Crane’s Bar Downtown

My favorite part of this bar? No cell service. Nice to be disconnected for a little and not seeing everyone on their phones. Very cool vibe, small divey-​feel, great music. They have a nice beer selection, and craft cocktails. Only reason why I’m not giving 5 stars is my «El Chapo» tequila cocktail was pretty bad. I’m pretty sure they used the cheapest Tequila they could possibly find. Other than that, I’d definitely go here again. It’s a gem.

I ALWAYS have a good time at Crane’s! It’s small, so it’s easy to find your friends. Miss Ninja kept us dancing all night! She even three in some Bowie, for us grieving fans.

If you didn’t know it was there you’d probably miss it. Crane’s bar is in the basement of a building and there is only a small neon sign at street level letting folks know where it is. If you are lost, look for the signage for the two adjacent restaurants, Terroni which is at street level], and Peking tavern which share’s the bathroom and the basement. This is a cozy former bank vault that serves well priced drinks in an intimate setting. Available Drinks are standard and the staff is friendly enough.
Reasons you might end up at crane’s bar
1) Are you looking for a bar that is TV crowded? Watch a sitcom and note how crowded the bar is. It’s not too empty that the characters look like lonely drinkers, but also not too crowded that they can also sit down. Get to Crane’s around drinking time and that’s what you’ll find. You generally will get your drinks at a reasonable speed and can probably find a place to sit.
2) Are you trying to keep your friend (s) off their cell phone (s)? Because it’s in the basement, the cell signal isn’t that great. This is a great place to keep your friend from calling their ex or posting their latest selfie. Your friend will be forced to avoid whatever cool stuff is going on in the world and have a conversation with you.
3) Are you looking for a clean bathroom? Because the bathroom for the bar is shared by the Peking Tavern and is open to anyone who comes down the stairs, They have to regulate it’s use with a token system. As a result these restrooms are pretty well maintained.

Underground. Casual. Cocktails good and reasonably priced. Smallish space so not great for large party groups. Liked it, would go back.
Bartenders were friendly but I also got a sense that they were sufficiently proprietary and would eject anybody who was too drunk, loud, or had a bad attitude, people who thought this was a dive bar where they could freely be an a-​hole. My sense was that if you’re mellow, you’re welcome, but if you get dickish, get ready to be kicked out. I’m all in favor of places that police the dickishness of rude customers so they have my vote.

So, it’s a bar in a bank vault; the décor screams speakeasy at you. Hipsters might be upset because you don’t get reception in the bar and you’re forced to make conversation with other people in person instead of text. Aside from that, a solid list of select brews, and a great cocktail menu. There is a small stage like area in the back for dancing to the jukebox, but only acceptable when you’re blacked out and someone chooses the latest Katy Perry jam.

Super cool spot found randomly while walking downtown one night. We wanted food, they don’t have any but they recommend a LA Café and said that they would deliver it there and we could eat at the bar! Great! And the happy hour was pretty good too. I enjoyed being there and I will come back next time I’m downtown ;)

(+) Super chill atmosphere. Happy hour lasted till 8pm. Whiskey and beer = $ 7. Juke box w/​country music. Owner/​bartender = great service. Reasonably priced. 2.5 hours of drinking for two only ended up costing $ 50.
(-) Didn’t accept military ID. Not many beers on tap.
(+/​-​) No cell service is good/​bad dependent on why you’re there.

I’m not a big bar person but sometimes after work we like to hit the spot for some cocktails. The atmosphere is nice and I recommend the Moscow Mule. The bartenders are friendly and approachable. They can make a recommendation on what type of cocktail would be appropriate. The pictures that people posted are accurate in terms of the bank safe which I thought was very cool. After the shooting at the standard we like to stay and low-​key chill places like this.

I’d be a liar if I didn’t say this place didn’t have reasonably priced drinks and a good menu! However, one of my buddies drinking had an issue with one of their bartender’s service and we were immediately kicked out. The doorman said «the owner said you ‘disrespected’ him and we have to kick you out.» Lol, what?! One star for you, sir.

Awesome place to have a few drinks and possibly meet a few new people!!! I always go back for the atmosphere and few well craft beers that they have on tap!

Absolutely love this place! Came in with my wife the other evening, and Rich the bartender, made something that tasted fucking amaze balls next thing you know I’m good and buttered hitting on the woman next to me. Turns out she was my wife. Perhaps it’s the stiff drinks I had or dim lighting, and great music, but I was actually considering banging my own wife for the night. For this to happen I need either A.) Rich in my bedroom slangin up stiff ones all night (drinks people) B.) Dim lights with better music selection and a paper bag for face, then for me to vomit in after coitus C.) A hotter wife D.) More Viagra. So looks like I’ll be coming back for more of those tasty better looking wife adult libations because none of the above options are gonna happen without a bribe and an alibi that will actually hold up in court. See you at Cranes!

A cozy underground bar, hidden behind a vault door (and heavy velvet curtains)? What’s not to love!
Did I mention the beverages are reasonably priced?
After a fun hour of being locked in a room with seven other strangers (see: Escape Room LA), my friend and I decided a quick beverage was in order before hopping on the metro. Unilocal suggested Cranes (well reviewed, and just around the corner from where we were standing), and we obligingly headed in.
After moseying down the stairs, turning right (past the vault door), and parting the curtains, we were greeted with a cozy-​yet-​not-​quite-​dark lounge with good music and a huge selection of liquor. We spent the next hour recounting the Escape Room over drinks, and when it was time to leave I was pleasantly surprised with the prices.
I’ll be back!

