Located in the basement of the nearly century-old Higgins Building (the first building in LA to generate its own electric power), The Edison is part trendy nightclub, part shrine to turn-of-the-century American ingenuity.

Though Downtown seems to get a new bar for every loft-converting tenant, The Edison is trying to raise the bar by lowering it. Like a decked-out, well-stocked underground bunker, The Edison is a highly ambitious nightspot that's as historically relevant as it is kitschy. Flanked by old-fashioned turbines and enormous, faux-faded murals featuring early ads for electric power, The Edison's massive industrial space is cleverly divided into distinct areas, with several dimly lit lounges, a stage and a spacious dancing area for practicing the electric slide. A tiny room dubbed The Furnace—formerly the building's boiler room—has been re-imagined as a swank, comfy den illuminated by dozens of tealights (all electric, of course). Along with signature drinks like house specialty The Edison—a concoction of lavender-honey infused liquor, pear liqueur, and fresh-squeezed pear nectar—the bar offers an impressive [read: pricey] scotch menu, and an assortment of traditional supper club faves like oysters Rockefeller, deviled eggs, and the brown derby cobb salad. The mac-and-cheese is tasty; the all-beef hot dog worth the embarrassment. Though we're not secure enough to stand around holding sweet-potato fries if we don't have a table, like several patrons we've seen, we do admire those who do so without shame, because those fries are awfully addicting.