juliushandle
Member
Walked over to El Tejano in Noho tonight. Fun place with the young and beautiful. Texmex food and every 2nd drink is only $2.
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Los Angeles |OT| GAF's Guide to the Greatest City in the Universe
- Thread starter clearacell
- Start date
CosmicQueso
Member
It would take 45 minutes to drive there. Plus, never go east of the 405.
Johnny Cage In The Shower
Member
Hey LA GAF. Going to be in your town this coming Thursday and Friday.
Any fun things to do, or cool events going on those two days? Thanks
http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=1251573
Any fun things to do, or cool events going on those two days? Thanks
http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=1251573
broz0rs
Member
Since its just two days, I recommend to plan your trip accordingly to the vicinity of where you're staying. You can easily be stuck in traffic the entire day.
Johnny Cage In The Shower
Member
^ I appreciate this advice, thank you. I am staying in Van Nuys near lake Balboa,
Quite central location, isn't it? (Well, North-West Central) I am not very interested in staying in the city itself (LA)
Quite central location, isn't it? (Well, North-West Central) I am not very interested in staying in the city itself (LA)
Jest Chillin
Member
I don't know of any events in the area but you would be close to Ventura Blvd which has quite a lot of shops and restaurants.
CosmicQueso
Member
Van Nuys? Dr. Hoggly Woggly BBQ is the only thing in that part of town.
I would pass on that place, I found it almost inedible.
Go to Takatis if you like Peruvian food, and get the sanguchon. It's one of the best sandwiches I've ever had.
There's a few things you could do in that area. Some suggestions:
Lake Balboa Park
Japanese Garden
Van Nuys Airport Viewing Area -- Nice if you like to watch planes take off and land.
The Getty -- Not too far down the 405 from there.
Amazing Escape rooms -- close by in Northridge.
Lots of good shopping/eating to be had on Ventura blvd. There's a barcade on Ventura in Sherman Oaks. Lots of record stores, second hand shops if you know how to look for 'em. You are also a short ride away from the Red Line's North Hollywood Station that will take you right down to Hollywood and Vine and Hollywood and Highland if you want to watch the freak show that is that area. lol
jstevenson
Sailor Stevenson
the barcade in Sherman Oaks sucks though. Emulators
That's a bummer! I've never been, I just know it's there.... I know there's one in Pasadena. Is that one any good?
jstevenson
Sailor Stevenson
dunno on Pasadena.
The one in Echo Park and 82 downtown are both aces though. Echo Park (Button Mash) is my preference given the terrific food they have. They also had Game of Thrones pinball a while back and once you waited in line, that was great.
Johnny Cage In The Shower
Member
Awesome suggestions LA GAF.
I will definitely check some of these out. Keep them coming... I am thinking of hitting the twilight concert at SMP tomorrow night as well.
I will definitely check some of these out. Keep them coming... I am thinking of hitting the twilight concert at SMP tomorrow night as well.
richardhawk
Member
I wasn't the biggest fan of the food at button mash. Everything tasted kind of bland. Maybe I just went on an off night because a good amount of people have told me it was pretty good. That being said the Arcade is cool. 82 is fun if you get there before 9? I've seen the line stretch down the street and honestly it's not worth waiting in.
CosmicQueso
Member
Did you make it to the concert? How'd that go?
MonkeyKing
Member
Neon is hella cool. One hour, $10, play your heart out. In the back they have a couple of WiiU set up for the kids who want to play smash or Mario kart.
Thug Waffle
Member
Been working in Newport Beach lately and got dayumn that place is beautiful.
JustHadToJoin
Member
My big move is coming up on me fast. I got a recommendation earlier in the thread for downtown LA. I'll be visiting in one month but figured I should check out some other areas too. Is Manhattan beach / Hermosa beach good diverse areas for mid 20s guy with your typical interests, love to bike, sports are great, watching movies. hoping to pay a little less than avg in rent and have less of a need to drive than most places in the area?
Side note - my work commute only requires traveling to LAX on monday and traveling back on Friday. Would you still feel like its necessary to live close to the airport?
Side note - my work commute only requires traveling to LAX on monday and traveling back on Friday. Would you still feel like its necessary to live close to the airport?
CosmicQueso
Member
Downtown and Hermosa Beach may as well be different planets. Both are fine, but impossible to recommend one over the other without knowing personal preferences.
I'd never even consider living downtown. Many others would never consider living west of the 405.
I'd never even consider living downtown. Many others would never consider living west of the 405.
The nice thing about living downtown would be that you can take the Flyaway shuttle from Union Station and usually it doesn't get stuck in traffic because it takes the Fast Trak (carpool lane) most of the way to the airport.
Megalosaro
Banned
Next week I'm going to hike Runion canyon, after hearing about it on Kevin and Bean.
Anyone ever been? Or is it over hyped
Anyone ever been? Or is it over hyped
richardhawk
Member
People go to take photos of themselves more than actually hike. I suggest anything on this list instead of Runyon.
http://curious.kcrw.com/2016/08/4-great-day-hikes-to-do-in-la-instead-of-runyon-canyon
Mercury Fred
Banned
You're better off in Venice if you can somehow find a decent deal on rent (it's higher than average for the city). It's very walkable, close to the airport--15 or 20 minutes, near movie theaters in Marina Del Rey and Santa Monica, lots of great restaurants and you're of course right on the beach.
Runyon just reopened after being shut down for a few months for construction. It'll probably be busier than normal but it's worth doing at least once.
jstevenson
Sailor Stevenson
Runyon is the type of place where some LA women spend an hour getting their hair and make-up ready before they go hike there.
beat
Member
Will you be living and working at LAX during the work week? What?
