The Moroccan Lounge to debut downtown; new venue at onetime home of Little Pedro’s

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The site of the new Moroccan Lounge, when it was the One Eyed Gypsy
The site of the new Moroccan Lounge, when it was the One Eyed Gypsy

A cozy new music venue, The Moroccan Lounge, will be christened this fall in downtown Los Angeles at the onetime home of one of the city’s oldest bars.

The building at 901 E. 1st St. (at Vignes) was once home to Little Pedro’s (and had later incarnations as Bordello, One Eyed Gypsy and OSSO). The 275-capacity room now falls to the stewardship Michael Swier and Joe Baxley, the duo who two years ago opened the 7th Street concert venue the Teragram Ballroom.

Duncan Smith, formerly of downtown’s Resident and prior to that Spaceland Presents, will be the talent buyer for the Moroccan Lounge.

“It was important for me to open a little brother to the Teragram Ballroom — a fresh, sound-strong venue that supports bands, giving them that first step up to performing in a first rate, state-of-the-art venue,” Swier said in a press release. “A venue the size and quality of the Moroccan Lounge develops bands with the kind of professional attention and treatment they will come to expect as their careers gain speed and they play the larger, more venerable venues.”

Swier adds: “I feel very fortunate to have found this gem, with its perfect bones for music, in the Arts District. It’s a vibrant neighborhood, new and familiar at the same time, a creative sense of place.”

By the time it opens, the room will have gotten a makeover.

“We were inspired by the building’s existing Moorish style, which kindled memories of Tangier, and the iconic Café Baba, notorious haunt of rock legends,” says Brian Swier, the architect who also designed the Teragram Ballroom and New York’s Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge. “While rock ’n’ roll was my primary design mode, visitors can expect unusual details here — some new, some vintage — like unique wall coverings, exposed masonry, and salvaged ephemera.”

The building, which dates to the late 1800s, was once a brothel. It holds one of the oldest liquor licenses in the city.

When live, the venue will be on social media @moroccan_lounge (Twitter) and @moroccanlounge (Instagram).