Sign in with Facebook"Home for the Holidays" Los Angeles by Hopkid
Los Angeles Travel Guide: 4,336 reviews and 8,577 photos
Los Angeles, while being one of the largest metropolises in the world (12.9 million in 2005 per Wikipedia), I wouldn't consider it one of the great cities in the same way that New York or London or Paris or Tokyo are. This is mostly because LA doesn't have a central downtown area where people actually go to see things, eat great food, or see great art. LA's downtown is mainly a central business district that all but closes up after sunset. Sure, there is the Music Center and the adjacent Disney Concert Hall designed by Frank Gehry. And the Museum of Contemporary Art, with its three separate locations, is also downtown. Add to that historic areas such as Olvera Street, Union Station, and Little Tokyo and you have something to check out in the downtown area.
But Los Angeles is really the sum of all of the portions of that huge urban sprawl. Incorporated cities run into each other with no distinctions other than perhaps a change in the design of street signs. Drive east along the 10 freeway (Interstate 10 for all the non-locals) and you'll seemlessly go through several cities that seem to extensions of each other. Sure, the chain restaurants and stores are ubiquitous throughout. However if you seek out the unique and independent establishments in the metro area you will experience the real soul of LA and what makes it a great place.
Also seek out neighborhoods that are culturally hip and interesting. For example the Abbot-Kinney and Sawtelle areas in West LA, up-and-coming Culver City, new Chinatowns in Monterey Park/Alhambra and Rowland Heights/Hacienda Heights, and Melrose Avenue. And don't forget Orange County to the south, especially Laguna Beach, and two of the better shopping centers (i.e., malls) in California: South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa and Fashion Island in Newport Beach.
We return to LA at least once a year during the holidays. Since we both grew up here and we absolutely LOVE it! We have lots of friends and family and it's always fun to meet with everyone, especially at a favorite or new restaurant with interesting and good food! That's because LA is foodie heaven!
My objective with my LA page will be to point the visitor to interesting and above all good food. Sure, there'll be the occassional tips on places to visit and check out but I'm going to start out with lots of restaurant tips. And because some of these places are not in LA proper, I'll include a link to the southern California city in which each restaurant is located. On those pages I'll provide approximate driving times from downtown LA, LAX, and Santa Monica so the reader will get an idea how long it will take to get there. I'll even provide driving directions (oh yes, you will need a car!). These destinations will include:
Alhambra
Costa Mesa
Diamond Bar
Hacienda Heights
Rowland Heights
Walnut
I'll add more as time goes on. Of course there are plenty of places for good eating of all price ranges in the Los Angeles area. There isn't a type of cuisine that cannot be found here. For potential visitors with food questions I suggest going to the experts at Chowhound
- Pros:Cultural diversity; food, food, food!
- Cons:Traffic, sprawl
- In a nutshell:I LOVE LA!
Reviews (6)
Understanding the Freeway System
Local Customs
(1)
The interstate/highway system in Southern California can be a puzzle to folks from out of town. Here are a few tips for... more travel advice
UCLA Men's Basketball
Sports & Outdoors
(1)
UCLA has collected more men's collegiate basketball titles (11) than any other school in the country. 10 of those came... more travel advice
LACMA
Things to Do
(2)
LACMA has been the anchor of LA's art scene since the early 1900s when it was part of the Los Angeles County Museum of... more travel advice
LA Farmers Market
Things to Do
(2)
As much of a Shopping and Restaurant tip as a Things to Do tip, the Farmers Market has been operating in the Fairfax... more travel advice
-
Been to Los Angeles?
Share your travels with the world!
Hopkid's Related Pages
-
Whitney Portal
-
San Francisco
-
San Diego
-
Anaheim
-
Lone Pine
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Mammoth Lakes
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Manzanar
-
Devils Postpile National Monument
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Diamond Bar
-
Walnut
-
Sacramento
-
Alhambra
-
Costa Mesa
-
Big Pine
-
Tucson
-
Sebring
-
Hanalei
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Haena
-
Kilauea
-
Lihue
Top 5 Page for this destination
Los Angeles Travel Guide
Member Travel Pages
- "Getting at the Heart of L.A."
