A local’s guide to experiences unique to Southern California
- nathan udall
- In-n-Out Burger - Classic SoCal fast food burgers unique to the Southwest that everyone loves. Quick, fresh, tasty, and cheap.
- Langer’s - Best pastrami sandwich in America! Pulitzer-prize winning food critic, Jonathan Gold agrees.
- Philippe the Original - One of the oldest restaurants in LA (1908) claims to have created the French Dip. It’s darn good and conveniently close to Chinatown, too.
- Cole’s - nearby in downtown rivals Philippe’s claim to have invented the French Dip. Neat/fancier interior, excellent cocktails, and secret speakeasy in back.
- Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles - LA soul food icon.
- Howlin’ Ray’s - Nashville-style fried chicken sandwiches. Most of the time it’s a long wait (1 hr +), but there wouldn’t be a line if it wasn’t worth it.
- Pink’s - Whether it’s worth the wait is debatable, but it is a classic LA experience and the onion rings are delicious.
- Musso and Frank Grill - The best time-machine to old Hollywood you can get. World-class cocktails, steaks, service, atmosphere, and history.
- The Old Place - Rustic, old west restaurant and bar in a sleepy one-road town deep in the Santa Monica mountains.
- Saddle Peak Lodge - Hundred year old hunting lodge tucked deep in the Malibu mountains that’s overflowing with historic charm and quality food and drink.
- Tam O’Shanter - A sprawling, yet cozy British pub/restaurant full of Disneyland type atmosphere. A favorite of Walt Disney, himself. It’s the original Lawry’s location and has some of the widest and rarest selection of Scotches in America.
- OpenAire - Koreatown rooftop restaurant in a greenhouse covered with plants.
- Casa Bianca - Delicious crispy crust, Italian family style pizza. Long waits are deserved and to be expected.
- Pizzeria Mozza - Best pizza in LA. There’s so many more options now, so maybe no longer conclusive. That’s a good thing!
- LA is known for its Mexican food, but there’s so much good stuff, it may be easier to just yelp the highest rated ones in whatever area you’re in. I’ve only listed the few I can personally vouch for as being especially exceptional.
- Antequera De Oaxaca - Order a botana plate for a sampling of delicious, non-Americanized Mexican cuisine.
- Guelaguetza - Serious contender for “best mole in town”, unique cultural dishes, and world-class mezcal selection takes it to the next level.
- Hugo’s Tacos - Prioritize crispy tacos with honey chipotle salsa as well as their tortas.
- Versailles Cuban - As someone who must order different dishes when revisiting restaurants, it’s a testament to how good Versailles’ famous Garlic Chicken is that I can never bring myself to order anything else. Unbelievably delicious!
- 626/OC Night Market - Largest collection of authentic, diverse asian food with a festive outdoor atmosphere. 2 locations: Pasadena or OC.
- Daichan - Cozy, Japanese soul food whose quality, authenticity, service, and atmosphere transport you into a Studio Ghibli film.
- Le Chene French Cuisine - Historic building, food, wines, in gorgeous countryside featured in classic cinema.
- Korean BBQ - Memorable, fun, hands-on grilling delicious marinated meats. Too many, so just yelp highest rated in your area.
- Sushi - Hardly exclusive, but an integral staple with considerable variety/quality. Like Mexican, yelp whatever’s highest rated in your area.
- Katsu-Ya (original) - Cozy, hole-in-the-wall on Ventura Blvd. Jaw-dropping quality/price ratio only if you sit at bar and order omakase + creamy popcorn shrimp.
- Teru Sushi - Warm wood and stunning garden in back makes variety of solid sushi even more worthwhile.
- Jonathan Gold’s 101 Essential LA Restaurants - Only food critic to ever be awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his writings. Every year he puts out this list of guaranteed quality restaurants.
- Santa Monica Farmer’s Market - The place to acquire fresh foodstuffs from local farms. Where chefs from high-end restaurants shop.
- Food Trucks - LA quickly jumped on the food truck trend and is now an awesome way to get reliably good food wherever you are.
- Galco’s Soda Pop Shop - An entire grocery store devoted to import and craft sodas. This video demonstrates why it’s even more awesome than you think.
