Cocola Comes Off as a Bit of Melrose Among the Missions

“If this place wasn’t a hot spot before, it is now . . . literally,” co-owner Wendy Davis said of Cocola, her bar/restaurant located a few blocks from downtown’s Skid Row.

Fire marshals showed up at the Little Tokyo establishment a few weeks ago and, according to Davis, closed Cocola for the night because it had become just too popular.

“It was 10:30 on a Saturday night,” Davis said, “and we had about 150 patrons in the restaurant. The fire marshals decided that we had exceeded our maximum capacity--although none had really been established--and they closed the restaurant for the night. Since then, the Fire Department has determined our maximum occupancy to be 80 patrons.”

Davis and her partner, Angus Chamberlain, hope to appeal the rating, enabling the restaurant to serve a maximum of 99 people at any one time. Until then, doormen monitor the flow of patrons into the popular nightspot.

Opened six months ago to cater to the growing number of artists, designers and other urban adventurers who make their homes in the commercial lofts of downtown Los Angeles, Cocola has since acquired a following among Central City businessmen, USC students and Japanese tourists staying at the nearby New Otani hotel.

And unlike downtown hangouts such as Al’s Bar and Yee Mee Loo’s, whose dark, disarrayed interiors might threaten some Westsiders, Cocola has the uncluttered contemporary appearance--high, white walls; track lighting, plenty of windows--that appeals to Westwood habitues as well. As a visitor from Santa Monica said about the restaurant a few weeks ago: “Cocola is like finding a little bit of Melrose among the missions.”

“The building that houses the restaurant was constructed about 70 years ago,” Davis said. Originally a print shop, then a fortune cookie factory, the building was renovated six years ago, “but this space sat empty until Angus and I opened Cocola,” she said.

Bar Crowded at Lunch

The long wooden bar that runs the length of the narrow restaurant is crowded at lunch and during the evening with patrons discussing gallery openings, dance clubs or the yen-to-dollar exchange rate. Because reservations are accepted only for parties of six or more, these conversations frequently are lengthy, as patrons wait for one of the 15 tables or booths.

A long, metal sculpture by John Chamberlain, Angus’ father, hangs above the bar, the artwork’s chrome car-bumper construction giving the room’s neutral decor a focus; works by Santa Barbara artist Doug Edge provide the only other decoration.

Basic American Grill

The restaurant’s unassuming design is reflected in a menu that Wendy Davis, a former aide to California state assemblyman Gray Davis, calls “straightforward, easy and healthy . . . basic American grill.”

In fact, Cocola’s fare of salads, burgers, chops and pasta is a welcome alternative to Little Tokyo’s soba and bean curd. The menu also features ceviche, raw oysters and lobster tacos, although the kitchen seems to be perpetually out of lobster.

Cocola is open from 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. Tuesday through Sunday; the kitchen is open until midnight. A full meal with drinks will run about $20 per person. A parking lot adjoins the restaurant.

Cocola is at 410 Boyd St., between 3rd and 4th streets. Reservations: (213) 680-0756.