Maybe it's the shamrocks. The old sign reminding y...

Maybe it's the shamrocks. The old sign reminding you it's a "Thoroughbred Club." Or possibly the horseshoe bar in the middle of the common room. But Tom Bergin's is a Los Angeles classic, through and through.

It's fame comes from the various worlds that comprise the city. On one hand it's an old Hollywood hangout, a safehouse far removed from Sunset Blvd where the famous can have a casual drunk. It's a bastion of East Coast / Irish drinking culture, recalling the public houses and their communal feeling. It competes with the Buena Vista in San Francisco for introducing the Irish coffee to the USA, a claim controversial enough to keep the taste test alive. The pour of Guiness here is phenomenal, the selection of Irish whiskey perfect, and the bar bites are essential to keeping a table. The traditional Irish fare is on point as well, just enough to keep you going. Order with confidence.

The horseshoe bar is fantastic. It keeps people bumping into, rubbing shoulders, stepping on the toes of people around them. Some say it's the inspiration for Cheers. I say it's the reason we go to drink - to find community, to meet like minded people, to buy a drink for someone I just met. One of the best, safest, and greatest places in the city.