We had a busy and fabulous week in LA this past Christmas break with very little traffic! Christmas is a good time to go. We traveled with our friends Tanya and Jeff and their two kids and it was really nice to vacation with them again after a number of years. 🙂
Recall that we flew mostly for free on United flights that I booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards and we stayed for free at the SLS Beverly Hills using Starwood points. A big thanks to my wise friend Jodi L who thankfully talked me out of staying in Santa Monica. By staying at the SLS, we were in walking distance to many of Beverly Hills’ great restaurants and most importantly, the hotel was the perfect launching pad to explore all of the various areas of the city. And explore we did…..
How could we not begin our week with a meal at The Ivy, a mere 15 minute walk from our hotel? So on our first morning, we had a very delicious and very expensive brunch at the Ivy on 3rd Street. When we arrived, we were greeted with champagne for Rob and myself and really pretty strawberry lemonades for the kids. For the meal, I had the fish tacos. Rob and Jessie shared the tacos and lump meat crab salad. Daniel had grilled chicken and Mason a very pricey steak and eggs. Despite the hefty price tag, the food was amazing and the experience, very “LA”. It was a good start to the week.
We spent that first afternoon at the Rams Game. They were playing the 49ers and it seemed like there were just as many 49ers fans as Rams fans in the stands. The game ended up being so nerve-wracking with San Francisco winning in the final moments. Despite not really caring about the outcome, it was a very fun and exciting afternoon. Although we did have a car in LA, we ended up taking an Uber to the game because we knew there would be quite a bit of traffic. (I used my Chase Sapphire Reserve to pay for Uber) However, getting home was difficult. Since we stayed till the end of the game, we were bombarded with all of the crowds upon leaving and we were unclear as to where to have an Uber meet us. We ended up walking for a bit from the stadium (and fighting 🙂 ) and finally came across a hotel where we got a taxi back to Beverly Hills. Whew! If you plan to see a football game while in LA, I would have a better transportation plan than we did.
Dinner that first night was our least favorite place despite being recommended by the hotel concierge. We went to Terrine in Beverly Hills. Um, I just googled it to link it and it seems as if it closed it’s doors as of 12/31/2016 (we went a week prior). We thought the food was just ok, apparently others did also. Honestly, I am a bit annoyed at the concierge who I feel should have known that the restaurant was heading towards it’s demise and should have given us a heads-up. I may complain. 🙂
New day! We spent Xmas Day at Universal Studios in Hollywood. Having just gone to the Orlando Universal in 2013 and really just going to kill the day, 
I did not feel that it was necessary to spend any extra $ to get the front of the line pass (It would have been an extra $700 for my family of 5-NO THANKS!). Being on East Coast time, we were up bright and early so we were at the park by 8am. We knocked off Harry Potter that early hour with a mere 15 minute wait. The only ride we really stood on line for was the actual studio tour. We waited an hour but the ride itself was about an hour and it was our favorite one, (much better than the studio tour in Orlando), so it was worth the wait.
In contrast to the prior night, we had one of our best meals the next night at Cafe Med in Beverly Hills. A bunch of us had the spaghetti bolognese and it was amazing and so was the lasagna. The salads and apps were all great too. We all loved it!
Monday morning, we set off for Malibu to hike Solstice Canyon. We made the obligatory stop at Malibu Country Mart, took a peek, got some coffee and proceeded on our way along Coastal Highway 1 to the Solstice Canyon lot. Note, parking is tough because there is a small lot at the trailhead, so plan to wait for a spot or park further away.
The hike entailed a steady moderate climb to the peak of the canyon. Note, there are no trees on the hike, so I would not recommend doing it on a particularly hot day. The day we did it had temperatures in the 60s and we still broke a sweat. 
You see Tanya, I told you that you would be tearing off your hat and gloves once we started climbing. :-). At the peak of the canyon, we were treated to unbelievable views of the Pacific Ocean. We snapped a bunch of pictures and then continued on the canyon loop trail back to the parking lot. The whole hike probably took about 1.5 hours.
We had heard that a stop for lunch at Malibu Seafood was a must along Coastal Highway 1 on our way back to LA. We waited on the “out the door” line for fresh fish, grilled or fried. Rob and I shared grilled sea bass and grouper. (He wanted fried). The kids ate shrimp, crab, fries and luckily there was chicken for my non-seafood lover, Daniel. Thx Tema B!
We hit the Santa Monica pier on our way back and after taking the token ferris wheel shot, left it immediately. It was so crowded that we were barely able to walk. It reminded me of being in Times Square during Christmas time. So instead, we made our way to the Third Street Promenade where we window shopped, people watched and sipped our Starbucks drinks. Tema B, what a nice place to live so close to when you are raising a family. Also a shout out to Lisa C for pointing us to Sidecar Donuts. It was a very delicious afternoon treat!