- ""El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles""
- "Coming to LA, see what all of SoCal has to offer!"
- "Los Angeles"
- "My Hometown: Los Angeles"
- "Gloss Angeles"
- "City of the Angels"
- See All...
Explore the World
Hopkid Was Born Here!
- Member Rank:
- 0 0 2 3 9
- Forum Rank:
- 0 0 4 7 7
- 748 Reviews
- 1,647 Photos
- Add Friend
- Follow
- Send Message
Badges & Stats in Los Angeles
- 6 Reviews
- 17 Photos
- 49 Forum posts
- 4 Comments
- 845PageViews
- See All Stats
- See All Badges (33)
Have you been to Los Angeles?
Share Your TravelsLatest Activity in Los Angeles
- Posted in Travel Richmond Forum "Re: Where should we stay?"
- Commented on one of Dabs's Los Angeles travel pages
- Wrote a Review Understanding the Freeway System in Los Angeles Local Customs
- Uploaded a Photo to "Understanding the Freeway System"
- updated a Los Angeles Travel Page "Home for the Holidays"
Top 10 Pages
-
Istanbul
Intro, 53 reviews, 174 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Antigua Guatemala
Intro, 47 reviews, 157 photos, 3 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Honolulu
Intro, 52 reviews, 97 photos
-
Boston
Intro, 30 reviews, 68 photos, 1 travelogue
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Richmond
Intro, 40 reviews, 48 photos, 2 travelogues
-
New York City
Intro, 24 reviews, 62 photos, 2 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Memphis
Intro, 20 reviews, 60 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Granada
Intro, 36 reviews, 40 photos
-
Venice
Intro, 29 reviews, 40 photos, 2 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Panajachel
Intro, 21 reviews, 45 photos
Friends
See All Friends (33)
Travel Interests
See All Travel Interests (5)
Food and Dining
National/State Park
Hiking and WalkingLatest Los Angeles hotel reviews
- Pacific Palms Conference Resort
- 108 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 12, 2013 - Stillwell Hotel
- 34 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Mar 6, 2013 - Miyako Inn and Spa
- 217 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 17, 2013 - Econolodge Inn And Suites West Hollywood
- 27 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Dec 29, 2011 - Park Plaza Lodge Hotel
- 102 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Apr 11, 2013 - Embassy Suites Hotel LAX North Los Angeles
- 504 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 21, 2013 - Renaissance Montura Hotel Los Angeles
- 640 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 21, 2013 - Custom Hotel
- 478 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 19, 2013 - Hilton Los Angeles Airport
- 240 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 22, 2013 - The Historic Mayfair Hotel
- 175 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 20, 2013 - Ramada Limited Los Angeles Downtown
- 37 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 20, 2013 - The Standard Downtown La
- 509 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 21, 2013 - Cinema Suites
- 53 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 12, 2013 - Hotel Bel-Air
- 198 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 20, 2013 - Comfort Inn Eagle Rock
- 225 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 21, 2013
Comments (4)
David was just telling me about a place with a 1 1/2 lb. fruit donut!!! I think I may have to pass on that but there was a buttermilk donut in the same article that caught my eye ;-)
I think there tip on the LA freeway system is GREAT!!! You write very well-nice composition & easy to read. Did you know Kristi was born in Inglewood? Yep, she is a "native" as well. Hope your Hawaii trip went well. Kat
Thanks for including the Tip on UCLA's Pauley Pavilion. Being a Bruin alum (grad/undergrad) and season ticket holder, glad to see info will be available to other potential visitors to L.A. to learn about the UCLA Basketball Dynasty! Cheers.
Yum yum! I just had about a pound of Indo-Paggang and now I'm hungry again thanks to you! 8)