- Edison - Victorian meets industrial (steampunk) in the classiest way possible. A bit pricey, but the atmosphere is so impeccable, it’s worth it.
- Cicada Club - 2-story 1920s Art Deco building, semi-formal dress with encouraged vintage attire = the most history you can experience in LA. Feels like you’re stepping into a noir film!
- The Halloween party looks like it’s from 80 yrs ago
- 213 Nightlife - The bars in the 213 group are all unique and worth visiting. Each specializes in their own choice of liquor (rum, mezcal, mixology, etc) plus you get the downtown experience.
- Tiki Ti - The tiki bar in LA. Super small, pricey, and open sporadically...it’s charm, staff, and elaborately potent drinks make it all worthwhile.
- Red Lion Tavern - Cozy German pub with 3 floors, beer garden, and the most authentic food/beer.
- The Wolves - Stunning art deco bar in historic Hotel Alexandria. Don’t go when busy as experience/quality drops.
- BEER BARS
- Father’s Office - The most interesting, regularly cycled craft micro-brews. Competes for best burger in LA and has a cool, comfortable atmosphere. Can get too crowded, so plan accordingly.
- Bruery - Excellent Belgian-style brewery with tasting room.
- MacLeod Brewery - One of a kind brewery specializing in Scottish beers of the variety and quality you can’t find outside of Scotland.
- Naja’s Place - Impressively massive craft beer selection, comfortable dive, and right on the water
- Imperial Western Beer Company - Not the best brewery, but worthwhile for its one-of-a-kind location in the historic Union Station.
- Getty - Enormous museum with gardens perched on a hill overlooking LA. Free admission, but $15 parking and $10 after 3pm. The best “free”, cultured experience you could have in LA.
- Getty Villa (different from the Getty) - Free admission, but due to it’s smaller size you must get advanced tickets. $15 parking, $10 after 5pm. Museum dedicated to Greco-Roman life and antiquities.
- Downtown Art Walk - 2nd Thursday of every month is a popular art walk downtown
- Annenberg Space for Photography
- LACMA - Lots of modern artworks on display here. They also have a permanent Japanese exhibition here as well. Tickets are $10 w/ student ID or $15 without. Located in the Miracle Mile District (where there’s also tons of stuff around too!)
- MOCA - Largest and only museum in LA dedicated to Contemporary art.
- Norton Simon Museum
- The Broad
- Academy Museum - Newly built museum about movies
- Pageant of the Masters - Masterpieces of art recreated with living people
- La Brea Tar Pits - Down the street from LACMA. There isn’t “much” here but may be worth seeing and visiting for a few minutes - half hour.
- Aquarium of the Pacific - 4th largest aquarium in America and conveniently near the Queen Mary and and Shoreline Park’s lighthouse.
- Huntington Gardens & Museums - 120 acres of park featuring forests from around the world (Japanese gardens, bamboo forest, rain forest, etc.) - more than you can even see in a day! That’s not even including the museums and libraries on site. $15-$20 admission. This and Descanso Gardens vie as my personal fav attractions.
- Los Angeles Arboretum - A cheaper, somewhat lesser version of Huntington Gardens, but still an immensely pleasant place.
- The Japanese Garden - A nice, cheap 6.5 acre Japanese garden to visit and take tea.
- Descanso Gardens - A little smaller than the Huntington gardens, but more intimate and magical. Full of secret groves and tree tunnels to explore like out of a fairy tale.
- South Coast Botanic Garden has some very nice trails, but is a bit out of the way.
- Exposition Park - A massive park that used to host the Olympics and is now home to multiple museums, IMAX, and gardens.
- Griffith Observatory - Free admission, but planetarium costs a little - but features brightest projector in the world. Also, best sunset views of LA.
- Mt. Wilson Observatory - Mountain top observatory that used to be the largest for two generations. At the top of Big Santa Anita Canyon, so hike-able - but not easy.
- Petersen Automotive Museum - Also located on Miracle Mile. If you’re into all kinds of cars from classic to ones used in movies this is a fun one to visit. $5.00 w/ student ID or $10.
- Museum of Jurassic Technology - An odd but compelling museum dedicated to array of obscure and poetic artifacts.
