Roosterfish

Was pretty floored to see all of the terrible Unilocal reviews on this joint. I was raised in gay bars up in Northeast Portland; gay men adore me because they all think I look like Tori Spelling (not a compliment, I realize), and my lezbo sistas — for whatever reason — luvvvvvvvvvvvvvv me, so it’s hard to read about gay men hating on pretty girls. It sounds homophobic to say that, right? Reverse homophobia… is that a thing?
Either way, this place ISN’T that cheap (the Brig charged less for the same drink with a stiffer pour), and everyone at the bar, including the bartender, were quite icy.
Cash only, and no Tito’s. 0 – 2
*sigh*

Hater to vaginas. Doesn’t matter how pro rights or supportive you are of your gay friends. If you’re a hot girl be prepared to be hated and turned away.

This place doesn’t deserve not one star! Honestly whatever happened to good olé American way of customer service?! They seriously need to fire that one employee who’s so… UGH! Don’t waste your money there, bring your business somewhere else trust me. You’ve been forewarned

If I could rate it 0 stars I would. It’s filled with one asshole in particular who wears the most obnoxious and pretentious hat. This man was such a douche that he singlehandedly ruined the place for me as he sat there on his pedestal judging all those who were not pretentious assholes like him. Fuck you hat man. You ruined this bar for me and I will never go back.

I love coming to this placeROOSTERFISH! It’s a total land mark along the street, which makes it a great meeting place! They have a happy hour as well. AND yes it is CASH ONLY but there is an ATM.

This place should be renamed «RoosterBitch». Came here twice in one day for two bartender shifts and both times they were rude and almost pretentious.
The extra star is for the atmosphere and it’s history in the gay community.

I love the Rooster Fish, as I work in the neighbourhood and it’s great to drop in for a post work drink. My only beef? They’ll charge you $ 3.50 for a small glass of soda water. No exceptions. That doesn’t make sense to me.

Bulldoze this shithole and replace it with a yuppie/​hipster tapas bar.
There’s more attitude here than all of West Hollywood put together. From the staff, patrons, and general atmosphere.
Cash only, one of the few bars in LA county that still is, and extremely high prices that would give any of their Abbot Kinney neighbors a run for their money.
You would think a dive bar like this would have decent pours, okay prices, and a friendly neighborhood atmosphere. But they’ve absorbed all the Venice haughtiness without anything nice or pretty to show for it.
Should give two stars for Gary, the infamous bartender/​manager/​owner that everyone hates, yet is the only one who has served me a respectable drink with a humorous demeanor.
But eh, one star.

The crowd was good but the service completely ruined it for me. I came here wanting to celebrate marriage equality but this 60-​year-​old bartender named Gary let us wait 20 minutes for three shots – and that was after I gave him a 20% tip for another drink. After a while the bus boy had taken the shot glasses because it had taken THAT long. I reminded Gary of the shots and told him it was rude and unprofessional to have us wait that long. He then overcharged us $ 40 for the three shots and when I told him that was ridiculous, he asked the security boy to throw me and my friends out. As a former co bar owner, I found this behavior absolutely unacceptable, unbelievable, and criminal. Not only that, who employs a senior citizen to represent their bar? Completely unsexy.

We randomly walked in last night and we’re stoked to see it was karaōke night. Good music, strong drinks and great vibe from the patrons but the staff was just plain rude and not friendly.

Gary the bartender/​owner is easily the most smug and disrespectful bartender you will ever meet. He takes great enjoyment on ruining your experience at the bar with his lack of realizing he works in a service position. I watched him be rude to a number of patrons before I finally had enough and left.

Entrepreneurs take note — if this weren’t the only gay bar West of the 405, it would go out of biz. Cash only, gross/​weak drinks and seedy atmosphere. Sometimes there’s a decent crowd, but it’s not worth the disgust. If you go into the bathroom, be sure to wear gloves by the way…

Very bad experience. My friend visiting was told by a bartender when she went to get a drink if she was «going to tip.» RUDE! Quite inappropriate for getting a beer, why would she not?
Not again, sadly.

My friends and I stumbled upon Roosterfish one night while walking up and down Abbot Kinney. One thing I really liked about it was how dive-​y it was. It’s hard to find a good dive bar in LA in my opinion, and this place was definitely a surprise!
Drinks are not expensive, which is excellent, but here’s the most annoying thing: it’s cash only! I also thought it was excessively dark… barely any lights and not even dimmed. Just pitch black in some parts.
It was a little quieter, and I wish there was more dancing. But I do like that it’s a gay bar!

