Bar Hangout Next to Johnny’s in West Adams Opens With Patio Cocktails and Pastrami

The long-awaited bar next door to Johnny’s on the West Adams/Jefferson Park border is finally ready to serve. Reps for the CIM Group spot say that the project will begin to open tonight, with expanded hours and drinks beginning this weekend.

The Matt Winter of M. Winter Design-built bar is the latest example of adaptive reuse along the W. Adams Boulevard corridor, a historically Black area south of the 10 freeway that has undergone massive change in recent years. The former warehouse and mechanic shop has been fully reformatted with loads of mid-century touches, from retrofitted light fixtures and three-inch marble slabs at the bar to large sheets of milk glass and decades-old tile flooring. Walnut benches and touches of green set off the rest of the interior, which will remain closed for indoor service (for now) during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Outside, the patio features paver stones and terra cotta touches and old growth fruit trees, with dramatic evening uplighting and lots of room to spread out. The plan is to let customers order drinks from the bar and sit outside, while also picking up food from the standalone Johnny’s pastrami stand next door (the two share patio space). The historic walk-up restaurant returned to action under new ownership this summer, after the original version of the stand closed quietly back in 2015.

West Adams, meanwhile, continues to undergo a variety of changes, particularly on the restaurant and hospitality side. Beyond the lauded Alta Adams, incoming options include Farmhouse Kitchen from San Francisco and spicy noodle spot Mian, with loads of others like Party Beer Co. and Atlanta-based private club the Gathering Spot all attached to the area as well. The bar at Johnny’s West Adams opens tonight at 4327 W. Adams Boulevard.

• These South LA Restaurants Were Thriving Until Coronavirus Changed Everything [ELA]