Become a California Girl in West Hollywood
When you get a few years under your belt with regard to this parenting thing, you learn to let a few rules go and maintain the ones that really matter - like admitting to your kids when you're wrong. I'll go one better and confess to all of you that I was dead wrong about Los Angeles.
I thought I would not just dislike the city, but loathe the Paris Hilton superficiality of it all. I figured the fashionistas' huge sunglasses allowed them to see the very essence of my Midwestern sensibility, kind of like the so-called X-Ray specs that were offered in the back of old magazines. However, when my baby girl graduated from college and wanted to do a mom/daughter trip to LA, I was uneasy but acquiesced. After four fast days there, I wish we all could be California girls.
I thought our beauty and bonding getaway wouldn't get a liftoff when I began to look for flights and how they've jumped in price. Jet Blue came to the rescue with a reasonably priced, direct flight from O'Hare to Long Beach, less than 30 miles from LA and the insanity of LAX. You'll have plenty of leg room, your own TV with 36 channels, tasty snacks and then be able to snag your bags and rental car in a matter of minutes at the easy-to-maneuver airport (www.jetblue.com).
Your faux celebutantes decided to toss in a few extra bucks and upgraded to a Mustang convertible, one in Hertz's Fun Collection, for our girlfriends getaway.
Yes, Los Angeles is spread out and driving is a drag, but we used our Chicago-bred common sense and stayed and played in one area, West Hollywood, a mere 1.9 square miles burrowed between tony Beverly Hills and Hollywood (where you'll find all the other tourists snapping pix of costumed Chewbacas at Grauman's Chinese Theater and the like). West Hollywood is home to the celebrated Sunset Strip, Sheryl Crow's favorite street (Santa Monica Boulevard), hipsters browsing resale shops on Melrose and celebrities buying whatever they darn well please on chic Beverly and Robertson boulevards. The city of West Hollywood was recently named One of America's Dozen Distinctive Destinations by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, too.
The super-efficient West Hollywood Marketing and Visitors Bureau (www.visitwesthollywood.com) suggested we bunk at the Best Western Sunset Plaza Hotel for a few days, perhaps the best Best Western in its catalog of hotels. It's a pretty property, well maintained and tastefully decorated, with a lovely outdoor pool framed in cascading flowers. Filled with price-saavy Europeans and Americans, this Best Western offers complimentary breakfast, a dynamite Sunset Strip location and incredible value (www.sunsetplazahotel.com).
An easy five-minute walk and you're at Mel's Diner, made famous in "American Graffiti," or the new Cafe Primo for sandwiches, gelato and people watching.
Just five minutes in the other direction, we hit the Argyle Spa at a landmark 1929 art deco hotel, the Sunset Tower Hotel (www.sunsettowerhotel.com), for a massage (her) and a facial (me and my fine lines). John Wayne, Truman Capote, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor and Frank Sinatra crawled these halls and mere days after our spa session at the Sunset Tower, Alec Baldwin took over part of the hotel for his book launch with Chevy Chase, Christian Bale and Lionel Richie making appearances.
We decided to try the Chamberlain West Hollywood, a boutique hotel in a residential neighborhood just a few blocks from Sunset and Santa Monica boulevards, for our third and final day. The rooftop pool offers unpararelled views and cool cabanas. If you're visiting LA with younger kids in tow, the Chamberlain welcomes with a full range of amenities for adults and children on holiday in Los Angeles. Dream it at www.chamberlainwesthollywood.com.
Lose the notion of culinary LA being all about nuts and sprouts chased by shots of wheatgrass juice. Although you can find plenty of healthy food, the latest trend seems to be steakhouses, of all things. You wouldn't know it was a holiday weekend by the likes of the chatty crowds at one of West Hollywood's newest, BLT Steak (www.bltsteak.com). BLT refers to Bistro Laurent Tourondel, the chef who combines the best aspects of French bistro dining (casual, friendly atmosphere) with man-sized portions of certified black angus and USDA prime steaks, American and Japanese Kobe beef, light-as-air popovers and substantial sides served in cast-iron cocottes. Even though my rail-thin daughter and I (more on the Zaftig side) felt the requisite guilt at overeating, we were shocked we could devour a peanut butter and chocolate mousse plated with banana ice cream. Another surprise was finding one of the best burgers of our lives at a wonderful French brasserie on Melrose Avenue called comme Ca. (The best seat in the house is table No. 9 in the corner with views of the cheese bar, old-fashioned cocktail bar and other diners.) We shared a perfectly executed duck confit salad, squeaky clean oysters from Washington state and a comme Ca burger that widened the eyes of two cornfed Midwesterners. Start salivating at www.commecarestaurant.com.
If you want to wake up to healthy and hearty dishes along with celeb spotting, include Hugo's on your itinerary (owned by the cheery Leslie Brenner, who hails from Rogers Park). Go to www.hugosrestaurant.com to see the extensive menu of vegan, organic, free-range, zero trans fat, sustainable and Mexican dishes. I spied a TV character actor listening quietly to his agent's blathering while waiting for my organic tea to properly brew. Another night, we spotted Lindsay Lohan and a friend slink into the Palm West Hollywood - a venerable steak and seafood house - and had outstanding fare at Foxtail (http://sbe.com/foxtail) with a kitchen skillfully helmed by "Top Chef" chef Antonia Lofaso. There's a supper club upstairs for dancing and sipping cocktails, or head right next door to the legendary Troubadour club where Elton John and James Taylor launched their careers. The intimate room oozes history, and music lovers sans Botox. When was the last time you could clearly see the facial expressions of band members, walk outside for some air and see Snoop Dogg cruise by? I loved this place (www.troubadour.com).
How do you choose a salon in a land where the right hairstyle can detonate a career? Co-owner/master stylist of the B2V Salon (www.b2vsalon.com), Steve Lococo, gave us expert advice, great cuts and even reversed my thinning hair concern via a sturdy scalp massage with some of his magic potion. Lococo's television work includes "Extreme Makeover," "Dr. 90210," "Inside Edition" and "E! News Daily." Call the salon about combining a morning or afternoon of hair treatments, facials and a fab lunch next door at La Conversation Restaurant and Cafe, (310) 777-7648. We were like kids in a candy store at Makeup Mandy's Eyelash Bar and Makeup Studio where the college grad got a great tan job and I got a full set of eyelash extensions, which cut my morning makeup routine by 75 percent. If only I had J Lo's money, I'd get the lashes in mink! Owner Amanda Jacobellis counts Eva Longoria among her clients and is in the know about the latest product to make you feel like America's next top model, even if you're on the business side of 45 like me. Check her out at www.makeupmandy.com.
For a sunny girlfriends getaway, explore www.visitwesthollywood.com to book hotels, plan an itinerary and get a calendar of events. Don't be surprised if you start Sheryl Crowing, "All I want to do, is have some fun, till the sun comes up over Santa Monica Boulevard."