If you didn’t get an invite to the red carpet at the Dolby, don’t sweat; plenty of restaurants and bars are offering glamorous viewing parties for this year’s Oscars ceremony, with themed cocktails and specials that’ll be far more fun than the actual Academy Awards will probably be. Dress up or dress down for these spots with movie-inspired drinks, nightly screenings leading up to the main event and more. And the winner is... you, obviously.
Double Take
Westwood’s Double Take is rolling out its own red carpet for the guests of its viewing party, complete with a complimentary glass of prosecco. Head to Hotel Palomar’s restaurant and bar for sparkling-wine specials, nominee-inspired cocktails, and multiple lounge seating areas to take in the ceremony. Don’t forget the game room, nor the fact that the entire restaurant is inspired by Hollywood’s back lots and indie filmmakers.
Ever Bar
Over in Hollywood proper, Ever Bar is already amped up over the Academy Awards, currently offering an inaugural “Oscars Countdown” menu of cocktails inspired by the year’s Best Picture titles. There’s the Get Out, a take on a pisco sour with a side of Fruit Loops; and the Shape of Water, which comes served in a mini-bathtub vessel (also, it’s green); the Dunkirk gets garnished with a jam-on-toast “battleship,” which sinks into the drink—you get the idea. Fill up a punch card with all nine cocktails and you could win a one night stay in the bar’s hotel, the Everly. Don’t miss the screening of the awards themselves, kicking off with the red carpet pre-show at 3pm.
Four Seasons at Beverly Hills
Launching tonight with Dunkirk and running through March 2, the Four Seasons will be showing Best Picture nominees in a flashy new screening room during its $49 dinner-and-a-movie deal, which just so happens to benefit the Lollipop Theater Network. Each night, enjoy a three-course dinner at Culina beginning at 6:30pm then move into the screening room for the evening’s film, beginning each night at 8pm. (Tomorrow, February 24, there’ll also be a matinee—of The Greatest Showman—and a lunch buffet for $35.) Find the full schedule here, and call 310-860-4000 to reserve your spot. On Oscars day, find the ceremony screening in the bar, the lounge and on the patio.
Tres by José Andrés
SLS will also be rolling out its own red carpet for your arrival, with José Andrés’s Tres whipping up a menu of Oscars-inspired bites and cocktails beginning at 5pm. Each $45 ticket includes a welcome glass of sparkling wine, games, snacks, entry in a grand raffle, a keepsake red-carpet photo and of course entry to the screening party for the 90th Academy Awards.