Take a Trip to L.A.'s Golden Age at Hotel Normandie
You live and breathe vintage, whether it's film noir, Art Deco architecture, the photographs of Man Ray, or novels about Jazz Age speakeasies and the outrageous Flappers that inhabited them. Those were the golden days as far as you’re concerned—which is precisely why the Hotel Normandie, one of L.A.’s oldest hotels in one of L.A.’s oldest neighborhoods, beckons.
The glowing neon sign—on the rooftop since it opened in 1926 as a residence hotel for single men—invites you to step inside its grand, perfectly-restored lobby. Complete with water fountain and original tile, its patina of pre-War decadence was polished in a $5-million renovation in 2012 that thoughtfully buffed up the property’s rich architectural legacy while bringing creature comforts in line with 21st century standards.
All 94 rooms retain aspects of their original Roaring Twenties flair—a bonus for you, as legacy ranks higher on your priorities list than standardized notions of luxury.
You're delighted to learn that novelist Malcolm Lowry penned parts of “Under the Volcano” (one of the most critically-lauded novels of the 20th century) during his stay at the Normandie in the 1930s. You make a personal note to bring your typewriter next time, and work on a few pages of your own novel or screenplay—for now, you can type a thought or two on the communal antique typewriter near the front desk.
Even the hotel’s all-day diner, Cassell’s Hamburgers, is steeped in history—a Koreatown institution founded in 1948, it was reborn on the ground floor of the Hotel Normandie in 2012.
The bustling Cassell's is adjacent to Le Comptoir, which caters to a plant-based crowd with vegan dishes from chef Gary Menes (formerly of Palihouse and Marche). But the city beckons—you grab a glass of free wine in the lobby (part of their daily happy hour for guests) and head out, armed with your Leica.
An antidote to touristy Hollywood, the palm-lined boulevards of Koreatown throb with a diverse, eclectic Korean and Latino urban culture that dates back three generations. You can shoot golf balls and get a thorough Korean body scrub at Aroma Spa & Sports.
Lose yourself in Chapman Plaza, a mad cluster of Asian coffee, fashion, clubs and karaoke joints within a Moorish-inspired courtyard. Korean BBQ stalwart Ahgassi Gopchang (famous for their grilled beef intestines) is nearby, as are the red leather booths inside the womb-like bar-restaurant The Prince, whose surreal retro aura seduces all who encounter it.
After dinner, you head to one of the crown jewels of L.A.’s Art Deco architecture, the 1930s jade green Pellissier Building. The glorious Zig Zag Moderne lines rise above The Wiltern, one of the most splendid venues in the city to see touring rock and indie acts.
You close the night out with a stiff cocktail at the The HMS Bounty on Wilshire - a dim, nautical-themed grog shop of the highest order, once a favorite of British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill and newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst.
Strolling home (this is one of the most walkable neighborhoods in the city, after all) you feel happy knowing that despite the changes sweeping this City of Angels, so many gems from the past will also be part of its future—the Normandie among them.
Hotel Normandie
605 Normandie Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90005
213.388.8138
