The Garden Bar

Sure, there’s exotic tea, caviar service, and backgammon. But The Garden Bar, the Montage Beverly Hills’ ground-level lounge, is anything but stodgy. There’s a palpable sense of style from the moment guests step inside: Mid-century modern sofas, posh brass light fixtures, rich finished wood and verdant indoor palms give the former Parq Bar space a chic, contemporary vibe, like you’re visiting the swinging pad of a ‘60s socialite instead of the antiquated abode of a rich ol’ auntie. No stale, contaminated nuts here. Gratis bar food comes in the form of cubed salami and housemade potato chips; in case you weren’t aware, this is Food Network personality and New York chef-superstar Geoffrey Zakarian’s first West Coast joint, and he’s pulling out all the stops. White-jacketed bartenders craft cocktails with only the finest ingredients, which is why the going rate for a sidecar is $22 (made with top-shelf Hennessy VSOP Cognac, if it’s any consolation). You may gawk at the price, but you’ll gawk even more at the bar’s 35-page wine collection covering the globe from British Columbia to the Canary Islands. Sip your crystal glass of Italian orange wine (yes, it’s a thing) as you gaze upon the hoi polloi beyond closed glass doors. You’re so 90210 right now.

By: Danielle Jacoby