Jazz Is Fine Topping for This Potato

A group of Japanese businessmen walked through the front door of the Baked Potato and wound their way to a couple of booths in a cozy corner. Moments later, a couple in their early 30s--he wearing black Yves Saint Laurent pants, a green shirt and pink leather tie, she in a gold party dress--wandered by. Over at the bar, a young man wearing jeans and a Rolling Stones T-shirt brushed aside his shoulder-length hair while tapping out a mental tune on the counter. The Baked Potato is that kind of place. Though a melting pot of ages, ethnic groups and styles, everyone comes here for the same basic reason: to see and hear some of the best contemporary jazz talent around--people like Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour, Phil Upchurch, Clare Fischer, and the Baked Potato’s popular house band, Don Randi and Quest.

It’s been around since 1970 and continues to be a place to rub elbows with jazz/fusion heavyweights, who often spend a few minutes talking to members of the audience between shows and even wind up sitting in the audience catching other acts from time to time. Part of its draw, to be sure. Yet there’s no high-powered hype and no pesky autograph hounds. Only straight-ahead music lovers.

From the outside, it looks a little different than your average neighborhood watering hole. And it’s located on such an inconspicuous stretch of Cahuenga Boulevard that you can easily drive right by and find yourself on Ventura Boulevard in Studio City or Highland Avenue in Hollywood, depending on which direction you’re coming from.

Inside, the story is much the same: generic-style booths rim the small room and closely situated tables and chairs fill almost every available inch. The wood-paneled walls are plastered with autographed jazz posters and record jackets. Over the bar--where the TV set goes dark as soon as the music begins--dozens of autographed black-and-white glossies greet passers-by.

Yet, those who have been to the Baked Potato before know that it is not just an experience for the eyes and ears. Gigantic 1- to 2-pound spuds are a major side attraction. They come with a choice of 18 different toppings, ranging from melted cheese ($2.50) to sauteed tomatoes with bacon strips ($4.50) to marinated steak with pizziola sauce ($6). The smiling waitresses, usually decked out in jeans and simple blouses, often look more Country-Western than jazz.

Usually, things don’t start too early at the Potato. The first arrivals for dinner typically begin wandering in around 9 p.m. on weekdays and a half an hour to an hour earlier on weekends. By 10 p.m., when the first show begins, the nightclub is well on its way toward maximum capacity--fewer than 90 people. And by midnight, when the second show starts, there’s usually not a seat to be found. In fact, those who arrive too late on a weekend, or when a popular guest is booked, can easily find themselves stuck in a line at the front door. The Potato does not take reservations.

But it is the intimacy of the club that helps create its enormous appeal. “Welcome to the Baked Potato,” intoned Don Randi, as he began tapping away at the piano located in the center of the room. Almost instantly, heads began bobbing and shoulders swaying as music blared from four corner-mounted speakers. The saxophonist belted out his first few notes and one of the Japanese businessmen seated near the back began smiling. When the set finally ended more than an hour later, hardly anyone made a move for the exit.

The Baked Potato, 3787 Cahuenga Blvd. West, North Hollywood, (818) 980-1615.