper set may prefer new neighbor, The Golden Gopher, a re-worked former dive on 8th at Hill Street, which is not without its own high marks, the Gallery Bar serves as a refined refuge from what can be a grim stretch of the City that is attempting to remove the shroud of dilapidated elegance and revive a glamorous past.

C.M.