Summary of Guest Experience: The overall sentiment reflects a significant disconnect between the pricing model and the physical environment of the venue. The primary grievances center on aggressive markup rates and a chaotic atmosphere that compromised guest safety and comfort. Key Areas of Concern: 1) Aggressive Pricing & Value Gap: The most notable issue is the price-to-product ratio. Charging over $40 for a round consisting of two tequila shots, a Twisted Tea, and a beer (Victoria) represents a markup of approximately 300% compared to retail market value. For many patrons, this premium does not align with the dive-bar setting. 2) Atmosphere & Climate Control: The interior environment was described as physically uncomfortable. High temperatures combined with a "cluttered" and "too dark" layout suggest inadequate HVAC performance and poor spatial management. 3) Capacity & Safety: The venue felt "too crowded," which is particularly concerning when paired with reports of staff (bouncers) engaging in or escalating arguments rather than de-escalating them. This creates a volatile environment rather than a controlled, social one. **Note**: While a 3x markup is standard for the hospitality industry to cover overhead (rent, labor, insurance), the lack of "atmosphere" or "amenities" (like AC or space) makes this markup feel predatory rather than professional. Conclusion: For a bar located in the competitive Downtown LA landscape, the current operating model appears to prioritize high-margin turnover at the expense of patron retention and safety. The combination of high heat, excessive crowding, and aggressive security interaction suggests a high-risk environment for the average customer. read more

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It's been a few years since I've been back due to the next door Five Star venue being closed during the pandemic and finally reopening. The minimal crowd that gathers here are mostly Hispanic with the occasional over flow of metal heads coming by from next door. They have no beer on tap so expect bottled beer and a variety of mixed drinks at somewhat reasonable prices. read more

La Costena Bar - Metal night MAY2025 - Bars Near Me - Los Angeles, California

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I love it--it's one of the few places that hasn't been gentrified! It has a very CDMX vibe.

Lisette was the best server. Best michelada and the best vibe!!! I'll come back here just for Lissette!!! Owner- give her a raise. read more

La Costena Bar - Bars Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Some interesting decor. I like all the strange bric-a-brac on the walls. Ok service. But dear lord the music is too loud!

Good snacks Great music Amazing service, they treat you like family! Latin culture read more

A HOT SWEATY MESS. I recently walked into this bar on a 90°F day. The front door was wide open, and it was 90°F inside the bar. The bar was empty. I asked the lady behind the bar if she had air conditioning. She said no and giggled. This bar smelled like unwashed armpits, musty basement and unrepentant homeless feet. read more

A cool little bar located very close to the Bradbury Building and Grand Central Market in DTLA. My review is probably skewed since I visited right after they opened on a weekday. It was empty and clean. Though empty, it took a while to get a couple beers and a shot since the waitress was distracted prepping for the day/evening. The beer was cold, and the tequila tasted fine to me. After my first beer, I was joined by a couple other guys, and we had a good time just shooting the shit. La Costena is a small place with an entrance right off Main St. Once you enter, there are round high top tables to the left, with the bar on the right. The red wooden bar with a black top with no rail has around 15 round bar stools with padded seats. There is no footrest, and the back bar is a messy collection of signs, notes, chips, TVs, bottles, and decorations. As previously mentioned, the service was not good, but I tried to be patient since I know she was busy, and I arrived right after they opened. I plan to couple a return visit to La Costena with a trip to Five Star Bar next door. Try to get a better feel for the place since I visited at such an odd time, but my visit was a lot of fun. read more

Literally the best Paloma I've ever had! And the bartender was very sweet :) Vibes were good but no music

So chill and lowkey. This bar is perfect for me and my friends. Pre drinks or if you wanna have a calm night for good drink prices, come here. read more

Shitty costumer service. Got overcharged 3x the amount for a michelada and when I went to ask why that was or to talk the owner the bar tender said she didn't know who the owner was :/. If you go here, pay with cash out they're going to overcharge you. I initially paid $12 for the michelada and the next day they updated the charge to $34. Fuck this place. read more

This is the BEST fucking bar or escape at the filing moment. Vegan options and righteous party civil folk. Come one come all. Missing out on life if you do not frequent this place. Ask for bimbo so people there know you are about that fun life. Excellent community here! PS: ultra cyberpunk! read more

