Mama Lion — Restaurant in Los Angeles

My friends and I went to Mama Lion Saturday night at 1130 p.m. While we were waiting in line, two bouncers walked up and down the line five or six times. They seemed to just want to check on the line and see who was waiting, but otherwise did not indicate to have any issues. We waited in line for about 20-30 minutes until we were the second group from the front door.

A bouncer (a different one from the two that walked up and down the line) told me that I wouldn't be let in because I was wearing a white tshirt. I didn't think anything of it because I get that clubs and lounges sometimes have dress codes. The confusing part, however, was that they just let in someone wearing a white tshirt and for the 5-8 minutes we waited second in line, there were three or four guys that walked out of Mama Lion wearing white tshirts.

Because my friends still wanted to go to in, I decided to wear my friend's track jacket and zipped it up to cover my white tshirt. When we got to the front of the line, the bouncer said that even though the white tshirt was covered, I still won't be let in because the jacket was too athletic. And apparently he "spoke to management" and they agreed, despite not leaving his post. Again, it was a confusing reason considering there were guys wearing hoodies and tshirts and other "athletic" clothing.

It was embarrassing and what I was wearing seemed to be a pretext for something else, especially since (1) two bouncers didn't think it was an issue when they walked up and down the line earlier; (2) the reason for not letting me in seemed to change; (3) others literally wore what the bouncer said I couldn't; and (4) I was the only non-Asian and non-light skin person in line.

In any event, it's 2025 in LA and no one should be made to feel excluded for reasons out of their control.

A quick review of other yelp and google reviews, and it seems like what happened to me also happened to others. Mama Lion needs...

Overall: Great ambiance, fantastic service, and wonderful food.

Coming in for a deceptively cheap $6 happy hour, I was blown away by the beautifully dark decor. The staff were all elegant, helpful, and eager to be of service, especially their exceedingly pleasant bar manager, Eric. He happily guided me not only through their happy hour menu, but also their dinner service as well.

I then took advantage of the previously mentioned $6 happy hour, having 2 of their old-fashioneds which were perfectly priced. The orange zest rim & garnish spruced up what could have otherwise been a run of the mill old-fashioned, making it stand out as a happy hour item well worth the price.

On top of that, the $6 half dozen oysters were great. One would think $1 oysters would be bland & flavourless, and one of the sauces they were served with, the Chili Lime Vinaigrette(which just happened to be a fancy way of saying cocktail sauce) was just that. However, the other sauce the oysters were served with, the Champagne Mignonette, really brought out the taste of both the oysters as well as adding an unexpected burst of flavour making them really enjoyable.

On top of their happy hour, this place boasts both a dinner club menu, as well as a Tuesday through Saturday late night events schedule. Having read other reviews, it seems like there might be a bit of a jarring transition between dinner service into a smaller, high class club-like atmosphere, so be ready for it if you come for late dinner.

Curious about what was written in other reviews, when I got home I called the listed number to see if they really didn't pick up their phone. After pressing '1' in their weird & seemingly outdated phone system, I almost immediately was connected with their front of house staff who were again pleasant & courteous.

I would definitely recommend it for happy hour. I'm also looking forward to checking it out for it's dinner &...

Ok so I heard about this place because my gf suggested we would spend our monthsary dinner here since it's new. I agreed without really doing research about this place. The first thing that threw me off is the bouncer rudely asking if we had a reservation. Ok first off, he asked in a very condescending way, and yes we made a reservation easily. Secondly, why need a bouncer to a restaurant that is located behind H-Mart, a Korean supermarket that you can smell the fish from a block away. I know you're trying to put out a persona of being upscale, but don't have the bouncer ask if patrons have reservations or not. That's the hosts job. The bouncer just throws people off in a bad mood.

As soon as we walked in, the place was empty. As in there were only one other table occupied at prime time Sunday night dinner. As soon as I saw how empty the place was just validated my thought that a bouncer asking for reservations is a bad business move.

Moving on, we were seated and dinner was mediocre at it's best. Maybe I was already in a bad mood even before I set foot inside the restaurant. Anyway I got the 28 day dry aged New York steak. It was ok, although it could've been better. The Gf got the Bucatini Pasta, which was ok as well. We were already in a bad mood we just ate our food and didn't even finish our drink.

My final thoughts: ditch the whole bouncer thing, it just puts it out of place and throw people off even before they taste your food. I'm glad I tried this place, I definitely won't be coming back nor would I...