The Federal Bar

The Federal Bar is a Jack of all Trades; it functions as a restaurant with flavorsome fare, as a bar where the drinks are as potent as they are tasty but it also host a variety of events ranging from drag spectacles to comedy shows.
My absolute favorite event was the Elixir which occurs once a month (usually the last Sat of the month) and is a variety show featuring burlesque dancing, singing, drag, and just an overall great time. The show is FREE to attend but if you want a table (which I highly suggest) then you would need to call and make a reservation. You are required to purchase some nibbles and drinks which is also recommended because the food here is great with drinks to match. And after the show they have a huge dance party with a DJ spinning 90’s magic.
The Federal also hosts Karaōke and Trivia Nights on Monday’s most of these events are also no cover.
If your dinning there I would suggest the Chicken Biscuit Sliders and fries (SOOOOO GOOD) you could skip the Grilled Artichoke and Vegan Hot Dog.
They have a parking lot that’s about $ 5 but I never have trouble finding street parking (its metered but goes off after 6pm)

Brunch.
Brunch is poached eggs and day drinking. Day drinking is the easy part. They don’t know how to poach eggs. The Benny the Sammy and some other silly-​named brunch fare at my table all had poached eggs with the yolk cooked through. Need I say more?
Look, you can put your waitstaff in cool hats and have duct work visible with tons of brick, but none of that matters if your cooks can’t poach eggs. It’s shameful.
The food was okay. It seems like they paid a lot for a good menu but the flavor just wasn’t there. There was nothing special. Train your cooks how to prepare your fancy menu and start with teaching them how to poach eggs.
Don’t let me get started on the bacon that came to the table. Almost transparent and as floppy as (insert crude analogy). Nobody likes floppy bacon. Nobody.
Seriously though, $ 30 for two people with bottomless mimosas is a deal even with the subpar food.

This review is strictly for the poutine. My friends and I were excited to try the create-​your-​own poutine because this sounded like a very cool concept but once we got our dishes, it wasn’t what we expected. We all got individual orders and topped it with different things since we were sharing:
Mine — Tater Tots, Beef Gravy, Cheese Curds, Chorizo, Fried Onions** and Mushrooms
Friend 1 — Tater Tots, Chicken Gravy, Cheese Curds, Short Rib, Avocados, Brussel Sprouts
Friend 2 — Sweet Potato Fries, Beef Gravy, Cheese Curds, Short Rib, Fried Onions**, and avocados.
** So, I wanted to note that the «fried onions» are not ‘crispy onions’ like my friend and I had imagined. We received giant onion rings on top of the poutine.
The portion was very generous and filling, but it was a bit to heavy for us – we were not able to finish! Literally felt like we were just eating oily carb, so it we were filled up pretty quickly. I highly recommend not getting the cheese curds or onion rings. These cheese curds were a bit too thick and hard to eat and the onion rings just did not feel right as a topping. As for the gravy, I think I enjoyed the chicken gravy the most since it was much more flavorful than the beef gravy. Lastly, I recommend adding veggie items such as brussel sprouts, avocados, just to balance out the fried taste.
Another item that we ordered to share was the Ahi Tuna Crudo, which we all enjoyed. It was light and delicious, although a bit pricey. Service was good, and they regularly refilled our waters. They also accept multiple credit cards!
Next time, I will just order 1 poutine to share and try other items on the menu instead!

This is a great spot in North Hollywood to check out. You have good drinks, a proper looking bar, and some good eats. We totally dug the vibe here and share a lot of the small plates. Best deal was definitely the full sized Grilled Cheese and bowl of soup for $ 13.
I wanted to give the place 4 stars, but our waitress was awful. A lot of attitude and not helpful. I am hoping she just had a bad day. Otherwise, swing by, grab a drink and enjoy!

This is a great place for drinks any day/​night of the week. I’ve seen some celebs here, so it’s that kind of place. A little dressy. But the brunch here is really what to come for. 11−3pm Saturdays and Sundays they offer 2 entrees and 2 bottomless mimosas for $ 30. (It used to be $ 25, but I’m over it. :P) There is probably 8 options to choose from the brunch menu and everything I’ve gotten has been awesome. My boyfriend likes the breakfast sammie and I love the breakfast poutine! The waitresses are always super sweet and drop off the mimosa pitcher at your table so you are all set! :)
Please don’t review this business if you received a freebie for writing this review, or if you’re connected in any way to the owner or employees.