- The Echo Park Time Travel Mart - A store where you can buy honest-to-god products from strange and distant times!
- Disneyland
- Six Flags Magic Mountain - The most roller-coasters in the area! Hard to do them all in a day.
- Universal Studios - Not the biggest or best theme park, which makes it difficult to recommend, BUT it does feature the backlot tour, which is a cool way of seeing an actual studio lot.
- Halloween-Themed Parks - During the Fall season, various parks renovate to become scary and full of haunted mazes.
- Knott’s Scary Farm - The largest and is well produced - hard to do in 1 night. It gets crowded, so go on a off or weeknight.
- Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights - The BEST produced park with movie-grade costumes, effects, etc. It’s a smaller park and got cramped, diminishing the scares and testing patience.
- The Queen Mary Dark Harbour - Largest passenger ship after the Titanic sank. Sub-par mazes, but the boat is supposedly actually haunted and walking through the ship bowels, machine room, etc. had the most authentic haunted feel.
- Idyllic coastal towns/beaches:
- Venice, Santa Monica, Malibu are explained elsewhere.
- South of LAX is a stretch of local beach towns:
- El Segundo
- Manhattan Beach + Pier
- Hermosa Beach + Pier
- Redondo Beach
- Pacific Coast Hwy south of Long Beach are ideal beach towns:
- Los Rios Rancho - Charming family run orchard, store, bbq, etc. that hosts events throughout the year. Excellent destination for embracing Autumn.
- Oakside - Few options in the area, so this stands out for atmosphere and best french onion dip I’ve ever had in my life (not kidding).
- Death Valley - Hottest, driest, lowest National Park. Uniquely alien landscapes. Winter/Spring is ideal for wildflowers, temp lakes, comfy temps. Excuse to stay in Vegas.
- Las Vegas - Not officially “SoCal” but an easy to weekend to.
- Gas Lamp District + Embarcadero - A lively, walkable, historic, ocean-side district full of restaurants, bars, hotels, etc. that you can easily fill a night (or several)
- Belmont Park - Historic oceanside amusement park with classic roller coaster
- Balboa Park - Stunning park full of historic Spanish colonial buildings, museums, theaters, and gardens.
- San Diego Zoo - One of the largest zoos in America - difficult to see all in one day.
- Old Town San Diego - An area of San Diego that’s about as old as we get in the west with multiple buildings from 1820-1870.
- Maritime Museum of San Diego - Haven’t been, but excited to visit!
- Star of India
- Steam Ferry Berkeley
- Hotel del Coronado - Stunning Victorian hotel 2nd largest wood structure in U.S. featured in classic movies in beach town.
- Old Point Loma Lighthouse
- Julian, CA - Scenic old west mountain town renowned for quaint apple and Christmas festivals
- Comic-Con - World’s biggest comic book / sci-fi / fantasy / etc. convention. Even if you don’t buy tix, visiting the area at the time is rewarding.
- Anacapa Island Lighthouse
- Ojai - Chill country lake town for low key nature vibes, festivals, spas, hot springs, etc.
- Santa Barbara Wine Country
- Solvang - Surprisingly Danish town (with windmills) full of touristy shops, wine bars, antiques, and aebleskiver.
- Los Olivos - Quaintly authentic country town with many wine tasting rooms.
- Foxen Winery - Featured in movie Sideways and requires a wonderfully idyllic drive through sun-soaked rolling green hills.
- Rancho Sisquoc Winery - Close to Foxen, stunning drive/grounds are more impressive than the wines
- Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner - A delightful way to travel in peace with much of the route taking you scenically along the coast. Eat, drink, and play games with friends.
- Catalina Island - The only permanently populated island home to the historic town of Avalon which has numerous activities (ziplining, boating, etc.)
- Mulholland Drive - This infamous road takes you across the top of the Hollywood Hills with scenic views of LA and San Fernando Valley while passing countless celebrity homes.
- Olvera Street - Historic Mexican market across the street from equally historic/scenic Union Station.
- Santa Monica Pier - Very touristy, but also very SoCal. Who doesn’t love an amusement park perched precariously on the ocean? I recommend visiting it while biking from Venice.
