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L.A. Times Pub Extravaganza

October 12, 2006 at 11:36 AM | 0 Comments

L.A. Times writer Susan LaTempa took one for the team when she went on a three-month long mission to round up Los Angeles County's best Irish and British pubs. The results are in, the wrap-up scarily comprehensive, and there are more than a few revelations to be had for the pub novice.

First, forget what you think is "authentic." Who knew that fish & chips weren't real pub fare, but a dish usually relegated to their own specialty joints? Also, there's no such thing as a British "real ale" here--those are unpasteurized and available only over in the motherland. So what, if not false snacks, makes a great pub? LaTempa lays out her criteria:

A great L.A.-area pub has four main attributes: It offers a goodselection of beers on tap and sells a lot of those beers so they'realways fresh and lively; it serves delicious, fresh, beer-friendly food, whether it's simply well-fried pub grub or more ambitious dishes; it's integrally connected to the neighborhood but is welcoming tovisitors. And it has personality.

Ye Olde King's Head, a British pub owned by an Irishman, is a well-oiled L.A. favorite that serves up twenty beers on tap and the classic mushy peas. Finn McCool's, The Cat & Fiddle and Lucky Baldwins also made the cut for 15 best. But she didn't stop there; there are runners-up a plenty. You know what they say: the more beer, the better. They do say that, right?

[Photo: jarrett.]

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