Los Feliz is a great little neighborhood in north-east Los Angeles, near Griffith Park (I'm a little biased since I live there...). Anytime but mid-July through August are the best times to go - it can get pretty hot some days during those months. Check out Hillhurst north of Franklin, and Vermont north of Hollywood. Lots of great restaurants, bars and hang-outs (Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf on Hillhurst has a great patio with firepit). Griffith Park is also nearby, with plenty of great hiking trails, pony rides for the kids, picnic areas, etc.

East of Western, north of Franklin, West of Riverside drive, south of Griffith Park. Get there from the west side by taking the 10 east, 110 North, 5 North, get off at Los Feliz Blvd and head west. Griffith Park will be to your right as you drive down Los Feliz Blvd.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

It's virtually impossible to get onto the beach at Malibu if you don't own a slice of it, but Bob Morris' Beach Cafe is right on the beach at Paradise Cove. The food is also great - lots of surf and turf type dishes - and you can hang out on the beach before and after dining. To get to the beach, you have to drive through what is probably the world's most expensive trailer park.

www.paradisecovemalibu.com/beachcafe
Turn left off PCH North, about 30 mins from Santa Monica.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Great 24 hour cafe on Manhattan Beach Blvd just 2 blocks from the ocean. One of the few places around the area to be open 24 hours. Their sandwiches are great, burgers tasty, but the best thing on the menu is their french onion soup with a chunk of baguette dunked in it and a slice of mozzarella melted over the top. Get the blackberry lemonade too. Good people watching from the (heated) terrace.

1138 Highland Ave (Cross Street: Manhattan Beach Boulevard)
Manhattan Beach 310 545-8511

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Gourmet organic cafe that's a great place to go if you're sick of burgers and fries. You won't have to subsist on wheatgrass and beansprouts though, they do great chicken salad, hefty sandwiches, soups, good desserts and cakes too.

Urth Caffé - West Hollywood
8565 Melrose Avenue, (310) 659-0628, between Robertson and La Cienegahttp
www.urthcaffe.com

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

This is one of my compulsory stops in LA especially late nights. I understand that the breakfast is legendary - perhaps next trip - but this is one place where the t-bone is large and the coleslaw legendary. It claims that it has never shut since it opened its doors in 1924. Open 24 hours a day all year round.

Old fashioned cafe with minimal decor that looks like a cinema set for a b-grade movie. Even the cashier is behind a wired cage! Be warned - no credit cards.

Corner of 9th and Figueroa, in downtown L.A. (next to LA Convention Centre)
www.pantrycafe.com

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Tourists head to Rodeo Drive hoping to see the celebs shopping, and all they find are other tourists. That is because the real stars are shopping on Robertson Blvd in West Hollywood.

Go to the Newsroom Cafe for a very reasonably priced brunch or lunch and settle down for a spot of celebrity watching.

120 N Robertson Blvd (Between Beverly Blvd. and 3rd Street) Los Angeles, CA 90048

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Figtree's Cafe on Venice Broadwalk, home to freaks, charlatans, healers, prophets and tourists. Site of Muscle Beach, haven for hippies in the 60s and inspiration for the first skateboarders, Venice beach can feel like a timewarp. But with its mix of the beautiful people of LA's wealthy Westside, the homeless, urban downtowners and out-of-towners visiting for a day at the seaside, Venice offers a cross-section of all human life - much of it surgically enhanced.

Figtree's Cafe; 429 Oceanfront Walk, Venice, CA 90291; Tel: 310- 392-4937

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends