3rd Base Bar's Glowing Menu Lights Up Hollywood
Don’t come to 3rd Base Bar with your friends.
Let me rewind, I wrote that wrong. You should go to 3rd Base Bar with your friends, but don’t be shocked if you don’t pay much attention to them. Food can be a great distraction, and the menu at 3rd Base Bar is that perfect distraction.
3rd Base Bar sits on Cahuenga next to Trejo’s Cantina in the space where Big Wangs used to be. It’s in the popular parking lot covered in cars where you would like to park, but can never find a free space. Don’t let the chaos of the parking lot deceive you. While you may want to assume that it’s a dive bar or a place that you wouldn’t give a second thought to, the actual bar doesn’t look they way you might imagine. Once you step inside you’ll find 3rd Base Bar has a clean and modern appearance. It’s sleek in all the right places and shies away from being ostentatious. The TVs lining the center bar are louder than you or any of your friends so if you don’t plan to have a conversation that falls in unison with whatever game is playing, then I hope you know sign language.
But that’s not the point. What matters isn’t whatever is playing on the screens, or who you came with. The important part of the bar is the food and you can fight me on that.
Ok don’t.
I stepped into 3rd Base Bar in Hollywood after a long day at work. Honestly, any day at work is a long one as my job is incredibly fast paced. I also mean that in the sense that anything that prolongs me from getting home and falling face first into my bed, better be worthwhile. Luckily, 3rd Base Bar was worth it. I met the owner, Drew, who introduced me to the menu and presented a few favorites. Was he biased towards the things he recommended to me? Of course, but I happily welcomed it. With each item he pointed to, I smiled and nodded in agreement to order it. We concluded at three dishes and in a matter of moments followed by minutes, Drew’s favorite plates arrived.
The first of the three plates was the Chicken Poppers ($12). What was presented before me was a collection of chicken made with buttermilk brine, crispy lemon breading, and served with dipping sauces of ketchup and 3rd Base sauce (herbs, chives, and love). Yes, “love” is actually on the menu and with each bite, you’ll actually taste it. The chicken was tender and mouthwatering, while the breading piqued a series of taste buds that craved more. It would be easy to finish these quickly, but with two other plates to experience, I moved my attention elsewhere.
I made the decision to box up the chicken poppers as the scent from the Philly Cheesesteak Sliders ($11) wafted in my direction. I was eager to taste the sliced rib eye, peppers and onions, spicy queso, and a truffle jus. The second I did was the second I realized that anyone around me didn’t matter. Granted, I was eating alone but should I have been eating with others they wouldn’t have existed. Reason being, the sliders were incredibly flavorful. The meat was rich and succulent and it inhaled the jus perfectly. The vegetables allowed the queso to cover them effortlessly making it a pairing that seemed destined to be. Why am I not putting more melted cheese on my own vegetables? That said, it was something that was delicious.
The carnivore in me is so sad to admit that my favorite dish contained zero meat. As much as I wanted the poppers to be the clear winner, it wasn’t. It was the Earth Bowl ($15). With no meat in sight, the earth bowl was a surprising and delightful win. Brown rice and quinoa, black beans, crispy kale, charred corn, seasonal roasted cauliflower, butternut squash, and topped with a lemon cumin vinaigrette. It was filling, eye-popping, and what I would always hope vegetables would taste like — but they rarely ever do. I loved the selection of vegetables from peppers and Brussels sprouts and the base of the beans and the quinoa made it feel as if I wasn’t missing meat. If there was anything that would draw me back to eat here, it’s going to shock me to say this, it would be the Earth Bowl. If there is anything that I would tell you have to order and that you will love, it’s the earth bowl. No question and you can fight me on that.
Ok don’t.
If you’re on Cahuenga looking for a place to eat, it should be 3rd Base Bar. It’s an appealing restaurant with a menu that will entice you from start to finish. Sure it may be hard to find parking and a bit difficult to have a decent conversation, but once the menu gets a hold of you and the plates are in front of you, nothing else will matter. And I’m pretty sure you’ll be fine with that.
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Address: 1562 North Cahuenga Boulevard Los Angeles CA 90028
Phone: 323-645-7470
Hours: Sunday – 10:00am to 9:00pm, Monday through Thursday – 12:00pm to 12:00am, and Friday & Saturday – 12:00pm to 1:00am
Social: Website, Facebook, and Instagram.
