New Downtown

The New Downtown is a swanky hotel city. It includes a dense number of fancy international hotels such as The Standard, the Biltmore and the Sheraton. All very upscale and filled with a UN’s worth of foreign visitors on any given day. My favorite is the Bonaventure where my prom took place—although that isn’t the reason why, necessarily. I have always liked the glass elevator shafts of this hotel. If you saw the Clint Eastwood film, In the Line of Fire, this is the hotel where the climactic final scenes take place. (The area was also used in that real time Johnny Depp film with a similar plot from the nineties.)

Like any other kind of major metropolitan downtown this is an area filled will glassy high rises with lots of street level ground floors rented out by designer clothing stores and restaurants and coffee shops looking to capitalize on the lunch rush from local offices and the theater crowd coming to visit Mark Taper or one of the other venues in the area.

There are several notable restaurants and nightspots. Here are some of the ones that I like.

Casey’s Irish Pub is a fun place to hang out before or after a nearby theater date. Talk, drink Guinness and let darts fly while getting to know each other—perfectly low key. Another pretty cool place is The Library Bar, a bar that uses the theme of a library as a gimmick—and it works. You get lots of local professionals and preppy USC types here. It is a big singles scene on weekends. (By the way, the actual LA Library is located nearby.)

If you really want to impress, then you might take in the Rooftop Bar at the Standard. Very swanky and hosting international hotel crowd virtually every night of the week.

On the western end of the neighborhood there is this lounge that has a good concept but that isn’t quite working. The Flat Lounge at what used to be (or maybe still is?) The Blue Velvet, has a pool party set up in the middle of apartment complex. This could make for a really fun kind of an atmosphere—unfortunately they haven’t gotten the mix right. If you really want to have overpriced drinks at a pool, stick with the Rooftop Bar at the Standard—they have better views too.

There are also a number of places to get a bite to eat as well. Beyond the hotel restaurants, I would check out Engine Co #28 and Redwood Lounge—both are perfect place for pre- or post-theater meals.

Like most downtowns, this is not really where you want to raise your family. Not that many people actually live down here. But if you are looking for a great night out or to meet someone visiting from an exotic locale, then this is the place to go.

New Downtown Los Angeles is a small area that contains the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Musem of Contemporary Art, the Biltmore Hotel, other high-rise hotels, and many of the skyscrapers that can be seen as the Los Angeles skyline. A large part of this area is called Bunker Hill, which is downtown Los Angeles as far as locals are concerned. The rest of New Downtown as seen on the map is a residential area to the west.

Bunker Hill was a fashionable area between the late 1800’s and WWI. The original Angels Flight railway took people from the bottom of the hill up. With time, it got crowded and eventually people moved out, making it a fairly empty and dilapidated region after WWII. The city planners wanted to clean up Bunker Hill, and built some highrises there as the limits on building height in LA were raised. Many of the skyscrapers belong to business or banks. One and Two California Plaza were the last two large buildings constructed.

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) has three locations in the Los Angeles area. The largest branch is in Two California Plaza. Also in Two California Plaza are the Colburn School of Performing Arts, the Omni Hotel and a water court.

The MOCA branch has a huge collection of American and European contemporary art (since 1940). It is the only Los Angeles museum housing only contemporary art.

Also in the area is the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, which bills itself as “The premiere choice for celebrities, presidents and travelers for over 85 years…” It has the Gallery Bar and Cognac Room, a number of restaurants and live music Friday and Saturday nights. While the Staples Center and LA Live are not actually in New Downtown, they are about one-and-a-half miles away. People from out of town can stay at the Biltmore and then go to a Lakers Game.

The Westin Bonaventure Hotel is in this area. It is the tallest buiding, round in shape, with a revolving restaurant and bar at the top. The Jonathan Club, a famous, private club for the rich and elite is located in the area. There are bank buildings, bars and restaurants. Part of this area is also called the Financial District.

However, the downturn in the economy hurt this area, preventing the construction of what would have been Three California Place. Some of the buildings are now being used for multiple purposes, including residential lofts.

The other side of the Harbor Freeway is in New Downtown as shown on this map, but not Bunker Hill. It is a more residential area, with a number of schools and hospitals. There are also apartments. The L.A. Chamber of Commerce is located there, as is the Children’s Home Society of California, New Beginnings Recovery Treatment and other drug/alcohol rehab centers, and a number of motels.

If you work anywhere in the area, housing is probably more affordable on the west side of the Harbor Freeway. There is much more to do up on Bunker Hill.