Laurel Hardware is a vibrant farm-to-table eatery in a chic former hardware store, serving up delightful New American dishes and standout cocktails in a picturesque outdoor setting.
"A celebrity favorite restaurant known for its sceney West Hollywood crowds." - Rebecca Roland
"To address the first thing everyone says about this place: yes, we know it used to be an actual hardware store. Somehow though, Laurel Hardware makes that factoid feel glamorous. Dramatic floor-to-ceiling windows take up an entire wall, and the giant patio is packed with trees loaded with almost too many twinkly lights. This reliably sceney West Hollywood spot is not a place to mind your own business—people here peek over their shoulders every time they take a sip of their prickly pear margarita, trying to make eye contact with someone at the bar or secretly hoping someone recognizes them from their TikTok video that went viral in 2022. The food generally hovers around decent, but even if none of it rises to the level of impressive, Laurel Hardware does work well for impressing someone who wants to look hot while eating salad and pasta, ideally surrounded by other hot people eating salad and pasta, too. Just know that by the time 10pm rolls around, it’s a full-on social hour in here, so if you’re not looking to make new friends, wrap up dinner before then. Food Rundown photo credit: Cathy Park Crispy Rice Salad Almost everything in this salad is crispy—the toasted cashews, cabbage, and bell peppers—which means there’s a bit too much going on, and the crispy rice is buried in it all. But it has just the right amount of dressing, so that’s a win. photo credit: Cathy Park Corn Agnolotti This pasta reads more like a summer dish, but the last time we had it was during the dead of winter. Maybe that’s why it tasted kind of like corn pops. Truffle Fries If you’re at Laurel Hardware for drinks and want something to munch on, this is a non-offensive pick. You will definitely taste the truffle oil. photo credit: Cathy Park Duck Fried Rice A flavor bomb, but we’re not mad about it. The duck has a nice char to it, and we like the tangy pops of kimchi mixed throughout. photo credit: Cathy Park Sticky Toffee Pudding This is like a warm, moist mug cake we want to try recreating in our microwave. It’s sticky and delicious on its own, but even better once the vanilla ice cream melts into all that toffee sauce." - Cathy Park
"For elder millennials or anyone who loved calling their bartender a mixologist in 2012, Laurel Hardware is probably a familiar name. The clubby spot was where you went for underwhelming food, shoddy service, and hot people standing around saying things like, “This place used to be a real hardware store!” Fast forward to today and somehow nothing’s changed. In fact, this place is even more of an impressive sh*tshow. The back patio has doubled in size, it’s now packed with drunk 22-year-olds eating oily fried rice and helping their littles plan Rush Week." - brant cox
"Laurel Hardware is a beautiful space on Santa Monica, and a place where you will inevitably find yourself for Happy Hour. Go for the good drinks, just make sure you eat beforehand. The Deal: $5 draft beer, $10 cocktails and wine, food specials. When: Weekdays 5-7pm, Saturdays 3-6pm." - brett keating
"Laurel Hardware is one of the more crowded spots in Weho, and it’s filled with people who like to talk about who their boss is. That might be annoying, but it also means there are plenty of agent trainees looking for new talent, so go take advantage of the 6-7pm weekday Happy Hour while you wait for that Patrick Bateman-looking UTA guy to come talk to you." - brant cox, brett keating