Dinner that night was at Katsuya in Hollywood. The place was super chic and the food was amazing. The service, not so much! Brian H, I know we may have been better off at the one in Brentwood, but thx for the great recommendation all the same.
We began the next day with a Warner Brother Studios Tour. The tram tour takes you to outdoor sets, movie and television props (cool batmobiles) and indoor soundstages such as Ellen (provided they are not filming that day-they weren’t the day we were there-it was Xmas week). 
You get off of the tram at various locations to explore and listen to your guide. It was definitely cool and interesting and the kids thought so as well, especially when they saw things they knew like the high school from PLL. (Jessie, how did I do with the acronym? ) We took the token photo of us all sitting/standing behind the Friends couch at Central Perk.
From the Studio Tour we headed off to the highly recommended Pizzeria Mozza on Melrose for lunch. We shared a bunch of amazing pizzas, salads and some very unique and delicious chicken wings. The place definitely lived up to the hype. Thanks to all my friends out there who recommended it!
Tanya, you can be my walking buddy anytime, no matter what kind of shoes you are wearing! After lunch, we let the husbands go, and Tanya and I with all five (non-complaining) kids in tow walked the length of Melrose back to our hotel in Beverly Hills. The 3.5 mile walk led us to some fun shops, sneaker stores and my favorite part, so many cool photo ops. Who would think that a pink wall would draw so many people, yet it does. I have since learned that there is actually information out there that contains L.A.’s Most Instagrammed Walls, and we stumbled upon a few on our trek. These are some of my favorite shots of the girls (boys would not partake).
We went back to Melrose that night for Mexican at Red O. Food was decent, service though, not great. We needed a last minute res and it was close by. I would not go out of your way to dine here. There is also another location in Santa Monica.
A hike up to the peak of Runyon Canyon was the first thing on the agenda the next morning. I had read so much about this hike before we went but I was still awed by the magnificent views of the city and our first glimpse of the Hollywood sign. The hike was a pretty easy one with many locals and their dogs on the trail getting in their morning workout. Note, parking is tough. Plan to wait a bit for a spot.
From Runyon Canyon we headed to the Westwood location of In and Out Burger. Friends, don’t get mad at me, but we don’t get they hype. The burgers were ok for fast food burgers (not that I have much to compare them to) and the fries were dry and tasted frozen. We later learned we should have asked for the fries well done and the burgers, “animal style” but I don’t think that would have changed our opinion. The best part for me was that it was our least expensive meal of the whole trip and I loved that we put on these silly hats and took a family picture.
After our disappointing lunch we walked around Westwood Village which is the college town of UCLA. We did not tour the campus but saw the outside of what looked to be a gorgeous school. Going to school in Southern California, now that to me sounds amazing. Maybe one day……
We headed back down to Santa Monica that afternoon and rented bikes from one of the many stands along the beach. We did the extremely easy but very crowded bike ride from Santa Monica, through Venice Beach to Marina Del Rey. 
We made a lot of stops along the route. We nervously watched all of the skateboarders doing their tricks at the Venice Skate Park, climbed on the dunes in Marina Del Rey, checked out the Venice Boardwalk (cheesy T-shirt shops, souvenir stores, etc.) and of course spent a few minutes watching the people (mostly young men) work out at Muscle Beach. On of them even used me as their bar bell. :-).
We made an extended stop on what I now consider my favorite LA street, Abbott Kinney Boulevard. I wished we would have had more time to shop and explore but we needed to have our bikes back by 4:30PM. We did however hit Intelligentsia Coffee (another thanks to Lisa C!) and Jessie got a Lavender Latte from Toms. (Brian H!)
Our afternoon was topped off with one of the most spectacular sunsets I have ever witnessed. I take a lot of pictures and frame the ones that I deem worthy. This one certainly is a framer!
We had our favorite dinner that night at the restaurant that came in number one in friend recommendations, The Bazaar by José Andrés. Even Daniel had a friend (Justin G) text him about it when we were heading to the airport. The location could not have been anymore convenient as it was in our hotel! The restaurant provides not only a meal but a whole sensory adventure. The food is cooked using molecular gastronomy. It was so exciting to see what the food (and drinks) looked like when they came out (a lot has foam-like toppings) and then taste the unique and beautifully presented dishes. I would suggest going with a group because most of the menu is tapas style and shareable. However, I would not recommend going with picky eaters. Everything on the menu is weird and there is no kid’s menu either. Not to mention it is definitely not budget friendly. Luckily we had our inexpensive burger lunch that day. 🙂
Some of our favorite dishes that we tried were the egg and mashed potato “thing”, jicama-wrapped guacamole, brussels sprout salad, boneless wings, sautéed shrimp and farm chicken. Alan H., we LOVED the liquid olives but we didn’t try the foie gras (my fault-I am not a fan so didn’t sway the table towards it 🙂 ). And Tanya, we didn’t love the cheesesteaks either.
