World Travel Guide

City Guide  - Los Angeles  - Nightlife
Nightlife

It's only natural that the 'Entertainment Capital of the World' would have a great range of nightlife. Nightclubs and cabaret, jazz, rock, blues and country and western can almost always be found somewhere in town. LA clubs, like those throughout the USA, offer a mixture of live bands and recorded music on various nights of the week. Comedy clubs are also big in LA.

Sunset Boulevard - the famous 'Sunset Strip' - has long been a Mecca for LA nightlife; it still boasts some of the city's most famous clubs, but it is by no means the only hotspot. Other good nightlife areas include Santa Monica, especially along the Third Street Promenade; Hollywood and West Hollywood, the latter a centre for gay nightlife. Pine Avenue in Long Beach and Pasadena's Old Town also have a good number of jazz clubs and other entertainment spots. Admission prices for clubs and live music vary widely according to the entertainment. Entertainment listings can be found in LA Weekly and New Times, both of which are free papers distributed around town. The minimum drinking age is 21 years and you should carry photo ID at all times as you may not even be allowed in a venue without it. There is no smoking inside any public place in Los Angeles, so this includes bars and nightclubs. However, many offer outdoor areas where smoking is permitted.

Bars: One of the most unique watering holes in LA is the Observation Bar, an Art Deco lounge aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach. For fantastic views over LA, visit the Bona Vista Revolving Cocktail Lounge, at the top of the Westin Bonaventure hotel on South Figueroa Street.

Bar Marmont, in the hotel of the same name on Sunset Boulevard, has long been a celebrity hangout but is small and intimate with a slightly Bohemian feel, while the SkyBar, at the Philippe Starck-designed Mondrian Hotel, also on Sunset Boulevard, is one of the latest spots for LA's beautiful people and has a sleeker, more modern glamorous look. Hollywood's 'local' is Birds' on Franklin Avenue, with bass and Guinness on tap. The Cat and Fiddle on Sunset Boulevard is an English-style bar that also has a pretty courtyard and fountain. While on Sunset, pop into the Argyle Hotel, a stunning 1920s building, whose bar extends out to the pool area complete with statues of pink flamingos.

The Rock Bottom Brewery on Pine Avenue in Long Beach is a good place to try handcrafted beers brewed on the premises. To sample LA gay life, try any one of the bars along the bit of Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood, in particular Revolver, a video bar on the corner of Larrabee Street.

For fans of the film Swingers, it is worth making the trek to Los Filez, where the Dresden Room, on Vermont Avenue, is all white leather upholstery and cork walls - a good for sipping cocktails while listening to the loungey croonings of Marty and Elayne.

Casinos: Gambling is illegal in Los Angeles.

Clubs: The eclectic Viper Rooms on Sunset Boulevard, owned by Johnny Depp, is a hip hangout for rock musicians and groupies, although its club nights tend to be more funk and disco. Gotham Hall, on Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade, is a popular billiards hall with a state-of-the-art sound and lighting in the disco. The Cohiba Club on Pine Avenue in Long Beach features a 1970s disco on Fridays and Saturdays and also has a cigar lounge and billiards room. Sophisticated clubs include the glamorous Coconut Club in the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard, with dancing to big band sounds on Friday and Saturday nights. Cinegrill in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel has weekly cabaret entertainment. Swing-dancing is making a comeback in LA and the Derby on Hillhurst Avenue in Los Filez is the best place to jive - also featured in the film Swingers!

LA is beginning to get a dance club scene, with the massive Giant in Hollywood the biggest and most popular place with international DJs like Carl Cox and Paul Oakenfold playing house and trance. Right in the middle of Hollywood, Blue, 1642 North Las Palmas Avenue, is very popular on its techno night - Fridays - especially because of an outdoor smoking area. People go on to the Crush Bar, 1743 North Cahuenga Boulevard, which opens as an after-hours club from 0230 on Friday and Saturday nights. Otherwise, it plays Motown and soul. For decor, Sugar, 814 Broadway, in Santa Monica, is the place to go - check out the glass toilets.

Comedy: The Comedy Store on Sunset Boulevard is a good starting point for seeing some comedy as it offers three rooms, showing mainstream starts to fledgling acts. In the past, it has seen the birth of people like Robin Williams, David Letterman, Whoopi Goldberg and Gary Shandling. The Laugh Factory, also on Sunset, is a smaller venue where you should not be surprised to see a really famous name, like Jerry Seinfeld, testing out their routines. The Improvisation on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood is another premier venue.

Live music: The House of Blues on Sunset Boulevard often features top blues and folk names. It is also one of the only big venues in LA committed to hosting rap and hip hop artists - other venues and promoters have tended to shy away from this in more recent years. Other good spots for blues include Harvelle's, 1432 Fourth Street, in Santa Monica, and Smokin' Johnnie's on Ventura Boulevard in Studio City.

Top jazz entertainers perform at the always-packed Catalina Bar & Grill, 3787 Cahuenga Boulevard, booking essential. Another good spot for jazz is the Lunaria Restaurant & Jazz Club, 10351 Santa Monica Boulevard. Two venerable rock clubs, hosting fairly mainstream acts, are The Roxy and Whisky A Go-Go on Sunset Boulevard. The Staples Center, 1111 South Figueroa Street (tel: (213) 742 7100) is the venue for mega-concerts and events, such as the Grammy Awards.



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