Klein/Ally Show: The Podcast - Klein's Favorite Bar Closes

Episode Date: August 21, 2026

About to get into a brand new episode of Klein Alley Show, but first let's tell you about our good friends at the finest airport that ever was and ever will be. The San Bernardino International Airport. Especially when there's summer travel plans, it can get expensive at these airports. That's why you gotta go to this airport where parking is just five bucks a day. Plus you got those easy trips, San Francisco or Provo, Utah. Maybe you didn't plan anything this summer. See how easy it is. Don't be one of those people who has to pack your patience. Go to San Bernardino International Airport. Okay, enough shilling. Now it's time to get into a brand new episode of Klein Alley Show. Congratulations.

Already a big $500 winner this morning. We're just getting started. If you want tickets to Just Like Heaven or would like to join us at the Endless Summer Kegger, you'll have those chances throughout the morning today. And all you've got to do is keep listening and, you know, keep the show on. You can listen on the app, listen on the go, whatever, or on the radio, like the good Lord intended. A lot of people have a lot of thoughts about the way we do Alley Notes, the news here, and this whole, I was trying to get better contestants,

So I tried to challenge Johnny and Vanessa to find better people to call and play. And I said, if they're able to find someone that can actually beat Allie, I will buy them breakfast. This guy's got a theory about that as well. Fine. I'm on your side here. I'm trying to help you out. I feel like you need to tell that you can poop, that if they can't bet the contestants for Allie knows the news good enough, then they owe you guys breakfast, including Jake. So this guy's theory is that if... I couldn't hear him at the end there, including somebody, but we'll never know.

We'll never know who gets breakfast. I don't think so. I'm so hungry. His phone broke up. We got some beans in here. You can take them. But the point is he's saying that maybe that's the bet, right? If they get good contestants that beat you, I buy them breakfast.

If they get bad contestants that crumble under the pressure, they buy us breakfast. They're going to go broke. I know. But today, it's a breakfast day. So happy Friday. Let's order some breakfast. And last time, though, it got out of control because no one could agree. And next thing I knew, there was like four different places bringing food here.

Vanessa wanted a bagel sandwich type thing. And Johnny wanted a smoothie. And then Jake was randomly saying he wanted corn dogs. Yeah. Oh, yeah, that sounds good. Yeah, so we're not doing that again. Just pick a normal breakfast place. Nothing like a 7.30 corn dog.

Oh, man, so good. Weirdest collection of people ever. It's like, I thought this was Allie's pregnancy craving wish list. I made all those things, by the way. She's like, no, no, no, Jake wants a corn dog. We can't find anyone to bring one here. One, two. We're not doing corn dogs.

I'm sorry. And Johnny, I don't know where all of a sudden you got this bougie appetite where you'll only order from Air One or wherever the hell you get it. It's not Air One. It's Earth Bar. It's right across the street. We're not. Just a regular good old-fashioned.

Just find a normal goddamn breakfast like Vanessa gets. Like a breakfast smoothie? No, like a breakfast sandwich. So what, you want us to order from like IHOP or something? Great. Einstein's Bagels down the street? Sure. Great.

Last time, I think the thing cost me more than Allie lost. I think Allie lost $100. I think I paid out $107 to get all this food here. Because the smoothies were like $20. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And we're not doing that again. I'm sorry. All right.

You can't, no. Corn dogs are cheap. Those aren't the rules. You know what? Jake's right. We're just getting corn dogs from now on. Damn it. Now that's it.

Everyone's getting corn dogs. Corn dog Fridays. I'm kind of bummed out. I don't know. Allie, do you think I'm, you say I'm not emotional of a person. I don't have a heart and stuff. I mean, you say I have a heart. I'm a good person, but I lack emotion.

You're not emotional for certain things. Yes, but you are a pussy. A couple people tipped me off. Thank you for saying that. A couple people tipped me off yesterday to a bar that has been in Southern California for almost 30 years and a place that I've had a lot of fond memories at,

including the place I met my wife at. Chuck E. Cheese? Chuck E. Cheese. Wasn't that a preschool? I thought that was a playground. It was a bar called... Gymboree.

It's the juice bar at my gym. And that's... You're all wrong. I gave her her first apple juice. There's a bar on La Cienega that's been there for a long-ass time called The Belmont.

