Dan Tana’s: The Hollywood restaurant where Eagles wrote their biggest hits
There aren’t many restaurants in the world that can claim to have created not one but two massive hits for one of the best-selling bands of all time. But Dan Tana’s isn’t just any restaurant. Situated halfway between West Hollywood and Beverly Hills, Tana’s has been serving traditional Italian food to the rich and famous of Tinsel Town for over half a century.
Dan Tana himself isn’t Italian by birth. In fact, his real name is Dobrivoje Tanasijević. He’s a Serbian-American who was born in Yugoslavia almost 90 years ago, before settling in California in 1956, at the tender age of 21. Tana had been a promising association football player for Red Star Belgrade and Yugoslavia as a teenager, until he defected to Belgium.
He then made his way to Hollywood via a football team in Montreal, Canada, and a poker game in which he gambled all the money he had. On winning the game, he set off for the bright lights of Hollywood, starting as a dishwasher before working his way up into restaurant and club management. Finally, in 1964, he took over an LA burger joint and turned it into his own Italian restaurant.
Tana’s restaurant started with modest returns. As veteran maître d’ Mike Gotovac explains, “Prior to 1976 we were doing about 25 dinners a night.” But its traditional meat and pasta dishes like veal scaloppine and penne arrabiata, cosy booths and warm service soon attracted the clientele they were looking for. Particularly as it was located right next to iconic folk rock music venue The Troubadour.
“We used to close our kitchen early, but because of the Troubadour we kept our kitchen open late, Gotovac says. “Until this day, we still are one of the only restaurants in this area that serve after midnight.”
Which stars has it hosted, then?
Dan Tana’s hours and home-cooked Italian grub helped it bring in the likes of Tonight Show host Johnny Carson, film executives Lew and Edith Wasserman, Linda Ronstadt and, most famously, the Eagles. “Yes, Glenn Frey and Don Henley would sit at Table 4,” Gotovac confirms.
Frey and Henley would actually go on to pen two of their biggest hits at that very table. The lyrics for the band’s first number hit ‘Best of My Love’ were virtually all written in Dan Tana’s, according to Henley. The group came up with the idea for ‘Lyin’ Eyes’ while observing some unusual dating habits at the restaurant.
The 1970s crime drama Vega$ even borrowed its owner’s name, with its protagonist called Detective Dan Tanna. Latterly, the restaurant has become a favourite of George Clooney’s, while Boardwalk Empire star Dabney Coleman frequented it for over 50 years.
This year, the restaurant is celebrating its 60th anniversary, and various memorabilia from its past now adorn its walls, from signed photos or Tana’s own collection of famous football shirts.
It remains as cosy as ever, though. And appreciative customers still get a shot of Serbian slivovitz brandy from Gotovac on the house.