Great happy hour deal. Cool wait staff. They have a jukebox, which can be a good/​bad thing. Good music, then cool. If someone chooses a bunch of crap songs, then you’re stuck.
No cell service though because it was originally a 1940s bomb shelter. Prior to WWII, this location served as one of the five major meeting sites in the Los Angeles area to discuss war strategies which would affect all of the western territories. Ok, I just made all that up, save the cell service.

When i saw the stairway going underground I was like oh no, it’s gonna get dirty down here but the stairs were super clean and the entrance is fun haha it’s this old vault with a red curtain and it feels like you’re walking into a VIP secret club or something.
Feels and looks really clean inside, super colorful lighting, awesome chill bartender, cool vibe, there’s even a free game in the back no charge you can play Galactica, donkey kong, frogger… The drinks were good I just had a stella cider but my friends had some cocktails and shots and those were thoroughly enjoyed.
Music kind of sounded like catchy porno music but i can’t say that bothered me so much …
Thanks for a great ending to a long night! :)

I heard so much about this vaulted door bar from my co-​worker, I just HAD to check it out. My fiancé and I strolled in on a Sunday night around 10:30pm. The entrance is really easy to find. You can’t miss the neon light.
I loved how private the bar felt! It’s underground so you will not have service. The vaulted bank door is just too cool and the super dive-​barey feel is just what we were looking for.
The low lighting and music is perfect for a date night. Our heavily bearded mixologist took great care of us! We’d go back just for him. LOVE THIS PLACE!

Nice hidden bar next to Peking Tavern underground. It’s super cool how it used to be a bank vault, so it makes sense that there is no signal inside.
We came on a Monday, which was trivia night. Ordered a catcher in the rye and chilled at the bar with the music playing. The bartender noticed that I did not have a water (my friend did), and automatically gave me one which was nice. More of an older crowd but still chill!

Walk down staircase under Terroni.
Wine & dine at Peking Tavern.
Drunkenly stumble back up staircas– STOP.
Notice old bank vault door with neon cocktail sign.
Enter said mysterious vault door.
Discover hidden bar.
I’m in ABSOLUTE love with this bar. Empty, good tunes from jukebox, chill ass vibe. Drink in one hand, boy in the other. I don’t remember much 30 minutes into our stay, besides that I had a blast.

I met a friend at Peking Tavern on 8^th & Hill in DTLA, and he showed me this speakeasy that is across the hallway from PT in an actual former bank vault.
Unlike Peking Tavern, Crane’s only serves strong drinks at reasonable prices. Don Julio and Ketel One were $ 12/​each: 5 Stars.
The space is pretty dank w/​a short bar, a couple of booths, and a few high tables. In addition, there is a small room in the back: 4 Stars. The service was excellent. The bartenders were super nice, and the female one was pretty hawt. The only downside was the wifi wasn’t working. You can’t obtain a signal in the vault: 4 Stars.
This place is a very cool addition to very popular Spring Street (The Falls and Spring St. Bar & Grill are up the street). I need to hang out on Spring more often at Crane’s (another incognito place), the previously reviewed PT, or the recently opened Reserve (review to follow).

The sexy vault door intrigued us. Nice bouncer checked IDs and we walked through the velvet curtain to a gem of a dive bar. Great casual laid back vibe. A few booths, but most of the seating is at the bar so we took a seat to chat up the staff and learn a bit about the place. There’s a game room in the back. Cocktail list was short and simple (see pics). Locals vibe. And they were promoting the fact that they had the NFL games on throughout the season (my dude friends loved that)!
Drinks were meh, but maybe the bartender was new to this whole thing bc she also gave major ‘tude throughout our 30min there for no reason and made the evening awkward. Biggest thing was that after we asked for the bill halfway through our second drink (giving the drinks a second chance:), she walked by a couple min later and grabbed the bill booklet. Friend reached over and with a smile said «oh I haven’t paid it yet». A normal bartender might say «ok cool» or «oh sorry man take your time» or «yea just leave it when your done». She threw both her hands up in the air, scrunched her face up and said «jeez SO sorry, sorry ok?!» We weren’t sure if her super sarcastic tone was her joking around or her freaking out over basically nothing. Really weird, so to not rub her the wrong way we paid and peaced out. The half finished drinks were not worth feeling so uncomfortable.
I’d come back for the atmosphere but not sit at the bar if she was working. No cell phone reception. Bathrooms are outside the vault door, to the left of Peking Tavern entrance. They do have a happy hour — will update when I check it out :)

Downtown dive you’d never know unless you got lost and walk downstairs this building. You’ll see a neon sign over a bank safe that will lead you to Crane’s Bar. You can tell this place is less travelled. Something, I like a lot since I don’t care for crowds. It’s clean and serves the basics. It’s quite loud in here. Wish they could turn it down a bit. There’s a digital jukebox jamming some 80’s nostalgic tunes with a few people singing «I still haven’t found what I’m looking for» in the background.
I came over after having a mediocre dinner at Peking Tavern on a weeknight. There were probably 8 people in this bar all a bit different in their own way, a good thing. As you sit, you’ll have a martini glass of popcorn to munch on. Besides the nice bartender, we enjoyed a glass of Black Label neat of course. I’ll be back if I’m close to this neck of the woods.