From sake bombs and sports bars to beer pong and late-night happy hour specials, nightlife in Westwood features a young college crowd and plenty of flat-screen TVs. Numerous sushi bars, ethnic eateries and upscale restaurants offer food and drink specials well into the evening, and you'll also find sports lounges with game nights, karaoke and big discounts on beer.
Students
Laid-back
Young
Upscale
Home to UCLA, this Westside neighborhood has long been known for movie theaters, ethnic restaurants and sports bars. You'll find most of the action centered on Westwood Boulevard in Westwood Village, a trendy, walkable neighborhood near the UCLA campus. Most bars and restaurants cater to the college crowd and local office workers, with heaps of happy hour specials on food and drink that last well into the night. Westwood Village nightlife is dominated by sports bars and sushi lounges, where you can expect to encounter large groups of students. Both bars and restaurants offer a young club-like scene and a party atmosphere, especially on the weekends. You can indulge in numerous specials on shots, karaoke nights, trivia games and beer pong at many establishments. For the best sake bombs and raw seafood, head to contemporary sushi bars Tomodachi, Yamato and Ami. These restaurants take dining to a new level, with late-night happy hour discounts, DJs and interactive, chanting sushi chefs. Westwood also features several sports bars with flat-screen TVs and nightly beer specials, such as Barney's Beanery and Westwood Brewing Company. Find happy hour until 11PM on weekends at upscale wine bar Napa Valley Grille, and don't miss the UCLA Jazz Reggae Fest every Memorial Day weekend.
Sake bombs are the unofficial drink of Westwood, They consist of a shot of sake dropped into a glass of beer and consumed immediately. The sake shot is often balanced over the beer on chopsticks, and drinkers pound the table to drop the sake into the glass.
Westwood is notorious for a scarcity of parking spots, but you can find cheap parking at the city-owned garage on Broxton Avenue. Park for a flat rate of $3 if you enter after 6PM. The lot closes at midnight on weekdays and 3AM on weekends.