- Hollywood Sign - You can’t touch it, but this site explains how you can get as close as possible.
- Hollywood Blvd / Sunset Strip - Only worth driving through.
- Sam Merrill Trail: Cobb Estate to Echo Mountain - Starts at the (haunted) ruins of a burned down estate that are fun to explore on their own. From there you can ascend the switchback-heavy Echo Mountain. Not easy or shaded, but amazing views the entire time, and the peak rewards with ruins of a Victorian hotel, zoo, and cog railroad.
- Lower Arroyo Seco: Gabrielino Trail - Starts locally at JPL, but takes you down to the base of a lush, valley floor with multiple stream crossings.
- Millard Canyon - Another local hike that if you head out the top of the parking lot, delivers a campground and waterfall. The trail at the bottom of the parking lot provides a wooded, valley creek speckled with quaint, Kinkade-style cottages.
- Big Santa Anita Canyon - The nicest hike in the LA area. Majority of it’s in a deep, heavily shaded valley along numerous waterfalls and historic stone cabins out of a Thomas Kinkade painting. For a challenge, follow the trail to the top of Mt. Wilson and visit the Observatory.
- Switzer Falls - Impossibly idyllic, easy hike along a stony stream through the bottom of shady, forested valley. One of the most local, best hikes.
- Mt. Baldy - A challenging, but extremely rewarding mountain hike that summits one of the highest peaks in the area. Incredible views and feels like NorCal.
- Escondido Falls - One of the tallest and most unique looking waterfall in Malibu - arrived at by a mostly forested and interesting hike.
- Sandstone Peak - Highest peak in the Santa Monica mountains of Malibu. A bit steep/rocky, but unrivaled views of mountains, ocean, and city. Scenic drive, too.
- Solstice Canyon - Fascinating, almost Swiss Family Robinson-like ruins of old residence deep in Malibu mountain valley. Two routes: upper is hot and exposed, with good views while lower route is more shady and amongst plants.
- Malibu Creek State Park - Surprising amount of bodies of water (rivers, waterfalls, lakes, etc.) surrounded by dramatic mountains near the ocean. It’s where the show MASH was shot, as well as countless other iconic films.
- Lake Hollywood Reservoir - Unexpected dammed lake under Hollywood sign with great views along forested path ideal for biking
- Franklin Canyon Park - Reservoir surrounded by nature in the middle of the Hollywood Hills. Secluded despite the central location with pleasant trails and lots of wildlife.
- Fryman Canyon - Pleasant trails wrap around steep Hollywood Hills with dramatic views, lush shade/wildflowers, and celebrity properties/sightings.
- Wilacre Park - Trail parking lot at bottom of canyon, so starts with ascent. More exposed, not as much shade.
- TreePeople - Trail parking lot at top of canyon, so starts with descents. More exposed, not as much shade.
- Nancy Hoover Pohl Overlook - Trail parking lot at top of canyon. More shade, not as exposed.
- Rainforest - Towering grove of eucalyptus trees, palms, waterfalls that feels like a forest in Hawaii/Australia.
- Victory Trailhead / Upper Las Virgenes Open Space Preserve - Dramatic Cali Oaks dot rolling green hills right out of the Shire for lush greenery and comfortable temps (since there isn’t shade).
- Wildwood Regional Park (not to be confused with Wildwood Canyon Park in Burbank) - Spacious, epic views, and full of diverse landscapes (cactus fields, deep valleys, impressive waterfall, river walk, epic plateau, etc.)
- Beach Bonfire - Fill your car with firewood, BBQ ingredients, and (discrete) booze to spend the evening grilling, s’moring, and watching the sunset over the ocean. Best in the summer because it can be cold/windy.
- LA
- Bike Path - Biking along beach is best way to experience! Flat and easy. Rent bikes at the Venice Pier then go north through Santa Monica till the end for 7 miles.
- Venice Beach - Heavily populated beach promenade full of artists, skate parks, kooky stuff, and people watching.
- Santa Monica Pier - Iconic, but crowded and touristy despite still being memorable
- Nearby 3rd Street Promenade is a walkable strip full of shops/restaurants/bars. Comfortable, not impressive.
