90071 Travel Guide
Tags: Halloween Hotels / Los Angeles Hotels / Movie Set Hotels / → All Tags
Celebrate Halloween Where 'Ghostbusters' Was Filmed
'Tis the season for a parade of hotel parties. Holiday dinners in the hundred dollar range are just around the corner, but it's Halloween that precedes the hanging of tinsel from marble-tiled lobbies. Most of the upcoming events we've heard of are the standard ballroom/costume/D.J. affairs that attract crowds of 20-somethings. Raucous fun, maybe, but they also tend to bring out scenesters in droves, which leaves those looking to celebrate over classy cocktails in a lurch.
Enter L.A.'s Millennium Biltmore, who is hosting an "All Hallow's Eve" party at their Gallery Bar on October 31st from 4:00 PM to 2:00 AM, and forgoing "sexy nurse" overtures in favor of a vintage vibe. The Millennium may not have haunted hotel room lore like that of The Roosevelt, but it did serve as one of the filming locations for Ghostbusters, if that means anything to you.
Tags: What's On The Block / Whats-on-the-Block-Map / Los Angeles Hotels / Standard Hotels / → All Tags
What's On The Block at the Standard Downtown LA?
We continue our What's On The Block: Los Angeles Edition by heading downtown.
So far this week, we’ve taken you to Santa Monica, the Sunset Strip and Beverly Hills, so we thought we’d end our Los Angeles What’s On The Block series with one of our downtown haunts, The Standard.
Sure, there are newer hotels in the area, but we keep coming back to this Andre Balazs property thanks, in no small part, to its central location in the heart of the downtown. At least, the part of downtown that doesn’t get too scary after dark.
Let’s start right behind the hotel at the LA Public Library and Park. The Central Library, which opened in 1926, is a bona fide Los Angeles landmark. Learn more about the architecture and notable art works of the building on a Docent Tour (our favorites are the scary fairy tale sculptures in the children’s court). Try not to get hit by a skateboarder as you cross the little park for a luxe lunch on the patio at Café Pinot.
Tags: Hotel Renovations / Los Angeles Hotels / Westin Hotels / Hotel Amenities / In-Room Coffee / → All Tags
LA's Westin Bonaventure Is Getting Some Very Necessary Renovations
The Westin Bonaventure has caught our attention as of late for all their frantic Twitter deals but it's never really been top on our list of Los Angeles hotels to visit, or even on our list of Downtown Los Angeles hotels to visit. This is despite the hotel being a Westin brand with its relaxing, white tea scents and those coveted SPG points and despite the hotel's revolving cocktail lounge at the top of the hotel.
Still the Twitter deals had us intrigued so we decided to head downtown the other week and see what was new at the hotel. We are happy to report that there's a lot in the works. But the key words are: "in the works."
The hotel was built in 1976 by architect John Portman who created four separate towers of hotel rooms (there's over 1,300 in total) that are joined together by a large atrium at the ground level. This serves as the hotel's lobby as well as a sort of shopping plaza where about 42 shops and restaurants have opened.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Millennium Hotels / Downtown LA Hotels / → All Tags
Bite Into La Bistecca at the Millennium Biltmore
For a long time, the cavernous Spanish-colonial gem of a former lobby at downtown Los Angeles’s Millennium Biltmore Hotel was going to waste as a way station for travelers checking in and out without giving the breathtaking hall the attention it deserved. Now, however, the hotel is putting the three-story space front and center as the location of its new Italian steakhouse, La Bistecca.
The lobby, which has touches of a bygone era like hand-carved wooden ceiling beams, Travertine walls, and an enormous chandelier that even the Phantom of the Opera would enjoy, has also added a huge rose marble fountain in the middle of the new 70-person seating area.
Carnivores can get six different cuts of steak, including a bone-in rib eye, and slow-roasted prime rib. The meats come, Sicilian-style, with a variety of simple accompaniments and sauces like the Barolo wine sauce, a mascarpone-horseradish cream, and a marinated porcini béarnaise.
Vegans might have a hard time finding something to eat here since even the salads have cream-based dressings, and all the antipasti and pasta dishes include some kind of meat, but you know what? You can hit a Whole Foods anytime, this is for a special night out at an old-school steakhouse.
Tags: Hotel Art / Standard Hotels / Kalup Linzy / Los Angeles Hotels / → All Tags
Video Exhibit at L.A.'s Standard Hotels Anything But Standard
For the next six months, guests and passersby at the Standard Hotel’s two L.A. properties will be treated to a video art show by artist and Guggenheim fellow Kalup Linzy, whose works have also appeared at New York’s MoMa, and the Whitney.
Entitled Key to Our Heart and SweetBerry Sonnet, Linzy’s works are meant to raise questions about gender, sexuality, race, class and popular culture by mocking soap operas’ and Hollywood films’ storytelling conventions—and many of Linzy’s works feature the male artist dressed in outlandish women’s clothing for an added impact.
Tags: Weekend Hotel Happening / Hotel Parties / Hotel Rooftop Bars / Los Angeles Hotels / → All Tags
Standard LA's Summertime Rooftop Parties Start This Weekend
Alright, if you're not down with booze sno-cones with the hipster crowd at the Ace Palm Springs 'cause a swanky LA rooftop is more your speed, we've got happy news for you: this Saturday and Sunday mark the beginnings of the Standard LA's monthly rooftop parties, Honey on the Rooftop and Compression.
Every third Saturday this summer, The Honey Collective, a Los Angeles-based all-female DJ and Production team, provides the soundtrack to a rooftop soiree dubbed "Honey on the Rooftop" from 1:00 pm to 8:00 pm. The first of the summer is going down tomorrow — and if you can't read a calendar, June 6th, June 27th, July 18th, August 8th, August 29th and September 19th are your other chances to catch this party.