Brunch Review.
Got there when it opened at 10am and we were the third group to walk in. Majority of the tables were already reserved, but they made room for us.
We ordered the $ 30 two entrée, bottomless mimosas special. I ordered the Breakfast Poutine, it came out in about 15mins and it was DELICIOUS. They were very generous on refilling our mimosas, and the mimosas themselves were pretty heavy handed on the champagne. Will absolutely go back again, but definitely right when it opens, because as we were leaving at 11am, all those reserved tables were filling up fast.

The best part about this place is it’s not super noisy. Upscale casual. Nice place for a casual beer and talking. The service was awful though. Waited ages just for a water. The food came out fast by the runner but finding the waitress was like waiting for the revelation. Hopefully it’s just one person and not a consistent issue.

Delish!!!
Love the restaurant atmosphere! Waitress was Hope and she was a sweetheart. Tried the buffalo wings w blue cheese, incredible!!!
My boyfriend and I Tried the habanero burger and animal burger and both were super good!
Highly recommend this place!

This is one of my go to places for a night out, you can go here on Thursday for snap back Thursday is fun all the dancers show up this night nd the dance floor gets crazy.
Friday and Saturday it’s a regular night, it’s a big dance floor great dj and music. if you order a drink go with the Moscow mule!, the head bartender makes it himself nd I don’t usually like them but it’s great. the price for drinks are great!

This place is whatever. Similar clientele as big wangs but a bit more snooty. Cool old building, but just nothing special.

Wondering why this place doesn’t have 5 stars? Maybe it’s changed? I used to thoroughly enjoy this place, and the vibe. Food and beer selection always amazing. Never disappointed here. They have space upstairs and Downstairs
!

Very. Disappointing.
Unfortunately, I think this establishment relies on the building space itself more so than the food, the bar or the service — and it really is a bit of a bait and switch — people «wanting» the experience to be more special than it actually is — but all of the components are so poorly executed, it is hard to assimilate anything else that is positive.
Bottom line is: this oddly laid out gastropub does very little to hide the fact that there is a notable lack of effort that goes into — well… anything it does. The food, the drinks, the waitstaff. Our waitress was somewhat spirited, but in a highly distracted, fatigued and easily overwhelmed kind of way. She tried, she really did.
My traditional gin martini was watered down and the gin bruised, all served in the smallest martini glass I’d ever seen anywhere in my 23 years of drinking in Los Angeles — all the way down to my three emaciated olives which were old and terribly matched with my cocktail. (and WAY overpriced btw).
The tuna crudos were tasty. The fried cauliflower was slapped on the plate with a pile of oily fried remnants from previous servings — and clearly there was no effort to move the florets from the fry basket to the plating area in a presentable fashion. No effort or thought or care or attention went into ANY of the platings at all. The impression I got was that with the food — the kitchen staff just couldn’t care less — slap it on a plate — get it out onto the floor.
My daughter’s mac n’ cheese — drenched and drowning in cheese. My wife’s fish n’ chips (which the waitress enthusiastically endorsed) were limp, soggy and the batter was poorly made with zero thought or flavor. The accompanying fries — stale, stiff, flavorless. Everything was covered in cheese. Ick. Awful dish.
I had only sides — the kale and the broccolini. They were decent and based on the condition of my wife and daughter’s dinner, I was surprised that the vegetables were as intact as they were.
There were loooooooooong stretches of time in between plate clearings and we honestly had to flag someone down and practically bus the table ourselves. Water was never refilled.
The bill with tip came to $ 123.
It’s always a shame when a restaurant «wants» to be something it just isn’t — and the cylinders in this machine are sadly broken. The kitchen and the menu needs a desperate overhaul, the waitstaff needs retraining, they need a better bartender — this place is in critical need of the personal touch in ALL areas — because there is a looming cloud of malaise and an utter lack of care or detail in anything going on in this place. But the building sure is cool.

Met for a networking drink here. First off had a terrible time finding parking. I don’t think the area is sketch but I parked on some dark streets a decent walk away and I wasn’t stoked on it. But anyway when I got in the place was huge! Dark. I didn’t really notice the décor other than we sat in a booth that had like open curtains. They had lots of good looking food on the menu but I wasn’t stoked on anything once it actually came out. Tried tomato soup and the artichokes — both were fine. Waitress was nice and stopped by a lot. Served its purpose but I wouldn’t necessarily come back.

I have never had the change to enjoy the musical aspect to the Federal but have gone here a few times for food in the evening. I like to order the combo with grilled cheese and tomato soup. It has a lot of flavor and tastes great.
I love the atmosphere. It’s nice and dark inside and there are neat decorations. The seating can be a bit tight and depending when you get there you may have to wait. The later you get there the busier it gets. I would recommend this place for an evening out!