- A little south is a cozier, less touristy, more “locals-only” area called Abbot Kinney.
- El Matador Beach - Dramatic rock formations, caves to explore, and big crashing waves. Not only a natural playground, but a natural studio attracting serious video/photography shoots.
- Leo Carrillo Beach - Tidal pools, sea cliffs, dramatic coastal views, and a campsite full of historic oak trees
- Deep Creek Hot Springs - 2.5 hours out of LA + a hike through stunning desert vistas brings you to an eden of natural stone hot spring pools. Can get crowded and is popular with nudists, but impressive and enjoyable enough to be worth it. Hike back is a chore.
- Ojai Hot Springs - 1.5 hours from LA, just outside of relaxing Ojai which is already a swell town to stroll through. Sulfur hot springs are shaded, peaceful, minerally healing, and totally worth the trip.
- Vasquez Rocks - Not only interesting rock formations to hike and climb around, but featured in numerous movies, shows, etc.
- Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve - Otherworldly swathes of desert wildflower blooms in a narrow window of the year. Check site for timing
- Salton Sea - A dead lake and failed city that’s attempting to revive. An odd community unique to explore and photograph
- Salvation Mountain - Featured in the movie Into the Wild - a large art installation of painted earth
- Joshua Tree - I normally don’t care for desert, but the way the boulders stack make it a truly fun jungle gym to scramble on and explore.
- Barker Dam - The best scrambling boulders but with water! National Historic Place
- Cabot's Pueblo Museum - National historic pueblo mansion
- Palm Springs - Small, notorious desert resort town popular with weekend vacationers and gays.
- Aerial Tramway
- Mid-century architecture
- Palm Springs Art Museum
- Sunnylands gardens + estate
- Forneris Farms Corn Maze - Largest corn maze in LA! Excellent for the Fall season. It’s no cake-walk!
- Griffith Park - One of the largest urban parks in America - covering the east half of the Hollywood Hills. Tons of trails, wilderness, and things to explore (the Old Zoo).
- Amir’s Garden - hilltop garden that requires a climb to get to, but is worth it
- The Old Zoo
- Angeles Crest Highway - A mountain pass over the San Gabriel Mountains and one of the most fun drives in the area through impressive vistas.
- New Beverly - Double-features. Diverse selections and a passionate crowd makes catching films you love on the big screen one of my all-time favorite LA activities.
- American Cinematheque - Regular screenings of quality past films.
- Cinespia - Classic movies projected on the side of a mausoleum in the historic Hollywood Forever cemetery in the middle of Hollywood. Bring a blanket, picnic, and enjoy the movie in a singularly unique setting.
- TV Show Tapings - Studios will often pay you to be a live audience member for a TV show - or you can try to participate in game show. It will take half, if not the entire day.
- Movie Studio Tour
- Paramount Pictures Studio Tour - Pricey if you don’t have a local connection who can get you in for free...Or spend that money on a Universal Studios pass and do their Backlot Tour free with a day at a theme park!
- Amoeba Music - Enormous used music and movie warehouse full of the hippest, most knowledgeable film and music nerds around.
- Landmark Venues
- Disney Concert Hall - Architectural landmark in downtown designed by Frank Gehry where the LA Philharmonic plays under Gustavo Dudamel.
- Hollywood Bowl - Giant, famous amphitheater right in the hills of downtown Hollywood. Bring your own food and alcohol!
- Greek Theater - A smaller, more intimate version of the Hollywood Bowl - but secluded in Griffith Park.
- Coachella - One of the largest music festivals in America (the world?)
- Ace Theater - Renovated historic theater downtown
- Exchange LA - Historic art deco stock exchange building with properly tuned Funktion-One sound system
- Upright Citizens Brigade
- The Second City
- The Groundlings
- Largo at the Coronet
- The Comedy Store
- Jumbo’s Clown Room - A unique venue where real pole dancers show off their craft. Modest nudity, but impressive nonetheless.
- Marina Del Rey is a blast with jaw-dropping yachts and slumbering seals
- Ventura is highly recommended, but I’ve not done yet. Excited to try!
- A Southern California staple. Countless places will rent you equipment or teach you how.
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