If Sunday drinking sessions are more your jam, this Sunday kicks off Compression — which is a rooftop pool party that is apparently so awesome that it can only happen once a month. On the 3rd Sunday of each month this summer (not every three weeks), you can get down to a "worldly blend of Techno, including Tech-House and Minimal" (er, we're sure someone knows what that means) and guest DJ's in addition to residents. This Sunday, you've got Ivan Smagghe, Amber Reyngoudt and Compression Resident DJ's Robtronik, Matt Xavier, and Andre Ezer. This is also running 1:00 to 8:00.
And, yes: you have to be 21+ to get in. Sorry, kiddos.
Tags: Hotel Parties / Hotel Happenings / Design Hotels / Standard Hotels / → All Tags
Standard LA Is Totally Having a Rooftop Architecture Party, And You're Invited
If you're reading this, then we think it's fair to assume that you like blogs, or at least don't mind them. And since you're reading about hotels, then perhaps it's safe to postulate that you may also have a thing for architecture, or maybe trendy interior design? If you're game for a little party involving all of these (blogs, hotels, architecture and design), then the Standard Downtown LA may just have you booked up next week.
Tags: Tax Relief Deals / Twitter / Westin Hotels / Hotel Promotions / Hotel Contests / → All Tags
Westin Bonaventure LA Offering Free Rooms for Twitterers
Adam Kirby of HotelsMag has tipped us off to the press release sent out by the Westin Bonaventure which is offering free rooms every weekend through April 18 as part of their new "U.O.Me Tax Relief" promotion. And upping their social media savviness, the hotel is giving out some of these rooms via Twitter using the hashtag #U.O.Me. (That's the code in your tweets that makes searching a topic or event easier.)
Five room nights each weekend will be awarded exclusively through Twitter. The promotion also includes the "Westin Tax Credit," a coupon given at check-out for 10 percent off dinner at L.A. Prime, the property's New York-style steakhouse. Winners who book a second consecutive night with the property will receive a 20 percent off coupon to the restaurant.
Forty-five of the first entries on the hotel's website, along with the first five Twitter tweets, will be given a room a night. Follow the Westin Bonaventure on Twitter here.
Tags: Escape the Economy Hotels / Westin Hotels / Downtown Los Angeles Hotels / → All Tags
Westin Bonaventure Has Its Own 'Bailout' and 'Stimulus' Packages
Joining the host of other hotels trying to get some cash flow from “economic stimulus packages,” the Westin Bonaventure is offering a series of discount packages aimed at “creating an LA based economic generator while maintaining a true Los Angeles experience.” So basically they’re begging for your cash on weekends when their normal weekday business customers depart.
Tags: Standard Hotels / Hotel Videos / YouTube / → All Tags
The Standard Shows Off Its Staff Via YouTube
To compliment the release of Standard Hotels' 2009 Staff Calendar, a YouTube video introducing its contents has been released. Full of pretty young things pumping iron and playing cheerleader, the video is about displaying their hip, young employees frolicking within the retro Standard environs.
In fact, most of the scenes seem to be shot on the rooftop and in the public area of the Standard Downtown LA. If funky designer furniture isn't enough to fetishize the Standard brand, then a staff full of eye-candy should do the trick. Keeping with the high school yearbook theme of the calendar, you'll be introduced to the Heartthrob, the Stoner, the Prom Queen, and our personal favorite, the Teacher's Lounge.
Keep watching even after the credits for this curious little addition: "Balazs Productions." That's right, there will be more to come! This video is technically entitled "Part 1: The Standard Hotels' Bright Young Things," so are we to expect a Part 2 featuring some of their dull, older things? Oops--we probably just spoiled the theme of next year's calendar.
Tags: Celebrity Scoop / ESPY Awards / Hotel News / Justin Timberlake / Standard Hotels / → All Tags
Justin Timberlake Hosts ESPY Awards Shindig at the Standard L.A.
The scene: the penthouse at the Standard Downtown L.A.. The occasion: the 2008 ESPY Awards. The guests: Kiefer Sutherland, Joss Stone, Samuel L. Jackson and Mario Lopez. The host: Justin Timberlake. Oh man.
As the official host of the ESPY Awards, the Standard housed a good number of star athletes for the week leading up to the awards - which took place yesterday but air on Sunday - complete with an ESPY Style Studio, "a three-day gifting experience" which, in less fancy terms, means everyone scored lots and lots of cool swag.
J. Tim hosted the star-studded penthouse bash last night to top off the awards festivities (he hosted the awards ceremony too).
The day before the J. Tim soiree, the hotel also threw a full-day pool party and BBQ. Still, we are doubtful Justin actually slept over. This is a Standard Hotel, afterall. Not the Ritz.
[Photo: Wikimedia Commons]
Tags: Phil Spector / Hotel Lawsuits / Westin Hotels / Celebrity Scoop / → All Tags
Phil Spector Stiffs The Westin Bonaventure Out of $100k
More hotel lawsuits happening this week. This time The Westin Bonaventure in downtown LA is suing crazy Phil Spector for stiffing them out of more than a $100,000.
TMZ, getting back to celebrity justice basics, reports:
In the suit, filed today in L.A. County Superior Court, the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites says they reserved rooms for the music producer's lawyers and expert witnesses during the trial. After seven months of trial, the hotel alleges, Spector had racked up a bill to the tune of more than $104,000.
Apparently, Spector didn't pay the bill because he was hoping to get some sort of steep discount. Now the hotel has sued Spector, his wife and his agent. Looks like Spector will have to find some new digs before his second trial begins in September. The first trial in which he stood accused of killing Lana Clarkson ended in a mistrial.
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