Martini, With a Sidecar of History

We all know why we go to Musso & Frank, the oldest restaurant in Hollywood: The room (charmingly old-school), the stories (Bukowski drank here), the martinis (always gin, served with a sidecar), the bartenders (ask for Ruben). But for the most part, even the most dedicated Musso’s fans have been left to their own devices to piece together its raucous history—and then separate the truths from the urban legends. All that changed a few weeks ago with the launch of a new salon series by the Los Angeles Visionaries Association (LAVA) that hopes to “celebrate, but also set straight” the details about who actually sat on Hollywood’s most famous barstools.

I was lucky enough to attend and write about the extraordinary evening for KCET Food. You can read the piece, “A Literary Salon at Musso & Frank,” and be sure to admire the amazing photos by Hagop Kalaidjian, who also took the one above.