OPEN: 1964–present
LOCATION: 9071 Santa Monica Boulevard West Hollywood, CA 90069
ORIGINAL PHONE: CR 5-9444
CURRENT PHONE: (310) 275-9444
CUISINE: Italian
BUILDING STYLE: Clubhouse
Dan Tana’s on Santa Monica Boulevard, 1964.
IN 1964, SERBIAN EXPAT AND FORMER PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL PLAYER DAN TANA (BORN DOBRIVOJE TANASIJEVIC) OPENED THE RESTAURANT DAN TANA’S ON SANTA MONICA BOULEVARD, FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF HIS RESTAURATEUR FATHER. At the time, that unincorporated area of L.A.—now known as West Hollywood—didn’t have much to offer.
Tana got his start in the restaurant industry while playing on a California league football team. Since he was not legal, the team arranged for his papers and a job as a packer at the StarKist Tuna factory in San Pedro. After that, Tana worked as a dishwasher at Miceli’s (see page 181), and then as the maître d’ at La Scala (page 211). He was working in the Professional Soccer League offices in Los Angeles when he noticed a hamburger restaurant called Domenico’s going out of business down the street. In 1964, Tana bought the place and hired Chef Michele Diguglio to run the kitchen.
Owner Sonja Perencevic (center) with the staff at Dan Tana’s.
Dan Tana’s has remained virtually unchanged since its opening day. The rounded neon sign outside has been there since the restaurant was Domenico’s. The walls are still painted a deep red, with matching red leather banquettes and tables covered by red-and-white-checkered tablecloths. Clusters of Chianti bottles hang from the ceiling. Known for its delicious Italian food and steaks, the restaurant offers classic pasta dishes such as fettucini, lasagna, and eggplant parmesan.
Dan Tana’s draws a broad range of celebrities. Both Paris Hilton and her mom, Kathy, have celebrated birthdays at the eatery. Johnny Carson said it was his favorite restaurant in Los Angeles. George Clooney’s 2006 Oscar party was held there. It was the first restaurant Cameron Diaz ate at when she arrived in Tinsel Town, and she still eats there often with her agent and manager. Drew Barrymore visited many times when she was a toddler, and today she still comes in. In 2011, Ryan Phillippe told L.A. Magazine that he and his friends had eaten at either Dan Tana’s or Craig’s every Thursday for four years straight.
Because of its close proximity to the Troubadour, Dan Tana’s has also hosted some of the greatest musicians of our time, such as the Byrds, the Mamas and the Papas, Frank Zappa, Elton John, Bette Midler, and the Eagles, who wrote their 1975 hit song “Lyin’ Eyes” at the restaurant.
In 2008, restaurateur Sonja Perencevic bought Dan Tana’s. Even under the new ownership, Dan Tana’s has maintained the same look, and the menu has retained many of its original items. 
Pacific Red Cars rumbled past Domenico’s, which Dan Tana bought and transformed into Dan Tana’s, 1940s.
Chianti bottles cover the ceiling at Dan Tana’s, 1965.