El Cid
A candlelit Spanish tavern on Sunset Blvd, transformed in 1962 by flamenco dancers Juan Talavera and Margarita Cordova — couples we’ve worked with here chose it for its “old Hollywood charm and casual, spontaneous vibe.”
A Sunset Blvd building with three distinct past lives
Before it became El Cid, the building at 4212 W Sunset lived several other lives: a 1925 jail-themed café with waiters dressed as guards, the 1932 Gateway Theatre, and by the 1950s the Cabaret Concert Theatre, drawing TV producers and celebrities to its revues. On December 7, 1962, flamenco dancers Juan Talavera and Margarita Cordova, with Clark Allen, reopened it as a “16th-century Spanish tavern” — the moody, candlelit space that still hosts live flamenco dinner shows today.
You reach the venue down a stairway from street level, into a cabaret-style dining room with a stage, plus multiple patios and courtyards — one centered on a fountain, another two-tiered with old films projected on a wall. Indoor and outdoor spaces can be booked separately or together, with portable walls allowing a different layout for ceremony versus reception.
A candid, spontaneous kind of wedding day
We photographed a wedding here for a couple who told us they chose El Cid for its “blend of old Hollywood charm and a casual, spontaneous vibe,” and because it has “both indoor and outdoor areas, creating a dynamic space for photography.” Coverage ran from a 5:30pm ceremony through cocktail hour in the courtyard and dinner into a reception that carried past midnight, for about 85 of the couple’s 100 invited guests. They wanted candid, documentary-style coverage rather than posed portraits — a natural fit for a room this atmospheric.
Good to know before you book
- Entered via a stairway down from street level — a consideration for guest accessibility and gear load-in
- Ambient light runs candlelit and moody — plan for a documentary-style, low-light shoot
- Indoor and outdoor spaces can be rented separately or combined
- No dedicated large lot; valet, nearby paid parking, or metered street parking
Where we like to shoot
- The cabaret-style dining room and flamenco stage
- The fountain courtyard patio
- The two-tiered patio with its projected-film wall
- Candlelit detail shots throughout the dining room
What couples and guests notice about El Cid
Reviewers consistently describe the space as transportive and theatrical — “a performance space, art gallery, and hipster underground bunker” all at once.
Live flamenco shows are the most consistently praised feature, giving a wedding here a real live-performance backdrop most venues don’t have.
Food quality is more mixed than the ambiance in reviews — worth a tasting before you finalize a menu.