Where to eat, drink & smoke a cigar in L.A.

     Recently I was enjoying a drink at a lovely restaurant in Santa Monica (which shall remain nameless) when I noticed a large adjacent smoking patio. I excitedly strolled outside and began the process of cutting and lighting a rather special cigar when I was confronted by a waiter who informed me that only cigarettes were permitted, not cigars! I had to walk down the street with my smoke, which was rather unpleasant, and I ended up ditching the $20 cigar after only ten or fifteen minutes.

     With tobacco bans popping up left and right, cigar smoking is becoming less and less a socially accepted activity, even though cigar sales in general have been steadily increasing over the past few years. Fortunately, Los Angeles is hip to the cigar trend and there are still numerous places to kick back and enjoy a smoke. Below is a short list of cigar friendly restaurants in L.A.; please comment if you know of any more!

World Café

2820 Main St. Santa Monica, CA 90405

Schatzi on Main

3110 Main St. Santa Monica, CA 90405

Café Pinot

700 W 5^th St. Los Angeles, CA 90071

McCormick & Schmick Seafood (Only Burbank location has a cigar patio)

3500 W Olive Ave. Burbank, CA 91505

LuLu’s Bee Hive Café

13203 Ventura Blvd. Studio City, CA 91604

Zona Rosa Caffe

15 S El Molino Ave. Pasadena, CA 91101