If La Costeña weren't so dim and divey, it might actually be kind of a douchey bar. Its walls sport cheesy posters of beer and women in bikinis, not unlike the dorm decor of a college freshman who wants everyone to know he's really into high fives and being a heterosexual. But it is really dim and divey, so much so that you might not think to go in unless you were thirsty for booze at the exact moment you passed by its tiny door on Main. It's not a cute place, and I wouldn't go out of my way to go back. That said, it's small and fun and the bartender is friendly. I had a great time at La Costeña and I may poke in for another shot of tequila next time I'm walking around the neighborhood. This is exactly what my friends and I did during a recent Art Walk. We ended up passing by La Costeña three or four times, and each time, we went in for a round of shots. There was only one off-brand kind of tequila, and we got it for $4 a shot. The shot glasses were big and the tequila went down easy with salt and lime. If the booze wasn't watered down, it was a great deal. Hell, it was a great deal either way. We didn't stick around and while the evening away, but La Costeña served a noble purpose and I will use it for that exact purpose any time the need arises. I'm not about to adopt this dive as my own to cherish forever, but I appreciate cheap tequila as much as the next girl. read more

Worst bar I have ever been to in my life. We ordered margaritas and the bartender had no idea what she was doing. She made it with a shitty mix and was overall clueless. We were charged $10 for each margarita that was poorly made with the lowest shelf diluted tequila and cheap mix. Will never go back- do not go here if you value quality! read more

This is my second time here with friends. The first time they brought me here it was an amazing night of good times good company and a river of tequila. This time though we were sitting at the bar and ordered two rounds of tequila for three people....that went okay...then we tried to order more shots and were told we HAVE to pay. The waitress refused to serve us until we paid the $27. No one else at the bar was asked to pay their tap. Mind you we are the only black women at the bar. The waitress was super rude to us for no reason what so ever. My friends had been to this bar on numerous occasions and were not treated this way. The waitress treated us like thieves at a bar that we were excited to be at. We will never return here. read more

We were at The Smell down the street to check out some music when we realized we needed to be drunk in order to enjoy it. So in between sets we waltzed around the neighborhood and first stumbled upon The Edison...and saw the line of about ten thousand people in stripper heels and full suits and concluded it wasn't our scene. We asked a security dude standing on the street, "where can we just get drunk, without a cover or a dress code?" La Costena, that's where! La Costena is a very unassuming, completely Latino bar. And it is AMAZING! From the laid-back locals (one of whom told us he had been going there every day for TEN YEARS...I'll get back to this guy), to the bumpin' Spanish pop hits, to the cheap and ever-flowin' beers, and cute, giggly bar tenders, La Costena has got it goin' on. It also has hispanic women in short dresses who get into pseudo-fights, kicking each other in wedge heels and involving most of the bar patrons to separate...which adds up to complete hilarity. And although there is no dance floor, this does not hamper any one from making any open space into an all-out dance arena. For you white folk, or those of you who just can't dance salsa or the like, you are certainly welcome to dance your drunk white-boy moves with the best of em, as I saw many a person do. To top it all off, I was there with a dude, and the old Mexican Local, whose name I sadly cannot recall, kept buying us round after round of beers! Just because! Just good vibes all around here, tons of laughter and friendly banter between everyone here, and you don't gotta wear dress shoes or PAY to drink here. The fun is free. read more

La Costena Bar - Dude...yes - Bars Near Me - Los Angeles, California

The 6th and last stop on Shauna's (the Minty's) DTLA Dive Bar Crawl after we skipped Five Stars bar due to the $5 cover for the band we were not there to see. Again, divey Mexican bar, with a great jukebox and a hobbit-like barmaid who could barely see over the bar to serve you. Cash only. Beer only. I didn't try the drinks, but my friends felt happy with the cheap prices and lack of cover. What I loved was being able to dance to the jukebox with my companions as well as the walls plastered with photos of cute men advertising beer, etc. A must try at least once. read more

This is the greatest bar in all of Los Angeles. The bar owner apparently loves green light bulbs, which leaves La Costena with a lovely green tint. There are posters of half-naked ladies holding beers with their boobs on the walls, a print of Starry Night right beside them, and a rubber nutsack hanging above the bar. If you're hungry, the bar sells Cup-O-Soups and burritos that look like they're from 7/11. They also sell single cigarettes if you don't want an entire pack. A Modelo or a Tecate will cost you under $5, and a shot of mystery brand tequila with salt and a lime is $4. I don't know what the hell that tequila is, but MAN, it's the greatest tequila I've ever tried. I hope it's not piss and water or something. The bartender is a little old lady who can barely see over the counter, and I love her more every time I see her. The best thing about this bar is the juke box. Its got all the mariachi music you could ever want, and it's loud. There are usually a couple drunk old dudes dancing in the back corner near the juke box, and that's always so fun to watch. BRING CASH!! They have an ATM, but it'll cost you a couple bucks, and they do NOT take cards here. read more