For dessert, we were transported to another room called the Patisserie. The menu is what you see. The 50+ mini sweet selections are presented in a most beautiful display. You see what you want and then you order it. We shared bon bons, macarons, mousse and moon shaped sugar cookies. We kept talking about the meal the next day too. The restaurant and the experience are ones that none of us will ever forget.
The next day was a typical tourist day in LA. We started our morning with a walk to the Grove for some shopping and lunch at the famous Farmer’s Market. We ate salads, Chinese food and big yummy corned beef sandwiches. It was cool being there knowing how long it has been around. It was one of the first farmer’s markets, an attraction that is now featured in so many cities.
Our tour van picked us up at the Grove for our 2 hour “Tour of LA”. The tour company we used was A-List Hollywood tours for no other reason than the fact that our Uber driver, who drove us to the Ram’s game, was a driver for this company. He assured us that we would have a private van for our party of 9 and that sold us. I am sure you see many of the same sights no matter which tour company you choose. We were happy with this one.
On the tour, you hit some of LA’s most famous neighborhoods in Hollywood and Beverly Hills. You see the famous Beverly Hills and Hollywood signs and hear about the history of LA and the entertainment industry. Having a “private” guide, we were somewhat able to tailor our tour to make it the most fun and interesting for the kids. It was a little disappointing when we stopped at the “map woman”, who tried to sell us a map of all the famous homes, but I would imagine that every tour guide stops. We took a drive on Rodeo and also along Hollywood Boulevard too.
After our tour, we disembarked at Hollywood Boulevard and joined all of the other MANY LA tourists checking out the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the Chinese Theater. We were there the day after Carrie Fisher died and although she did not have a star?!?!?!, there was a memorial for her set up on the street. We snuck into a back stairway door and made our way to an off-limits balcony where we got shots alone with the Hollywood sign. We got caught and reprimanded by a security guard. It was exciting, especially for the kids. 🙂
We had a Mexican feast that night downtown at at B.S. Taqueria. It was a fun local spot with some good eats. We were then off to the Staples Center for the Lakers Game. I can’t even remember who played at this point but I remember both outside and inside the stadium being full of energy and excitement. Andrew K, you are right, LA Live looked amazing too.
Our last day in LA was my favorite one. Thank you Jeff for going in advance to the Griddle Cafe in Hollywood to secure a spot for us for breakfast. Even when we got there, we still waited about 30 minutes. It was worth the wait. The menu contains unique giant-sized pancakes with decadent toppings and fillings like Mounds, Reeses, Oreo, Nutella and pumpkin pie filling. We should have shared, we didn’t! We took our left-overs to go and found a homeless area and dropped our surplus.
Feeling kind and very full, we drove to the trailhead for the hike to behind the Hollywood sign. Note, parking again is in a neighborhood and it may be hard to get a spot right away. The hike was another moderate one unless we were climbing in areas where we were not supposed to be, Rob! Along the route we had amazing views of the sign and took lots of pictures. When we finally got to the top, the letters were behind a fence which I already knew from my research. Despite this, it was my favorite LA activity!
We headed back to Abbott-Kinney that night for dinner at the hottest place in town, Gjelina. Thanx Michael B for the suggestion! I had called at 9am 30 days prior to secure this reservation. Although we were seated in the back room where the other families were, we were still just happy to be there. We loved everything we tried. We started with a few light apps like olives and salads. As for our entrees, Daniel said the black bean barley stew was one of the best meals he ever had. (I have been making barley since we returned from our trip) I had amazing cod. Mason had a pizza that rivaled Mozza’s. Jessie went with the tasty ravioli and Rob with the unique wild boar sausage. It was a great last night!
We reluctantly departed the next morning bright and early. Our hotel bill was minimal as it only included parking and a few other miscellaneous items. I used my Starwood American Express for all of these non-room charges at the hotel. We earned Starwood points on these charges as a Gold Member in the Starwood Preferred Guest Program and an extra 2 points for using my Starwood Amex.
As for the stay, the SLS was a sleek and modern hotel with what seemed like many European and beautiful guests. Our room was quite large and accommodated all of us. The bathroom was black marbled with a lot of mirrors and a very cool shower. One downside (for us) was that there was no true hotel lobby so Rob and I could not spend our early mornings on a couch with our laptops and coffees. Instead, we joined Jeff in the business center each morning and fought about who would make the next coffee run. (I never went). Rob was happy with the gym and there was also an outdoor pool that we never made it too. We had a car and parking was a very reasonable $40 per night (I have stayed in other hotels with prices from $60-$80 per night). Like I mentioned above, the best thing about the hotel was it’s central location and I would definitely stay here again should I return to LA.
Speaking of a return trip, I still have yet to go to the Getty Museum and I dream about one day driving up the California coast. I even suggested the drive to my family for next Christmas but I think they prefer a more exotic location like Paris! So goodbye California for now, I will see you again one day in Santa Barbara, Big Sur, Carmel and Monterey.