Learning at the Library Bar in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

November 29, 12:50 AMLA Cocktails ExaminerAaron Vanek

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Ryan pours a Saffronic at the Library Bar in the Roosevelt

Library Bar - Roosevelt Hotel
7000 Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood (map)
323-466-7000 (hotel) - Website

Don’t let anyone tell you how to drink. True, you need to listen to friends, family, bartenders and local authorities when it comes to when and how much you drink, but as to your particular liver poison, it’s your pickle.

But if you find yourself getting strange looks when ordering a vodka cranberry, vodka tonic, Tanqueray & tonic, or glass of white wine while in the Library Bar, you may be drinking yourself short (no relation to the Library Bar downtown).

Nestled in a dark, unremarkable corner of the ground floor of the historical Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard is the smaller-than-Varnish Library Bar, where master mixologists Matthew Biancaniello (Matty B) and Ryan Green can do much more than a vodka cranberry. You can order that, sure, but why ask Fred Astaire merely to tie his dance shoes?

When you go into a bar, any bar, look at the bottles on the shelf. One kind of establishment features SKYY Infusions and flavored Stolis. Another kind has Velvet Falernum, Buffalo Trace Bourbon, and Laird’s Applejack. Is there a leaking Harley-Davidson Shovelhead on the counter or an iced water fountain for absinthe? Do you notice small clouds of herbal pot, or small pots with fresh herbs? In the center of the wall, is there a dusty Nagel print or four bottles relabeled with masking tape and sharpie that read “ham” “umami” “fig” and “vanilla”? If you are in bar A, get a Lucky Lager or a Cosmo. If you are in Bar B, the Library Bar, try one of these (assuming they’re still in season):

Saffronic
House-infused saffron Plymouth gin
Fever Tree tonic
Lime garnish

Sage Heaven
White raspberries (they were out, used the red replacements)
Organic sage
Ketel One Vodka
Sage leaf garnish

Both cocktails had a pleasant, greenhouse scent. The Saffronic was my favorite of the two, and made for a manly way to drink flower juice.

Ryan was a gracious host, eager to please everyone who entered, even if they didn’t risk drinking outside their comfort zone. No problem, means more for me. But when you go, dear reader, tell the men what spirits you feel like (whisky, gin, rum, whatever) and let them work to please you, or, try one of their many homemade infusions or bitters. I regret not sampling the ham (prosciutto-infused bourbon) coupled with rye whiskey (ham on rye, get it?).

While the party rages on Hollywood Boulevard, leave the tourists to gravitate into loud yet delicious 25º, or the stars to staid Dakota. Cool congregates in the Library Bar—the perfect place to appraise a new libation before embarking on a scandalous affair or rollicking adventure.

The cost: pricey. But paying $12 for a well drink is more egregious to me than $15 for a spectacular specialty cocktail..

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