Tahiti is too far away, and Hawaii is overrated. Why spend $1,200 on a plane ticket when right in your front yard lies a weekend tropical oasis?

To the Los Angeles day trip warrior, Laguna Beach is a quick, affordable getaway. This mini-paradise is surrounded by soft beaches, beautiful architecture, fun people, good food and cool nightlife. If you spend some quality time relaxing and get out before you start to get used to it, a weekend in this place can feel like a day in Maui. Or at least a week in the MGM Grand pool area. Here are a couple of places to hit up.

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1800 Hillhurst Ave (map)
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 665-0135

If its neighbor Ye Rustic Inn is the diviest bar above sea level, the Drawing Room is only a few inches upshore. Its aging ‘80s roller-rink vibe contrasts sharply with the Asian-inspired dragon painted across the back wall, and it’s a mystery how the random video game and electronic dart board are supposed to fit in. But despite its mismatched appearances, this is by far one of the most awe-inspiring bars in Los Angeles. Its patronage mainly consists of older drunk men and the young hipster-artist types who hang around them because they’re “real, man.” (For an even heavier dose of reality, go there at 6 am when the bar opens.) This place doesn’t have quite the depth to keep one occupied all night, so most people go either at the very beginning or very end of the night. However, with some of the cheapest drinks east Hollywood has to offer (including the $3.50 scotch on the rocks you have to taste to believe), the hour or two you spend there will probably be quite productive. Keep in mind it’s a cash-only bar, so leave your fancy-pants credit cards at home.

The haiku version:

It’s the only place
Outside a bowling alley
Where the shoes fit in

< Back to Nightlife

1831 Hillhurst Ave (map)
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 662-5757

“The Rustic,” as it’s known by area hipsters, is about as divey as a dive bar gets without being inside a submersible. All of the staple dive bar elements are there – the wood-motif paneling, the loud ‘70s rock, the antler chandeliers, the busty, cowgirl-hat-wearing bartenders, the cheap drinks, the old drunks, and the dive bar fan crowd that bum-rushes the place nearly every night of the week, and the fact that it’s in a strip mall next to the gas company. Don’t go here if you like Usher and Kanye. Do go here if you rep Usher and Kanye ironically, have a moustache, endeavor to have a moustache, or have absolutely nowhere else to be in the next 14 hours. Because the Rustic will absorb you bodily and swallow up your plans like it’s the white whale. Good night, sir.

The haiku version:

“Haba naba wa
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha”
Is the native speak

< Back to Nightlife

1760 North Vermont Ave (map)
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 665-4294

www.thedresden.com

If you are hosting out-of-town friends with classy taste, or alternatively are looking for a place to wear your rented tuxedo one more time, the Dresden Room is the place you want to be. This ‘40s-style jazz lounge comes with classic ‘40s-style bartenders who look you in the eye while you order, sometimes even serving you a witty one-liner with your drink. The atmosphere is dark, well-populated (which could just be a positive spin on “crowded”), and only seems to be missing the obligatory cigar smoke and illegal gambling. Of course, the ever-heralded house jazz duo Marty and Elayne will make you forget you’re in the oughts. The drummer and keyboardist (who both sing, and who invite guest singers up as well) appear Tuesdays through Saturdays from 9pm to 1:15am, a gig they’ve held up since 1982. Buy them a drink, they deserve it. Yes, this is the place from “Swingers.”

The haiku version:

With a smoky scotch
And a tapping foot, you’re gold
Here’s lookin’ at you

< Back to Nightlife

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Los Angelenos who move out of town usually end up missing their city. Its crazy architecture, the gigantic ads, and especially the unique, stately skyline. Wish there was some way to take it with you?

Create My Scene is a Florida-based company specializing in giving Angelenos (well, and everyone else) the view they want from their windows, instead of whatever part of Detroit or Stockton they’re currently calling home. It’s as simple as creating a life-size, photo-based window film, adding a little sunlight to make it come alive, and there you are back in your old stomping grounds. Ah, remember that smell?

Curious? Visit Create My Scene to bring home back to wherever you are.

This announcement brought to you by the crazy homeless guy who never seems to leave your driveway.

“The only reason to have money is to tell any SOB in the world to go to hell.”

– Humphrey Bogart, former Beverly Hills resident

The LA Oasis

Beverly Hills is the crown jewel of Los Angeles’s residential neighborhoods. Most people living outside of its famous zip code are either trying to live there or acting like they already do. Beverly Hills has the privacy of outer-suburban living with its winding, shaded drives, well-watered greenery and sprawling, palace-like mansions, but also provides the convenience of city living with its quaint downtown shopping area and its proximity to the buzzing hives of West Hollywood, Westwood and Century City. Some of the homes in Beverly Hills are among the most extravagant in the world, and tour buses drive through on a daily basis to display the architectural styles and sweeping lawn setups to pop-eyed tourists. Celebrity homes also dot the landscape, at least if you believe what the star-map vendors tell you. Home prices range from $500k to well over $10 million, and with its famous landmarks (like the Beverly Hills Hotel, Greystone Mansion and Park, and Rodeo Drive), plus the view from some of the higher-up streets, the neighborhood isn’t getting more accessible anytime soon.

