The Best Bars for a Date in Downtown LA in Los Angeles

Up on the Downtown L.A. Proper Hotel's roof, Cara Cara dishes out new American cooking with a Mexican accent. Heated lamps and fire pits warm the setting, and the city views and cocktails are a draw, which makes it a spot to impress a date with food, ambiance and a view.

Seating ranges from cozy areas to a fire pit among greenery, and some days bring live DJs or sunset sessions.

Perch looks down on Pershing Square from a rooftop restaurant and lounge, and the view is the star. Most tables sit under the open sky, so choose a warm evening. It is high up, so tuck in a light layer. The cuisine is French-inspired, and some nights bring live jazz.

Later in the evening the bar fills up and gets hard to get into, so reserve. Watch for the small sign, because the Hill Street entrance is easy to walk past.

Bartenders at The Wolves, a fancy Downtown cocktail bar, work spray bottles, flame and smoke into the drinks. Wood and leather fill the dark, romantic room. The cocktail program takes a cooking-style approach, with a weekly farm-to-glass special.

Death & Co is the Arts District outpost of a famous New York cocktail bar, an underground space. Dim lighting, candlelit tables and a speakeasy feel set the mood, and the music stays low enough to talk over.

The menu is very large, but staff will steer you if you tell them what you like. Book ahead through Tock, since a weekend walk-in is a long shot.

EightyTwo is an Arts District barcade. Its working retro arcade games and pinball machines are spread across indoor and outdoor space. The mood is lively and the crowd is mixed, with outdoor seating areas when you want a break from the machines.

In Little Tokyo, Peking Tavern is a casual gastropub whose traditional dishes draw on Beijing food carts. Dumplings get made in view of diners, through a kitchen window. The room is relaxed and calm, pairing red tones and paper lanterns with a glamorous modern look and Chinese touches.

Drinks get unusual here, with an ube lager and baijiu cocktails. There is also karaoke with indoor and outdoor seating.

Florentín is an eighth-floor rooftop bar in Downtown LA, offering sweeping city views and a lively atmosphere for a date night. Choose between indoor seating and an outdoor terrace with heaters, where live DJs and craft cocktails set the mood. We recommend the mango sticky rice-inspired milk punch, a creative take on the classic Thai dessert. Pair your drinks with Mediterranean-inspired small bites or artisanal pizzas while taking in the skyline.

Shoo Shoo Baby brings a 1940s-themed room to Downtown LA, with dim lighting and a candlelit, romantic feel. Live jazz and burlesque add to the speakeasy-style setting, so there is a show to watch together over a drink. The crowd is local and unpretentious, and the room makes a natural date night choice.

Everson Royce Bar looks plain from the outside, at the southern edge of the Arts District, but the food is worth a trip across town. A large patio out back gives you space to settle in with a drink and a meal under the stars.

Happy hour runs daily from 4 to 6pm, and the bar is closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Good Clean Fun serves as a cafe all day, a natural wine bar and an Italian restaurant in Downtown LA, with a built-in bottle shop so you can take bottles home. Seating is limited and mostly outdoors, where a patio has heaters and blankets, so dress for the weather. It is closed Mondays.