When I visit a new town, I like to seek out the local gay watering hole. Not the large, nightclubs or spots in the expected gayborhoods, but the smaller, off-​the-​grid spots. I’m not sure why I feel compelled to do so; maybe it’s my attempt to get an unfiltered view into the local slice of gay life. Whatever the reason, when I had the opportunity to pop into Roosterfish, it was a given.
The exterior is quite unassuming– I barely remember there being a rainbow flag, pink triangle, ruby red slippers– some sort of beacon indicating it’s gayness. In fact, I don’t think I would have known what it was without the help of Unilocal.Inside, it wasn’t much of a different story. We went on a Sunday evening, after sunset. I will say, the ambiance was a bit charming– there are few windows (if any), and made of the tables/​shelves were littered with tea candles, creating a somewhat sensual environment.
However, there didn’t seem to be many people hanging about. In fact, there was only one group of people along the bar and, given their behavior/​conversation, seemed to be enjoying the their Sunday Fundays into the night. After grabbing a beer, we assumed that Roosterfish simply wasn’t bumping on a Sunday. However, upon visiting the bathroom (which DEFINITELY shows you it’s a gay bar– look up to see the collage of penis’), we realized there was an outdoor patio where most of the bar’s patrons were sitting. However, we weren’t drunk enough to enjoy (or understand, really) the conversation from a random dude trying to converse, so we found ourself bidding Roosterfish adieu.
I’m not sure what my visit to Roosterfish has told me about Venice’s gay scene, but I’m going to guess that it doesn’t add up to much. However, it seems like a decent enough place to pop into for a quick brew.

Accidentally stumbled across this bar on First Friday. My boyfriend and I saw there was no line and he was underdressed as he just got off work, so we figured we’d stop by for a few drinks.
We walked in and found a seat at the bar and proceeded to order. I asked for a cranberry vodka tonic, and instead I got a cranberry vodka and a vodka tonic… Whatever didn’t complain or say anything to the bartender about his mistake. My boyfriend took the vodka tonic instead of his beer. As we’re about to pay, these two ladies sitting at the bar leaves and this man sitting at the bar goes, «oh god I’m glad they left.» The bartender/​owner goes I’m fucking glad they left they were so annoying and proceeds to talk shit. I should have known there was something wrong at this point.
We paid cash for our drinks $ 12 for both, very reasonable. Except, the drinks were weak.
The bartender/​owner stares us down and asks if I needed change. I ask him excuse me? He goes do you need change for tip honey in a snarky attitude. My mistake, I thought that I’d tip him when we were done with our drinks. I apologized and explained to him my intention and he replies with an attitude of that’s not how it works honey *eyeroll* I’m sorry, maybe I’m used to just opening up a tab and leaving a nice tip at the end but calling me out in front of everyone was uncalled for. He even had e audacity to say I didn’t tip enough. Well yeah with your sourpuss attitude, that’s all you fucking get. Maybe try working for your tips instead of demanding them. Avoid this bar at all costs if you want to be treated like a human.

This place shouldn’t get any business the MAIN Bartender/​owner there is Incredibly Rude and Immature to even do his job which is serve with Kindness and Professional Maturity. If I were anybody Id go to any other bar in los angeles since there are many options than this shady establishment unless you like a bartender (MONSTER) who throws random LOUD Insults at paying/​tipping customers (and this is coming from a guy who always respects bartenders and all people in customer service and they respect me back).
I rarely write Unilocal reviews… but I felt very passionately compelled about getting the word out about the MESSY MONTEROUS ATTITUDE behind the bar at this «Crap Shack» and it also didn’t hurt when other patrons at the Bar also stated that «he does this often to people» (disgusting). Also Unilocal reviewers stated the obvious about his behavior. Please do yourself and companions a BIG Favor and listen to me when I say … AVOID AT ALL COST!!!

Went here for the $ 3 burger on Sunday’s deal. You go to the back patio and order your burger. There’s lot’s of topping options: the usual suspects (cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, ketchup, mustard) plus chili and spicy peppers. And there was old fashioned mustard and mayo potato salad that was very tasty. The crowd was friendly and it was nice to watch the sun set from the table where we were sitting.

Love this place — we come here on the first Thursday of every month for the LA Burning Man meetup… thanks to an «in» from one of their regulars, we don’t just meet there, we take over the place. My friends (the regulars) bring a video projector and screen to show Burning Man videos, as well as all the equipment and speakers (and talent!) to spin music throughout the night.
There’s a back patio that’s perfect for conversations (it closes at 10 out of respect for the neighbors and everyone moves inside). The drinks are cheap ($ 5 wells) and stiff… oh and the bar is cash only.

I used to really love this bar and would look forward to coming here for a game of pool and a round of drinks.
After today, it’s safe to say I won’t be coming back. We paid money at the jukebox but the snobby bartender decided to skip our songs we had selected. At first, I gave him the benefit of a doubt that he didn’t know we had paid for and selected the songs. When my friend approached him and explained that we had paid for the songs, he replied saying that he didn’t want to listen to country songs for 2 hours.
First, we were there for less than 30 minutes. Second, if you don’t want to listen to these songs, don’t make the songs available on the playlist. And third, he didn’t even offer to give us credit back to pick new songs.
I’ve been a Unilocal member since 2009 and this is my first Unilocal Review. I’ve never felt so compelled to write a review about an establishment.