Lookers Is a Hoot, If You Don’t Take Equality Too Seriously
DANA POINT — The bathroom doors at Lookers say a lot. A slobbering wolf with a red tongue painted on the men’s john leers across the hall at the image of an Evangeline wannabe that greets every woman who’s gotta go.
Joe Camel’s a paragon of subtlety by comparison. But hey, if you missed the women’s movement, slept through that class or just don’t care, this bar’s for you. The beer’s pretty cheap, and the fries aren’t bad, plus--and it’s a big plus for music lovers--the live entertainment schedule boasts such top blues players as James Harman, Robert Lucas and Rod Piazza.
Lookers’ hard-working, well-endowed waitresses sport tight white T-shirts scoop-cut to there and black latex bike shorts. On a recent Friday night, these outfits caused some patrons’ eyes to bulge like those double Os in the bar’s name.
All this sound familiar? Quick thinking, Ace. The management denies much resemblance to Hooters restaurants, but one employee (who requested anonymity) confirmed that the similarities are intentional. “Yeah,” the staffer said, “except this is supposed to be nicer.”
Well, I did hear one young man among the tanned, collegiate, crowd refer to a woman’s “jugs.” But, unlike at Hooters, I didn’t see a single waitress wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan “More Than a Mouthful.” That was nice.
In addition to those fries and some dandy coleslaw, the bar’s assets include light pine paneling and matching chairs, which beat the typically dour sports-grill decor.
Lookers’ servers are solicitous, and the outdoor patio and bar is spacious and inviting, if you don’t mind the view of a Cape Cod-style mini-mall. Television monitors, indoors and out, include four big screens. Pool tables and computer trivia games (N.T.N. and QBI) keep busy.
Booze prices are nice too, particularly during happy hour from 4 to 7 p.m. Domestic beers are $2; well and call drinks are $2.25, and premiums go for $3.25. The drink range jumps to $2.50 to $4.25 after 7. There’s little excuse for an empty stomach, thanks to a $3.50 all-you-can-eat buffalo-wing buffet during happy hour. Those wings are seasoned mild, medium and hot.
The full menu features beef, fish, chicken and pasta entrees (from $6.95 to $12.95), salads, pizzas and burgers.
Eat, drink and be merry, because serious dancing is well nigh impossible here, due to a dance space that’s both too small (accommodating five couples, max) and too close to the band for comfort.
That live entertainment (which the original Lookers in Westminster lacks) is noteworthy, though. The format is Top 40 on Fridays, R&B; and blues on Saturdays and calypso and reggae on Sundays. Harman and Lucas are booked for Saturday and Aug. 31 respectively; Piazza is booked for Sept. 14, Walter Trout for Sept. 21.
The bar plans to begin brewing beer on premises in three months.
*24921 Dana Point Harbor Drive, No. B-110, Dana Point.
* (714) 488-3106.
* Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-midnight; Saturday, 11 a.m.-2 a.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
* Cover on Friday and Saturday, $3-$7.
