How to Snag a Table at Vandell, One of Los Feliz’s Hottest Cocktail Bars

People have been lining up to get into Vandell since opening night. How do you account for your overnight success? 

We would never have predicted this kind of love from the community. Obviously we want to plan to be successful, but it’s always a surprise. This kind of lightning in a bottle has largely to do with the neighborhood. We loved the neighborhood before we got here and then once we did, we really loved it. We have the most amazing guests, and we have a team in place to match their energy, too. As much as people love the atmosphere and the cocktails, they also love the staff here. That’s a huge factor.

Has the line subsided at all? Did you end up allowing more reservations?

We are still keeping the reservations limited mainly because we are trying to keep it more neighborhood-focused. We want locals to feel like it’s their bar. Most of the regulars navigate that pretty well. Lines have subsided quite a bit actually. Sometimes there’s hardly a wait. On Friday and Saturday, it can be anywhere from 30-60 minutes (or less). We open at 5 p.m. and we have about 80 seats, give or take. If you’re not among the first 80 people, you’re going to have to wait because people just sat down. If you miss the 5 p.m. window then 6:30 would be a good time to try and walk in.

How many seats are bookable on Resy vs walk-ins?

We open up two tables at 5 p.m. and another two at 10 p.m. We recently started opening Mondays and Tuesdays, so for those nights plus Wednesday and Sunday we’ll do more like 3-4 tables at 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.

How many seats are in the house? 

80 seats give or take. At the bar we have 18 seats. We have about 10 booths, plus a few European style tables in the front. Some of them seat from two to four people. The booths can fit four to eight.

When do reservations go live on Resy?

One week before at midnight.

How quickly do primetime weekend reservations get snatched up?

Those get booked pretty quickly! Almost immediately I’d say.

How long is your Notify list?

It varies, usually there are 50-70 parties on the Notify list at any given time.

When is a guest most likely to get a Notify alert? 

If someone cancels the reservations, everyone gets notified. If we know it’s going to be a slow day, we could open the books a little bit. And then once we do, everyone that’s in that time slot will get a Notify. But there’s no specific time of day it’s more likely.

What is your most popular time? Are there certain days where there’s a better chance to get a prime-time reservation? 

We only have 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. bookings on Resy. Sundays and Thursdays are the easiest to try and book, and then like I said we just opened Monday and Tuesdays.

Are there any other tricks to getting seated? (What if we DM you?)

People DM our Instagram but there’s almost too many of them to read. My best advice is to show up at 5 p.m., 6:30 p.m., even 8 p.m. is a good time. After 9:30-10 p.m. would always be the easiest time. We’re open until 1 a.m.

What is the maximum party size you can book? 

Eight people. We do offer private bookings for larger groups but it’s usually by room or the entire space.

In your opinion, what’s the best seat in the house?

My favorite seat is the back in the red room, the standalone booth against the wall. I love sitting there because I’m an introvert. You can see what everyone’s doing in the front bar area and focus on your friend at the same time. It’s such a great room and it has its own bartender. Everyone just started gravitating toward it. A lot of industry people love to sit back there. We often have a lot of celebrities back there, too.

If I were here on a date or with a friend, how would you suggest ordering for two people?

I would start off with some lighter drinks, either the Apple or Celery, work my way into a martini (Olive or Vandell), and then navigate to the Market side. The anchovy toast is my favorite thing to eat. It’s made with boquerones from Spain marinated in chile and lime, topped with arugula pesto on sourdough—it’s a newer item. I also love the pork spare ribs that are cooked sous vide and then grilled, which comes with an herb salad. The acid cuts through the fat of the pork really nicely. Those are two dishes I would always order. For mains, our burger on an English muffin and the steak frites are the big hits.

How often does the menu change?

It’s not really planned, for the cocktails it’s what’s in season. We change it every two to three months. Sometimes it’s every month. We’re about to change it out again which will be our fourth time since opening. Peaches and berries are coming in right now so we’ll be using some of those ingredients.

If it’s someone’s first time at Vandell, what should they definitely order?

People keep coming back for the Smoked Tomato— it’s the most popular cocktail by far. Even if you’re not a mezcal drinker, it’s savory, bright, it hits all the elements: the herbiness of the basil, the spicy galanga, the umami from the tomato, and the smokiness from the hickory all work together in this really great way. It sounds like there’s too much going on, but it all works. Depending on your mood, we can go into the martinis and something more clean, sticking to the market side, or something more seasonal like the Strawberry, Pandan Milk Punch, or the Pineapple cocktail that has tequila in it.

What do you love about this space? 

The space was previously Nossa Caipirinha Bar. When we talked about what area we wanted to be in, we had a top three list. The number one pick was Los Feliz; it’s a real neighborhood-y area and you have foot traffic, which is rare in L.A. The space was a work in progress when we first got it and we’ve really transformed it into this super cozy place where everyone wants to be. We already talked about the back room. Before, it was kind of a dead space, no one really wanted to go back there. The designer had this thought to partition it off into its own area that’s still connected to the front. I thought it was a genius idea. It was the best move possible. That area is now our prime seating.