I just missed 3 shots of sake for free. Every time Shoehei Ohtani hits a home run, the Far Bar in Little Tokyo pours a free shot of sake for everyone who's there.
I was across the street during that game at another Happy Hour watching the LA Dodgers battle the Philadelphia Phillies, the afternoon Shohei Ohtani hit 3 home runs in one game.
Oh well, wins some, lose some. Happy Hour at the Far Bar, in downtown Los Angeles, is a deliciously fine time with or without winning a free sake shot.
I started watching the Dodgers at different restaurant/bar Happy Hours around Los Angeles during this year's Baseball Playoffs because I'm too cheap to buy cable TV channels. And, a senior *LA Metro ride is only 35 cents, so I hit the rails.
The star attraction for the LA Dodgers is Shohei Ohtani, originally from the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan. The Dodgers have two other Japanese players, so I wanted to hang out with the locals in Little Tokyo (in downtown Los Angeles).
I found the Far Bar on 1st Street in Little Tokyo a cool restaurant/bar with cheap food and drink specials, and their Happy Hour goes 4 hours, from 3pm to 7pm, Monday thru Friday.
The tall neon sign, above the outside entrance, has "Chop Suey Far East". A flyer outside says "Free Shohei Sake Shot When He Hits A Home Run". Shohei Ohtani has hit 55 Home Runs this regular season. That's a lot of free Sake Shots! Who knows how many he will hit in this year's Baseball World Series?
When you enter the historic Far East Building, the Far Bar's large front room has half a dozen tables and a long bar lined with television screens.
If you keep walking to the back and bear right, past the restrooms, then make another right, you enter a long outdoor patio, or a smaller bar in the back room. I planted myself in the small room with a bar and four small 2-chair tables.
For a quieter experience, sit in the outdoor patio. I like the small back bar for watching the LA Dodgers on two TV screens, while nursing a Sapporo Draft with a Sake Shot for $9. Even the wait staff and the cooks do a quick peek in the bar for the TV screen baseball scores.
The draft Sapporo is smooth and light, and the Sake is sweet - it's a good combination.
I decided on the Happy Hour Shrimp Tacos for $8. You get two small, but loaded, tacos. Inside the corn tortillas were whole, lightly sauteed shrimp.
The Pico de Gallo salsa is chunky with tomato, chopped onion, and jalapeño.
The additional Salsa Verde is mildly spicy when topped with a light Cilantro Cream. These are very tasty tacos, well worth the Happy Hour price.
That was enough to last me for half of the ball game. For the second half of the game, I had another round of Sapporo + Sake Shot, and Wasabi Fries.
The French fries are McDonald's-style, thin and crispy, just the way I like them. The fries are topped with a wash of Wasabi Mayo and flecks of dried seaweed. Across the pond in Europe and the Far East, they like mayonnaise on their French Fries, and it works for me. Next time, I would ask for a small cup of Wasabi Mayo on the side to dip the fries. I do like a lot of ketchup (or Wasabi Mayo) when I have fries.
The first time I came here, early in the Dodger Playoffs, the small back bar was jammed and I barely squeezed in.
For my next game visit, there was plenty of room at the bar and small tables. The back room bar is less raucous than the front of the house.
I ordered a Sapporo and a Sake shot again. This time I tried the Ming Wings from the Happy Hour menu. They were crisp, Japanese Tempura-style. The batter is light with the possible addition of light cornstarch to heavier flour.
They have a sweet coating similar to a Thai dipping sauce. The chicken wings had whole spicy red chilis, chopped green onion, and specks of garlic - a very tasty chicken wing coating.
The order included 5 chicken wing pieces, combining drummets and flats. They were large and meaty, moist and perfectly cooked.
The last Happy Hour item I ordered was Teriyaki Mango Sliders for $7. They come 2 to an order.
The Teriyaki Mango relish on each small beef patty is sweet and tangy. You get about 3 bites per Slider. No cheese, but that's okay.
The regular menu has a nice variety of entrees and specialty drinks, with prices in the low teens and twenties. (Click here, to see the full menu.) The menu is mainly Asian Fusion cuisine. Far Bar is a casual setting that gets rowdy on sports game days.
The Far Bar hits all the bases for Happy Hour during the World Series Playoffs. The crowd is there to cheer on the LA Dodgers, and you can't help but join in with high-fives, fist pumps, and chants of "Let's Go Dodgers". And, the *LA Metro's Little Tokyo rail stop is half a block away.
Far Bar
347 1st St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: (213) 617-9990
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 3pm - 12am
Friday - Saturday: 12pm - 1:30am
Sunday: 12pm - 12am
Happy Hour: Monday - Friday 3pm - 6pm
Social Media:
Twitter: x.com/farbartweets
Instagram @farbar_la
Facebook: facebook.com/farbarlittletokyo
* LA Metro
Website: www.metro.net
Seniors 62+/ Medicare/ Customer with Disability: www.metro.net/riding/fares/seniors
When you are a senior (62 years old) with a senior-issued LA Metro TAP card, it only costs 35 cents per ride during off-peak hours. The normal base fare is $1.75 per ride - it's a steal.
