At the base of the Hollywood Hills and adjacent to Beverly Hills, West Hollywood (WeHo) is L.A.’s most progressive enclave and arguably the epicenter of America’s gay universe. On a day-to-day basis, the streets of WeHo teem with gorgeous people and edgy fashions, making the true attraction of visiting here a bit of recreation time on the eye-candy playground and the ever so delightful judgment carousel. Given it was my final day smack dab in the heart of WeHo at the Andaz, I decided to enjoy a day of people watching on the coolest rooftops in L.A. and along the world-famous Sunset Strip, Santa Monica Boulevard, and the Avenues of Art and Design.
I began my day of leisure strolling the crossroads of Melrose Avenue and Robertson and Beverly Boulevards. Dubbed “the Art, Fashion, and Design District,” these blocks are home to hundreds of design showrooms and big name fashion houses like Christian Louboutin, Stella McCartney, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Balenciaga, Alberta Ferretti, as well as eclectic boutiques like Alpha and Kitson Men. After yesterday’s gorging, a light lunch was in order at Fresh East (www.fresheast.com, 310.859.9989), an organic restaurant that takes the concept of “going green” to an entire new level. Everything at Fresh East screams sustainable, from the utensils made of recycled fibers, to the plates made of palm leaves, to the water-saving urinals. As the name suggests the restaurant’s Pan-Asian delights deliver the ultimate in freshness, and they happen to be amazing. I had the “5 Spice Glazed Salmon-“ organic salmon, brown rice, asparagus, 5 spice glaze – and washed it down with fresh coconut water.
As I walked north towards Sunset, the Rolls Royces raced by, and I had my big celebrity sighting of the day – Mark Wahlberg. Passing through the scores of beautiful strangers, shiny cars, and the juxtaposition of wealth and grit, I arrived at Sunset Plaza, the trendy stretch of road in the middle of the Sunset Strip that’s been a L.A. hotspot since the 1930s. You could see the paparazzi camped out at the Coffee Bean, just waiting for Demi Moore to come get her caffeine fix. And you could overhear the adorable young Hollywood crowd in oversized sunglasses having the most trivial and pointless of conversations.
Next up was a rooftop pub-crawl to the most extravagant rooftops in L.A. I met up with friends on the roof of the London West Hollywood. From there, we proceeded to happy hour drinks on the roof of the Thompson Beverly Hills, and finally returned to the Andaz West Hollywood rooftop, after which I began packing my bags for my next destination and hotel stay: Downtown Los Angeles at the brand new Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles at L.A. LIVE!
Sunset Boulevard – a bird’s eye view
5-Spice Glazed Salmon at Fresh East … if “going green” is this delicious, sign me up!
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