Mex-Euro Bar Ceremony Hits Studio City With Volkswagen Taco Bus

There’s more than just sushi, strip mall joints, and one very good vegan place on Ventura Boulevard these days. The popular dining strip is in the midst of yet another renaissance, with new options cropping up between Sherman Oaks and Studio City with an amazing regularity. One of the next is set to be Ceremony, a Mexican-European bar from the La Loggia folks.

Hopping into the space adjacent to La Loggia, owner/chef Frank Leon imagines Ceremony as a place for food, drink and late night dining, with strong influences from south of the border. Patio space and interior walls have all gotten a facelift, sporting Dia de Los Muertos-style murals and other colorful touches.

What’s better: the patio will have a 1969 VW Bus parked inside, which doubles as a makeshift taco stand slinging Baja-style creations and Cuban sandwiches (in a bit of life imitating art imitating life, Leon claims the pressed pork sandwich is an homage to the film Chef). There’s also plans to make a long section of the exterior wall fully retractable, so guests can dine essentially al fresco along Ventura Blvd.

Add in an upstairs VIP area available for private parties and a shoeshine guy in the bathroom (seriously), plus cocktails from The Village’s Matty Taylor, and Ceremony has all the necessary ingredients for a fun night out in Studio City. The bar plans to open by late March or early April, with daily hours from 3 p.m. to 2 a.m., and happy hour from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Brunch, of course, will dominate the weekends.

Ceremony
11814 Ventura Blvd.
Studio City, CA