This is the closest good gastro-​pub to my apartment building in NoHo — so I am partial. It is a go-​to place for both me and my girlfriend — either together or after a red-​faced conflict — when one or the other of us will flee from the debate with the words «I’m going to the Federal».
But what matters to you is food and drink. The Federal has a lot of great beers. I hardly know what else they have here that is great– because I rarely get beyond the beer. Just remember — the prices go way up when happy hour ends — so this is definitely a Happy Hour place.

You can’t really go wrong /​complain about the place with such a great deal for weekend brunch. $ 30 for 2 entrees and 2 unlimited mimosas and a live band in the back really can’t be beat.
The food portions are good and server always ready to fill. They usually put a big pitcher on tables of what seemed to be 4 or more to avoid too many empty glasses which is nice.
Polenta is a bit on the spicy side but wife’s favorite. The pasta was a bit too peppery and could use a bit more bacon/​sauce but not enough to really raise any concern. The Sammie had good meat but just wish it was bigger. Going to have to give the poutine a shot since it looked pretty amazing with the poached egg on top.

Visited The Federal Bar for an early dinner and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The sweet potato tots are amazing.
The federal burger is so good :) I had the gluten free bun and Im not kidding, once I picked up the burger, I kept eating til it was gone. Never put it down once!

I can’t say a word about the food since I haven’t had one morsel of anything here but I’ve had good times coming here to hang in the bar areas and for birthday’s and what not.
In the second room they have behind the bathrooms you can request the lounge areas to sit at for parties and the like (for free!). Service is always pretty good, and things go right especially with reservations.
They have a club upstairs that has a cover charge to get in but I haven’t stepped foot in there, so go ahead and check that out yourself.
There’s a parking lot in the back that you can park at for a price or maybe for free at certain days/​times. Otherwise there’s metered parking around and probably some other lots that I’m not aware of.

Been a fan of this gem since it opened. I used to live down the street and always had a blast — be it their restaurant room, lounge or upstairs at the club level. Whenever I’m out this way, I find a reason to pop in.
Food is great, and their burger gets a bonus star — good eatin’.
Props to all of the bartenders, especially Sean for being a constant pro. They’re kind, fast, remember you and treat you better still.

Came to The Federal with my friend who raved about the food and we wanted to dance. Yes, it’s true, we women sometimes just want to go out and dance. Well. For some funky reason it smelled like sewage or fart or something kinda funky (did someone have a throw up session? Who knows). Anyway…
Well, I gotta say that I did NOT enjoy the food. Overpriced, charging you for meals that tasted ready made and nothing special at all I tell ya. I had the brussel sprouts, which were decked out too hard with the balsamic vinegar. The short rib poutine was also terrible! The short rib was COLD on top of my fries. OK not cold… LUKEWARM. And I LOVE Short Rib but did NOT like my poutine.
OH and their «best» dessert, the butter cake. I admit, that butter cake was damn good, but the cheesecake frosting was SOOOO FUNKY! YUCK!
I hate when I feel like money was NOT well spent. Add to the careless service and that sewage smell, I will NOT be paying another visit.

So apart from this place being a nice little visual landmark in the part of North Hollywood where things are expensive and you don’t get stabbed. These guys have a really DELICIOUS pesto chicken pasta dish!
I don’t know if it was because i was super hungry from not having eaten for 12 hours or i was hanging out with some really cool people but the dish tasted exactly like i expected. Rich and creamy.
On late tuesday nights, they have sorta open jam sessions featuring LA musicians and sometimes even touring ones that digs deep into soul, funk and r&b, it was pretty hip when I went and stayed for a bit cause the arrangements were pretty slick
I heard these guys have a killer brunch, ill let you guys know once i check it out.
take a friend here.

$ 1 oysters every Wednesday? Whaaaat… Woot-​woot! That alone, I’m in!
Federal bar has a one page menu, easy to order with excellent meals. My TRUFFLE MUSHROOM PIZZA came with oysters that was just fantastic. It was not greasy, and very light to taste. I highly recommend! Service was also fantastic, and their drinks… will knock your socks off (super smooth and strong)!! And if you like Long Island Ice Tea, this is a good place to order it.
Until then, Cheers! ~ :p

Really enjoyed their Sunday brunch! They have a «2 for $ 30» special which includes two entrees and two orders of bottomless mimosas. Great for a date!
Parking was free in the lot behind the building.
Can’t wait to go back!