Two words: Tecate and Mariachi. Cheesy painted murals of women in bikini's next to posters of einstein and Van Gogh's "Starry Night." Culture at its damn finest. What a gem. read more

This bar has a ton of character. Upon walking in, you will see hundreds of CDs strung from the ceiling. Upon reaching the bar, you will see a handful of beers for pleasingly cheap prices. There is a LOUD jukebox which adds to the fun - as well as an insane amount of tchotchkes (including a taxidermied wolf head). I have NOT had the food, so I can't comment on it. The vibes and cheap beer are enough to get me inside. If you're at The Smell or just in the area, I would recommend stopping in here for a beer and a quick look at all the interesting faces that walk in. 7.5/10 read more

Trying to have a beer and this bar chick sprays this cheap perfume on herself after coming out from the back. By bar chick I mean the server. She left with some dude and came back to freshen up???? She sprays herself now my beer taste like perfume. Ughhh turn off . I didn't wanna be rude and say something. Oh well read more

Dive bar to the max! Love it.... great ceviche! Sometimes we just need a little adventure! read more

La Costena Bar - Entertaining. Period. - Bars Near Me - Los Angeles, California

Me and my friend walk in and all we wanted was two shots of tequila before we hit up channel 101 next door for the last Saturday of the month... the bartender pours out of the bottle and already I am alarmed because my shot feels cold in the shot glass already without the bartender having shook my shot in the shaker... me and my friend take our tequila shots and immediately look at each other because we realize we have been duped... our shots taste like 1% tequila and 99% water... the reason our shots felt cold is because a few minutes prior, our bartender most likely poured water (out of her water gun) into the tequila bottle.. and poured us some weak diluted tequila shots... I will never step foot in here again... watch out for the diluted shots where they can save themselves some money diluting their liquor read more

Te Quiero La Costena~ I just happened to stumble into this little gem of a spot at the recent ArtWalk Downtown LA. After managing to stay sane amongst the throngs of hipsters meandering aimlessly through galleries, I needed a drink....BUT....all of the bars were packed with, you guessed it, more hipsters. Being new to the area I didn't have a clue as to where a decent bar would be. Not to say I have low standards but when I say "decent" I really only mean does it have : A. alcohol/beer B. some sort of restroom facility C. no cover/"red rope" lines. Walking down Main Street looking at every storefront wondering "Where in the world are all of the bars??" only to rememebered I was not in SF, NY or Chicago. Miraculously we stumbled across La Costena which met ALL THREE of my requirements!! As soon as we walked in Ranchera music loudly blared from the speakers & Mexican futbol was playing on the oversized TV's (circa 1985). It was nothing short of amazing. About a dozen people were milling about (aka not crowded). My friend & I scored two seats at the bar & immediately were served. This isn't a fancy place where they have 2 dozen types of tequila to choose from.....I'm pretty sure they have just one. But let me tell you....the tequila they serve was delicious! The best part of it all is they give you the shots of tequila with lime wedges & little packets of salt. Not a shaker of salt....but the packets you get in the McDonald's drive through. Something about the EXTREME casual-ness of this place just made me love it more & more. To be honest, when I left I may have been a bit smashed & with my bleary-eyed vision I attempted to read the sign in front of the bar so I could remember what it was called & come back....I thought I had succeeded but after surviving my hangover the next morning I couldn't remember the bar's name for the life of me. I did some serious detective work to find out what bar I went to & where it was. It's not that easy to find (a good thing). Finally more then 2 weeks after I visited the establishment I was able to find my long lost love, La Costena!! I don't understand how only 2 people have reviewed this bar but maybe that's a good thing as the less people know about it, the more I can go in & enjoy a downtown LA experience without skinny jeans & fedora's seeping into my every pore, I'll let the tequila handle that. read more

My friends and I once followed a mariachi band into La Costena on a weeknight. Its stone-faced leader was wearing a furry vest without a shirt underneath, which made me wonder if it was a gay bar, but, then, there were little posters of women with enormous boobs bursting out of miniscule bikini tops everywhere, so it was a little confusing. Needless to say, we had a GREAT TIME! read more