Beverly Hills Trivia

• Together with Bel Aire and Holmby Hills, Beverly Hills is known as one point of the “Platinum Triangle”
• Rodeo Drive is named after Rancho Rodeo de las Aguas, the area’s original name from the 1700s
• Beverly Hills is home to the famous Playboy Mansion, as well as the homes of George Clooney, Madonna and a legion of other major celebrities
• Beverly Hills High School is built on the site of the 1920s-era Beverly Hills Speedway
• Before it was a renowned affluent neighborhood, Beverly Hills was an agricultural center for lima beans

Beverly Hills Restaurants

• Il Tramezzino
• Spago
• Urth Caffe
• The Stinking Rose
• Benihana
• Lawry’s Steakhouse
• Nobu
• Real Food Daily
• Il Fornaio
• Mulberry Street Pizza

“Half the people in Hollywood are dying to be discovered, and the other half are afraid they will be.”

– Lionel Barrymore, actor

The Glam Ticket

Hollywood is easily the most famous neighborhood of Los Angeles, and the favorite destination of most tourists. Bordered by Silverlake and Los Feliz on the east and West Hollywood to the west, it contains well-known landmarks such as the famous Hollywood sign, Grouman’s Chinese Theatre, the Hollywood Bowl, the Walk of Fame, the Hollywood Wax Museum, the Kodak Theatre and the Hollywood & Highland Center.

Hollywood regularly hosts high-profile events such as the Academy Awards, the American Idol finales, Jimmy Kimmel Live, the Hollywood Christmas Parade, and many other television tapings, award ceremonies and film premiers. Many of these events take place near the famous intersection of Hollywood and Highland.

“I have too much money invested in sweaters.”

– Bob Hope, former West Hollywood resident

The Party Zone

If Hollywood represents the work environment of the entertainment industry, West Hollywood represents the lifestyle. Nobody in WeHo seems to work, and the streets are alive with fashionably dressed foot traffic at nearly all hours of the day, every day of the week. This is where you will see the flashiest cars, the nighttime sunglasses, the newest trends, and the most memorable characters in the Los Angeles landscape.

West Hollywood is home to the Sunset Strip, where bars like the Viper Room, the Roxy and the Whisky a Go Go support the LA rock scene; the Melrose District, where clothing stores, cafes and boutique shops attract hipsters and other scene spectators;  and the “Boys Town” area of  Santa Monica Boulevard, where the gay scene buzzes with activity. It is also home to the Rock Walk outside of Guitar Center on Sunset, as well as some of LA’s most interesting architecture, such as the Pacific Design Center (known as the Blue Whale).

West Hollywood Trivia

• The West Hollywood Costume Carnival is supposedly the largest Halloween street party in the US, with over 400,000 attendants in 2009
• The annual Christopher Street West gay and lesbian pride parade occurs every June, with marchers parading west down Santa Monica Boulevard
• The Rainbow Room was the site of Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe’s first blind date in 1953, when it was called Villa Nova
• The Doors were the house band at the Whisky a Go Go in 1966. Other acts included The Who, the Kinks, the Byrds, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC and Jimi Hendrix
• Barney’s Beanery on Holloway was the last place Janis Joplin visited the night of her death in 1970. Her signature is on an old tabletop attached to the ceiling
• The Comedy Store on Sunset was the starting point for comedians like Jim Carrey, Michael Keaton, Howie Mandel and David Letterman. It is owned by Pauly Shore’s mother Mitzi Shore

West Hollywood Restaurants

• Hamburger Mary’s
• Mao’s Kitchen
• Sushi Dan
• Damiano Mr. Pizza
• Bossa Nova
• Aroma Cafe

West Hollywood Bars

• Jones
• Barney’s Beanery
• Lubitsch
• Crown Bar
• Libertine on Sunset
• The Darkroom

“Sometimes you just have to pee in the sink.”

– Charles Bukowski, former Los Feliz resident

Hipster Hive, the Sequel

Los Feliz is quickly catching up to Silver Lake as the hipster capital of the world, with many of Los Angeles’ less washed-up bands, artists and actors calling it home. It extends from Western Ave east to the cement ditch some call the Los Angeles River, from Sunset on the south to Griffith Park on the north. The main parts people find interesting are the area around Hollywood and Western, the parts of Vermont and Hillhurst that lie between Prospect and Los Feliz Blvd, the stretch of Los Feliz Blvd that extends north past the 5, and the section of Hyperion Ave near Rowena, where both a Burrito King and a Trader Joe’s exist within 50 yards of each other (providing little incentive to ever leave). The area is full of small, chic cafes and restaurants, and the bars are all within walking distance, which is important in Los Angeles. The Los Feliz Hills also feature some of the area’s nicest homes, as well as parts of Griffith Park, the Griffith Observatory and the notorious Hollywood sign. Wandering a short distance southeast brings you to Silver Lake, where the laid-back, bohemian vibe continues.

Los Feliz Trivia

• The movie Swingers was written and filmed in locations throughout the area, including the Dresden Room, the Derby, House of Pies and the Los Feliz Golf Course
• Gavin Rossdale and Gewn Stefani have a home in the Los Feliz Hills, proving once and for all that they really are cool

Restaurants

• Tropicalia Brazilian Grill
• Home
• Green Leaves
• Simply Thai
• Electric Lotus
• Alcove Cafe
• Niko Niko Sushi
• En Sushi
• Fred 62
• Cheech’s Pizza

Bars

• Ye Rustic Inn
• The Drawing Room
• Good Luck Bar
• The Dresden Room
• The Derby
• Tangier