Falcon is the latest supper club with late-night food in an intimate setting

In the last year, we’ve witnessed the birth of the hipster supper club. Such hot spots as Lucky Duck, Belly and Firefly have made late-night dining a staple of Hollywood club culture. With the addition of Falcon, a tony new restaurant and nightclub on Sunset Boulevard, it’s clear that the postmodern supper club is here to stay.

The key to each of these spots is intimacy combined with late-night dining. Guests can order food right up to last call, adding an attractive element to the night owl looking for more than a cocktail to wash down the evening. Of course, the environment has to be just right, and that means elegance with a twist of cool. Falcon has that in spades.

The place is owned by Tommy Stoilkovich and Mike Garrett, who also own Santa Monica venues Voda and Lounge 217. Like their other ventures, Falcon soars in comfort, class and location. Located on Sunset Boulevard between La Brea Avenue and Rock ‘n’ Roll Ralphs, Falcon was created out of the ashes of Fritzi’s Vienna Hofbrau--a family-owned Hofbrau house that had been in business for four decades.

As a neighborhood local in the ‘90s, I used to walk past the boarded-up spot and envision the possibilities. The Lava Lounge around the corner was already a hit, and the mystique of the seedy Saharan Hotel across the street only added to the potential. With its surly Russian immigrants and black-clad rockers, the neighborhood was ripe for something new. But Fritzi’s owner was in no hurry to sell, and it took years for Falcon to make its debut.

It was worth the wait. Since its midsummer opening, Falcon has been a hit. Named after Rudolph Valentino’s Falcon’s Lair estate, the supper club makes good use of its 4,000 square feet with an open-air patio that makes up a third of the club. Everything about Falcon feels roomy and open, despite the popularity of the spot, which fills up each night after 9 and stays full till closing. Like Jones in the mid-’90s and its jumpin’ neighbor North, Falcon is a “scene,” a place where people congregate to meet, mingle and stargaze.

Like Belly, which offers a yummy tapas menu, Falcon satisfies immediate urges with its New York-minute appetizers. Such simple treats as warmed California almonds, sea-salt radishes and homemade potato chips are served lickety-split, which is enticing to the drive-by scenesters who club-hop.

For most, however, it’s easy to settle in for the night at Falcon. Its whimsical American menu is one enticement and so is its look, which is an interesting blend of new and old. Guests enter through a white-hot corridor, and the first stop is the lounge area, where the walls are covered in imported zebra wood and the floors are made from ebony. Its faux-alpaca fur ottomans offer just the right cush for the tush, and the overall feel is tropical and airy.

There’s also a 22-person dining room for private parties--always a plus in Hollywood’s celebrity-driven culture. The area does double duty as a bar hangout when the diners clear out.

A DJ booth is set up outside the private room and Falcon’s DJs keep the music smooth and seductive all night. Little separates indoor from outdoor, as diners in the lounge enjoy seeing what’s shaking outside.

Although the initial plans were to open Falcon quietly, word spread quickly and now you’ll find doormen at the gate, except on Thursdays, when Club Make-Up door “gal” Cin works the velvet rope.

Falcon, 7213 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, (323) 850-5350. 21 and older, no cover. Dinner reservations recommended. Call for guest list inquiries. Open nightly, 7 p.m.-2 a.m.