Some of LA’s Best Cocktails Are Hidden Behind a Bookshelf at This Studio City Speakeasy | Eater LA

"Inside the Rendition Room I was transported to a Prohibition-era speakeasy: Edith Piaf’s “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien” plays softly while the small space, dark save for candles on tables and in a fireplace, is swathed in red velvet drapes and dotted with large leather armchairs; a burlesque poster promoting Lillet Blanc and piles of vintage books and memorabilia complete the bygone-era feel. Hidden behind a door disguised as a bookshelf and opened in 2016 inside Vitello’s, the seven-year-old bar is anchored by Scott Warren, a veteran bartender whose meticulous, graceful mixing and commanding, warm presence — he moves so fast he blurs and greets guests with the now-familiar line “We’ve been expecting you” — make every patron feel like a regular. Warren curated a menu of classic cocktails and original inventions, from the Golden Ticket (vodka, banana liqueur, white chocolate liqueur, cream) and the Respect (gin, peach and blackberry puree, lemon, Champagne) to LA-themed drinks like the Tiki on Tujunga (several rums, fruit juices, orgeat, allspice dram) and the popular Moonlight Drive (a whiskey sour with vanilla, maple syrup, and the Rendition Room’s baked bourbon infused with applewood-smoked bacon); he also offers a compelling limoncello, smoother than almost any other version in LA, served in glasses acquired from Audrey Hepburn’s estate, and those in the know can request his baked bourbon neat or in off-menu creations. I found every drink expertly executed, and the bar is open Tuesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.; reservations can be made on Yelp." - Virali Dave