T.G.I.(Barnsdall)F.

Consider this the second installment in a series exploring LA's outdoor drinking/picnicking possibilities, picking up where I left you at the Getty:

Last Friday afternoon, I climbed the steps from Hollywood Boulevard to the top of the hill at the Barnsdall Art Park in Los Feliz to check out the weekly tasting hosted by Silverlake Wine in conjunction with the Barnsdall Art Park Foundation, to which the proceeds are donated.

The atmosphere feels like you’ve crashed a fabulously cool backyard party, where you’re welcomed like an old friend, thanks to a laid back and unpretentious vibe: Picnic blankets dot the grassy hilltop, sartorially prescient hipsters mingle amongst strollers and playing children, and a just-right soundtrack rounds out the setting. It doesn’t hurt that the hilltop location offers up unobstructed views of the Hollywood sign and surrounding city as they fade to black in the dissipating daylight.

In case you forgot to pack your own food, the Let’s Be Frank and Coolhaus trucks are also in residence, perfectly in step with (and perpetuating) the Angeleno craze for mobile food.

The tastings have become increasingly popular since they started in May, thus it's advisable to order tickets online (it saves you $5!) [edit: tickets are now sold only in advance, details below] and show up on time to avoid long lines for the (generous) pours // stake out a good picnic spot. Tours of Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House can also be reserved for $8 per person; later tours sell out by mid-week. Word is that movie screenings will start after Labor Day, and tastings will continue until it’s too cold – in LA, does that mean when it dips below 60?

---

Barnsdall Art Park & Silverlake Wine
Barnsdall Fridays
5:30 - 7:30 p.m.
4800 Hollywood Boulevard
tickets online here
$15 until midnight Thursday
$20 until 4:30 p.m. Friday