I'm a native Angeleno and have never been to the Gardenia Lounge. It was a bit of a quaint flashback to the 80s. The live entertainment was great. It was a bit musty smelling needs a weekly airing out and new detergent for their napkins. The napkins were so awfully perfumed with cheap soap I started to choke after wiping my mouth. Both an easy fix, I hope they read and react to this helpful suggestion. It would make the place much more pleasant to eat and watch the performers!
Fred A.
The food is good but it is the atmosphere and live entertainment that this landmark lounge is legendary. Not many restaurant lounges left in L.A. so I am hopeful this will be around for a long time.
Andrea Hernandez
Don't order the salads! The food is edible, but the dessert is even better. Great entertainment! Very cozy, small place, nice 80's decor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
M Cat
Very interesting venue for live music. Peaceful layout & paint colorsNeighborhood is questionable .
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Marsha Epstein
Therese Lee was a great singer.
Service: 5
Lori Breen
We had a lovely evening at the Gardenia Restaurant and Lounge last night. We went to see the actress Carolyn Hennesy perform and it was a great show! The place is small and intimate with that old time feel. It's very vintage style and I'm glad it has not been "modernized" like other places. We had excellent service from both the server and the bartender. They were very attentive. It was comfortable and seating is quite close together so you get to know others which is fun. The food is excellent. My husband and I both got the Caesar Salad and Lasagna. The salad was crisp, fresh and delicious. The Lasagna was surprisingly good with a spicy sausage that gave it a kick! We loved it. Even the garlic toast was yummy! We also ordered the house Cabernet and it was surprisingly very good!! Much better than most places for a house wine! The show was fabulous!! Carolyn is witty, funny, gorgeous and can really sing!! Afterwards we got a chance to meet her. What a thrill that was! The only issue at all is when you make reservations they are not there to confirm it and call back when they get a chance. But that's a small thing really. We were very happy with our experience!Vegetarian options: Yes, they had options.Parking: We had no trouble finding free street parking close by.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Lori B.
We had a lovely evening at the Gardenia Restaurant and Lounge last night. We went to see the actress Carolyn Hennesy perform and it was a great show! The place is small and intimate with that old time feel. It's very vintage style and I'm glad it has not been "modernized" like other places. We had excellent service from both the server and the bartender. They were very attentive. It was comfortable and seating is quite close together so you get to know others which is fun. The food is excellent. My husband and I both got the Caesar Salad and Lasagna. The salad was crisp, fresh and delicious. The Lasagna was surprisingly good with a spicy sausage that gave it a kick! We loved it. Even the garlic toast was yummy! We also ordered the house Cabernet and it was surprisingly very good!! Much better than most places for a house wine! The show was fabulous!! Carolyn is witty, funny, gorgeous and can really sing!! Afterwards we got a chance to meet her. The only issue at all is when you make reservations they are not there to confirm it and call back when they get a chance. But that's a small thing really. We were very happy with our experience!
Sam P.
The food was very well seasoned and fresh that was served by an amazing waitress with a lot of smiling and courtesy. While the music of the night made the ambiance that more chilled. Great place for live entertainment.
jacqui wilcox
This place is poorly run. Don't go.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Armando Garcia
A small but quaint place with lots of love and character.
This place was amazing!! I went to see Denise, a jazz artist and it was phenomenal! From the intimate environment, down to the food and the performance..oh my! Anyone in attendance had a delightful treat. Absolutely incredible voice and live bass player and pianist!My husband ordered the pork chops and I had the chicken scallopine....let me just say very tasty. We both cleaned our plates.Service was on point and the staff was very attentive!Hats off to The Gardenia!!! Round of applause. We had a truly wonderfully memorable evening ?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Suzi O.
A great musical magical venue. Truly an LA Gem. I have seen many artists and have also performed at this epic dinner club.
wanda ray willis
A wonderful bday celebration and show.Spectacular atmosphere, host, bartender, and staff!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Bernice Sedlik
Food tasteless, service non-existent.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
L L.