Bar Hopping for a Co-ed Bachelor Party, once we went in...we never came out of here. When we first walked in, this bar seriously reminded us of a hole in the wall bar in Tijuana , Mex. but everyone was real nice to us. We immediately took over the juke box and danced the night away. The Beer prices are excellent prob the best prices you'll find in downtown! We will definitley be back!!! read more

This place is ghetto I thought I was going to get raped plus they don't even have a full bar it's line do you want beer or tequila

Let me tell you one thing, if you come here on a weeknight to have a few beers you will end up getting your ass caught up with some karaoke, love this place. The bartender was sweet and for my bday hooked it up with some shots. By far great prices... $2.50 beers... read more

I just died and arrived in heaven!!! Lol the jukebox is awesome. Micheladas are great. The bartender lady is super nice. You gotta love the decor, it's a hot mess just like me hahaha. Definitely will recommend this place to all my friends. And definitely will be back soon. read more

Awesome place to take a first date. Best people watching in LA. Great jukebox sound. Lots of drink diversity if you like either Corona cerveza or tequila. The lack of drink diversity is more than made up with the diversity in people. A world away from the expensive restaurants a block away. read more

By far one of the best places I have been at.. We were there for a Co Ed bridal party.. We had a blast the juke box was awesome you can't beat $5.00 for 18 songs cheap beer cheap tequila.. A little scary at first but the people were great with us.. Will definitely go back with all my cousins..We all loved it read more

We used to love this spot, quaint with dive bar charm in DTLA. Tonight however, we experienced what can only be interpreted as racism. The bar had approximately 10 patrons, all eating (taco cart out front) and drinking inside. We were asked several times to pay even though we hadn't made any attempt to leave the bar. Upon ordering our 3rd round (3 of us eating AND drinking) we were told we had to pay. The bar accepts cash and cards, and we were paying with the latter, much like the many other times we had been there. We tried to order but the bartender insisted we pay before ordering again. We explained that we were staying for quite some time but were rudely commanded to pay. Embarrassed, we gave our card and paid our whopping $37 bar tab. Not until after I took a photo of the bartenders was I stopped by 3 of the other patrons and offered a "round for the inconvenience". We declined and asked why they weren't asked to pay for every round much like the only 3 black patrons. After the shitty explanation ("she's new") we called it s night. read more

Balls to the wall! By far the best most firme ass bar I have ever been to in downtown L.A. Stumbled into this gem during artwalk where somehow the zombies disappear and gemmed peacocks with plumage displayed strut their fashion in the middle of downtown? The decor alone gets 4 stars. Budlight bikini clad vixens, taxidermy, plastic testicles, Van Gogh, Virgin Mary framed in Christmas lights... WHAT? Stop right now! If you get hungry, 7-11 bean and beef or bean and cheese microwave burritos for $2.00 or less! Need a smoke, buy one individually. Or trade in a random metal clock for 3 cigarettes, which, I did indeed observe happen. Gem, my friends, gem. read more

Looking for a shitty bar I found it. I Was looking for a bar with cheap prices but their prices on beer is like any other bar. Not a dive bar you could enjoy a drink. Got one beer and shug it just to get out of there. read more

me and my bud stumbled upon this little dive while we were in downtown LA. the reviews on here said it was awesome so we decided to hit it up and man its quite the experience. nice little bar to have a few drinks to warm up before hitting up some other badass bars in the downtown LA area. i recommend trying it. cheap beer and nice area read more

La costena bar is an awesome bar !! I go there with my friends all the time ' it's a place where excitement and fun live. When I go there I'm greeted nicely by the bartenders and then I'm off to order my first drink. The music plays by the sound of my heart beat it's just an incredible place to have slot of fun and enjoy yourself the decorations are fantastic they decorate for every theme . It's a place to be and kick back have a beer and some laughs. I love you costena bar thanks ' you guys should really go takes a gloomy day into an unforgettable day read more

If you want a taste of Cantina in TJ, this is the place! Best Beer prices in Downtown LA, Best Michelada's and the Jukebox not only has great music but it's affordable! This is definitley a dive bar, so if your looking for a variety of mixed drinks etc., this isn't the place but if you want good buckets of beer and tequila - this is the place to be. This is a must for my friends and I when we are in Downtown! read more

if there is a great place to go to on holloween its la costena it is nicely decorated and beautifuly managed. the young lady carmen is a wonderful person. nice bar (: ! had fun last night read more