Yeah. But that said, the one time I took the Union Station Flyaway - a couple of weeks ago - it was still about 10-15 minutes longer than scheduled because of traffic, even with a carpool lane.
Everything in that part of town revolves around being "discovered." Everything. Every man and woman under the age of 30 is perpetually done up.
LOL. This is so true.
JustHadToJoin
Member
Heh nah, consulting style of work so traveling to a client site in some other location on Monday, staying there for the week and coming back to LA (via LAXor BUR or whatever) on Friday.
Megalosaro
Banned
Yeah, I know it's entirely over hyped. Still wanna try it. The is this trail in Arcadia I like. Pasadena has good stuff to
I'm ashamed to admit that after 14 years of living here, I had never been to big bear until v last week. Went camping with my parents in heartbar.
Loved it there That place was amazing
If it were me I'd look at Marina del Rey, Playa del Rey, etc. Unless you are really into the DTLA lifestyle.
MdL and PdL are more yuppie 30 something lifestyle but you'll be close to Venice and Santa Monica and the airport is right there, too.
Runyon is a real easy hike if you go from the back side on Mulholland Drive, so I'd suggest going from the front on the Franklin(?) side. A longer hike. Watch out for dog shit.
I've been meaning to do Echo Mountain for months after reading an article about it.
beat
Member
My opinion, none of the key places mentioned for you here (DTLA, beach 'hoods like Venice or Playa Del Rey) are low-ish in rent. But if you are really good at apartment hunting, you might find a rare bargain.
I'm not really familiar with the bike-ability of those places; I'd say check the WalkScore website, which has a bike option. DTLA esp is pretty good for transit, relatively. Out west, the buses become a very annoying mishmash of Metro, Big Blue Bus, and Culver City buses; the latter two are fine in the day time but in my experience have less late night service than Metro. But Metro doesn't run extra late night lines to supplement what the latter run in the day. I guess you could just use ridesharing.
You can watch movies anywhere, but this being LA, some theaters esp have special events, like Q&As or big premiere events. So that might be nice.
JustHadToJoin
Member
whats the DTLA lifestyle in your opinion? are marina del rey and playa del rey diverse( i know it was said that everywhere in LA is ..but I have to ask?
juliushandle
Member
Echo Mountain is an amazing hike. Ruins of the old hotel and giant gears, cogs, and rails from the old tram.
beat
Member
Marina del Rey is a lot whiter than LA as a whole. http://www.city-data.com/races/races-Marina-del-Rey-California.html
But "LA as a whole" kind of leaves out that (1) LA is huge and (2) not that integrated at the neighborhood level: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/29/racial-dot-map-la_n_3819252.html
richardhawk
Member
Congrats on the smorgasburg stand Johnny. I was going to go this weekend but got caught up with family stuff. Hope it went well.
MdR and PdR are like "suburbs in the city" to me. Chain restaurants, chain stores, yuppies, etc. They are clean and safe and they feel comfortable. But they're kinda bland.
DTLA feels more youthful, it has a large art and design community, and is more diverse. I mentioned Santee Alley the other day, for example. What goes against DTLA is that it has a terrible problem homelessness. I was in DTLA a week ago and a homeless man broke down in tears after I gave him two dollars. He was crying like a little kid while telling me how he was trying not to talk to people anymore because everyone ignored him as if he didn't exist. I nearly started crying, too. I didn't even know what to tell him or how else I could offer to help. The cops don't give a shit, they'd probably make his life even worse. Shelters can be rough and he was obviously a fragile soul. His words and his crying were stuck in my head for hours and hours. So part of the "DTLA lifestyle" is living alongside that kind of suffering and learning to just sort of accept it as being normal.
Dr. Feel Good
Banned
I agree Runyon can be annoyingly over filled with people but that's like everything in this town... There's too many fucking people in this city. There's nothing wrong with Runyon, it's a solid length and good workout in a central and convenient part of town. And the views of course are great.
Go before 9AM on the weekdays or before 8AM on the weekends and the place is awesome.
It was pretty meh. I might need to up my game somehow since theres alot of competition. If you swing by say something, I always like meeting other GAFers (for the most part lol).
AstroNut325
Member
Is it just me or is the air quality beyond terrible these past few weeks?
jstevenson
Sailor Stevenson
it's been gross, I think the fires + weather.
I mean, normally it's bad in summer, but yea
StopMakingSense
Member
The air quality index seems good - moderate for most of the LA basin. Because of the inversion layer, haze is natural, and doesn't necessarily mean smog.
https://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=airnow.local_state&stateid=5&mapcenter=0&tabs=0
Welp, this came out a few days ago. Air In Southern California Is Deadliest In The Nation, Says Study
I hope your link is more correct than this fear-mongering article. :/
Mercury Fred
Banned
LA GAF, the folks are coming to visit soon and they love checking out restaurants.
I'm in Santa Monica so hoping to do a mix of west side + elsewhere. Not necessarily east side but downtown, mid-city, BH, WH, etc are cool. I have a few thoughts-- Kali, Nobu Malibu, Paley, 71 Above-- but would love to hear some recommendations and/ or thoughts on any of these I listed
I'm in Santa Monica so hoping to do a mix of west side + elsewhere. Not necessarily east side but downtown, mid-city, BH, WH, etc are cool. I have a few thoughts-- Kali, Nobu Malibu, Paley, 71 Above-- but would love to hear some recommendations and/ or thoughts on any of these I listed