Gardenia forever! You never know who you may see if you get lucky here. I love this place. It's one of a kind.
I'm a native Angeleno and have never been to the Gardenia Lounge. It was a bit of a quaint flashback to the 80s. The live entertainment was great. It was a bit musty smelling needs a weekly airing out and new detergent for their napkins. The napkins were so awfully perfumed with cheap soap I started to choke after wiping my mouth. Both an easy fix, I hope they read and react to this helpful suggestion. It would make the place much more pleasant to eat and watch the performers!
The food is good but it is the atmosphere and live entertainment that this landmark lounge is legendary. Not many restaurant lounges left in L.A. so I am hopeful this will be around for a long time.
Don't order the salads! The food is edible, but the dessert is even better. Great entertainment! Very cozy, small place, nice 80's decor.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Very interesting venue for live music. Peaceful layout & paint colorsNeighborhood is questionable .
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Therese Lee was a great singer.
Service: 5
We had a lovely evening at the Gardenia Restaurant and Lounge last night. We went to see the actress Carolyn Hennesy perform and it was a great show! The place is small and intimate with that old time feel. It's very vintage style and I'm glad it has not been "modernized" like other places. We had excellent service from both the server and the bartender. They were very attentive. It was comfortable and seating is quite close together so you get to know others which is fun. The food is excellent. My husband and I both got the Caesar Salad and Lasagna. The salad was crisp, fresh and delicious. The Lasagna was surprisingly good with a spicy sausage that gave it a kick! We loved it. Even the garlic toast was yummy! We also ordered the house Cabernet and it was surprisingly very good!! Much better than most places for a house wine! The show was fabulous!! Carolyn is witty, funny, gorgeous and can really sing!! Afterwards we got a chance to meet her. What a thrill that was! The only issue at all is when you make reservations they are not there to confirm it and call back when they get a chance. But that's a small thing really. We were very happy with our experience!Vegetarian options: Yes, they had options.Parking: We had no trouble finding free street parking close by.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
We had a lovely evening at the Gardenia Restaurant and Lounge last night. We went to see the actress Carolyn Hennesy perform and it was a great show! The place is small and intimate with that old time feel. It's very vintage style and I'm glad it has not been "modernized" like other places. We had excellent service from both the server and the bartender. They were very attentive. It was comfortable and seating is quite close together so you get to know others which is fun. The food is excellent. My husband and I both got the Caesar Salad and Lasagna. The salad was crisp, fresh and delicious. The Lasagna was surprisingly good with a spicy sausage that gave it a kick! We loved it. Even the garlic toast was yummy! We also ordered the house Cabernet and it was surprisingly very good!! Much better than most places for a house wine! The show was fabulous!! Carolyn is witty, funny, gorgeous and can really sing!! Afterwards we got a chance to meet her. The only issue at all is when you make reservations they are not there to confirm it and call back when they get a chance. But that's a small thing really. We were very happy with our experience!
The food was very well seasoned and fresh that was served by an amazing waitress with a lot of smiling and courtesy. While the music of the night made the ambiance that more chilled. Great place for live entertainment.
This place is poorly run. Don't go.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
A small but quaint place with lots of love and character.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
This place was amazing!! I went to see Denise, a jazz artist and it was phenomenal! From the intimate environment, down to the food and the performance..oh my! Anyone in attendance had a delightful treat. Absolutely incredible voice and live bass player and pianist!My husband ordered the pork chops and I had the chicken scallopine....let me just say very tasty. We both cleaned our plates.Service was on point and the staff was very attentive!Hats off to The Gardenia!!! Round of applause. We had a truly wonderfully memorable evening ?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A great musical magical venue. Truly an LA Gem. I have seen many artists and have also performed at this epic dinner club.
A wonderful bday celebration and show.Spectacular atmosphere, host, bartender, and staff!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Food tasteless, service non-existent.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Gardenia forever! You never know who you may see if you get lucky here. I love this place. It's one of a kind.