And apparently it is now doing, unfortunately, what a lot of places are doing, which is shutting down and i don't know they didn't explain the reason i'm sure it's because rents got expensive or business hasn't been good i guess it had been around forever it was one of the first places just because it was near where i first lived when i moved here that it was my go-to if nothing else panned out if there was that was always a place that go the amount of football i watched in that place on sundays uh and the amount of times i had been rejected by women there uh you

know but many fond memories at a bar that i also had not been to in a long time except that's probably why except i did well i live on the other side of the hill so the odds of me going over the canyon for a drink is just rare but i did go back there and i feel like it was the final nail in the coffin this past year this past july was a significant and it was like uh the anniversary of i think 20 years since i met my wife at that bar whoa that's a long time met her in 2006 in july at that bar and we went back there and had a drink and the bartender there coincidentally and this is going to be a real throwback to anyone who's been listening to the show,

but the bartender there apparently was the husband of the woman that won the rap contest and came on stage with Limp Bizkit and us. Oh, I thought you were going to say it was the same bartender from 20 years ago. No, no, that guy's long dead. Okay. But yeah, and he was like, hey, I know you.

And I was like, oh yeah, fan of the show? He goes, no. But you gave my wife an opportunity to go on stage and rap with Limp Bizkit. Wow, that's amazing. That's crazy. Did he give you a free drink? I think he did

I think he did comp our drinks yeah and that was the nail in the coffin and I said those final two drinks is what made them

not be able to pay rent but I found myself getting strangely emotional and I know that everyone's got a place that maybe is like was their go-to is their go-to

and even if you haven't been there in years it's something nice to know it's open nice to know you could go back to it if you wanted to you know I don't want

to distract you with math but 20 years ago I don't think your wife would have been old enough to drink um yep that's right

See, you met her in a bar My math is wrong It was probably 17 years ago or something And to be completely honest I met her two days after her 21st birthday Oh, okay So the answer is she was For you

It's the classic thing to do I just was sitting there with a stopwatch Going on, and go She's on the Belmont, go So, no, I just That's tragic though When a place that you have an emotional connection with Has, you know, closed down

There are a few places like that for us that we used to frequent, and then you get those little pop-ups that say this place is closing after 50, 70 years, and you feel like a little part of you dies. When I left L.A. for a period, when we moved up to San Francisco to start that show, I had my going-away-leaving-L.A. party at the Belmont as well. So that was like, as I said, if I needed to do anything, that was the place. And a lot of people, I was just reading some of the many comments, and it was a lot of people's like, oh, I remember first moving to L.A. This was the first, because it was one of those places there was no, it wasn't like you needed to know someone to get in. You didn't have to have nine names to drop at the door. They didn't try to convince you, oh, you got to buy six bottles. It was just a place you could just go and hang out.

And it's sad because as we've all. It's a common story now. It's a common story. We've all had a place that we were like, and we're part of the problem because you go, oh, I used to go there all the time. and you go, yeah, well, that's the issue. It's like people that tell us. They're like, where the hell were you? You work at K-Rock?

I used to listen to that every day. I go, well, where the hell, we're still here. Where the hell have you been? But you know what? There are a few places that I know of that have closed down and I was sad and then they reopened or they were saved. And think about Kohl's Friendship,

like those places that they say, we're going to close down and then all of a sudden all these people flood to that place and keep it afloat. So you can be one of those people. It's funny, I guess the guy who's running it or someone put out a message yesterday, a video on Instagram,

And they said, we're not going to go quietly into the night, but we're basically, our last day is the end of August. So if you'd like to stop by and have one last drink. And I'm thinking to myself, is this one of those things where the... It's a cry for help. Like, this is really not we're closing, but let's go ahead and figure out if we can boost the sales and all of a sudden, you know, stay alive. I couldn't imagine what the rent costs. I mean, even I just know what the rent is on apartments here is crazy. For these businesses...

Well, a lot of these businesses, even if they're full, they're not even making money. Right. And the restaurant business is terrible. And now all these people aren't drinking anymore. So it sucks if you're running a bar. I think that's a big part of it, too. I mean, that was... They need to get a bunch of soju cocktails in there.

Yeah, yeah, all those hipstery, weird, dry drinks. Daddy sodas. I think the real problem, Allie, is that you're pregnant. You're not drinking anymore. Well, as soon as this baby gets out of here, I will frequent every single bar in this area. So for anyone who's lost a place, thoughts with you this morning and a moment of silence for that.

We come back in a moment. When we return, we have your news to get to. Then a brand new hour of the show, complete with the finals for the dumb-off. People are very excited for the dumb-off finals today. Someone is going to wear the sash of stupidity. And we have those tickets for you to join us at our endless summer kegger happening in mere moments here on KROQ.