Legendary Sunset Strip hotel and industry hideout modeled after a French castle. The suites and garden bungalows are famously worn-in; the leafy courtyard terrace hosts low-key lunches and late drinks.
Case Study House #8 sits in a eucalyptus meadow above the ocean. Tours remain outside, looking through glass walls at the warm, object-filled spaces preserved inside.
Always-packed California burger stand sitting right under the LAX flight path. Suitcases pile around the outdoor tables as low-flying jets roar overhead during rounds of Double-Doubles and Animal Style fries.
South LA kitchen dishing up Jamaican-soul food platters from a covered outdoor patio. The menu changes daily on a whiteboard – expect generous portions of oxtail, jerk chicken, and standout mac & cheese.
Loud, festive Oaxacan institution serving complex, family-recipe moles and a deep list of mezcals. Live music from the bandstand fills the sprawling dining room most nights.
No-frills 24-hour Koreatown strip mall spot running on tight tables and rapid turnover. Massive cauldrons of spicy braised short ribs arrive bubbling under blowtorched cheese next to slow-simmered ox bone broths.
White modernist box on Wilshire Boulevard exhibiting international contemporary art. Floor-to-ceiling windows wrap the lower level of the two-story space directly across from LACMA.
Sprawling Art Deco complex that was once a famous Southern California bakery. Today, its industrial halls house high-end design showrooms, an art bookstore, and the destination gastropub Father's Office.
Parking lot taco stand centered on a vertical trompo, where al pastor is shaved to order with a slice of pineapple. A long communal bar holds salsas, grilled vegetables, and potatoes for topping off fresh tortillas.
Sprawling open-air mall mixing upscale retail with extensive outdoor lounging. Multi-level walkways run past luxury storefronts and restaurants into landscaped plazas with fire pits, olive trees, and shaded seating.
Travertine-clad cultural campus reached by a cable tram climbing above the 405. Pavilions holding European art and photography open onto panoramic terraces and a winding central garden.
Stark white gallery on Santa Monica Boulevard staging museum-quality contemporary art. The cavernous, light-filled interior handles massive installations from global heavyweights.
Compact Melrose Avenue burger counter from Nipsey Hussle’s Marathon brand. Loud hip-hop plays over a dozen stools while the open kitchen slings double Wagyu smash burgers with spicy Fresno peppers and house pickles.
Open-air amphitheater carved into a Griffith Park hillside. Trees surround the 5,900-seat bowl, keeping the sound tight for live concerts running spring through fall.
Historic Olvera Street food stand frying crispy beef taquitos and smothering them in green avocado sauce. Orders come fast over the counter, handed off in paper trays to eat while walking through the busy marketplace.
Frank Gehry’s stainless steel sails house the city’s flagship orchestra. The wood-lined auditorium surrounds the stage with terraced seating, keeping acoustics sharp and the atmosphere intimate.
Raucous counter in Far East Plaza slinging Nashville hot chicken to a perpetual line. The energy is loud and fast, with heat levels on the signature Sando climbing from mild to reaper.
Seventeen-room Echo Park Craftsman running as a living museum and massive erotic art archive. Explicit homoerotic works cover nearly every surface, leading up to the artist’s preserved third-floor studio.
Futuristic, cloud-like landmark anchoring a 13-acre garden campus in Exposition Park. The fluid building arches over a wide public plaza, with vast galleries dedicated entirely to visual storytelling, comics, and cinema.
New York-style slice shop serving thick Sicilian squares topped with pepperoni that curls into crisp, greasy cups. The space is standing-room-only, with the scene spilling out onto the public sidewalk tables.
Old-school Westlake deli stacking hot, hand-sliced pastrami on crispy double-baked rye. Brown vinyl booths and counter stools stay packed with orders of the #19 until the 4pm close.
Very dim, subterranean Arts District lounge pouring a massive cocktail menu sorted by flavor profile. Bartenders mix complex drinks for a seated crowd while walk-ins fill the adjacent standing room.
