Two big-name hoteliers open up cool-kid, high-design spaces across the city, each with its own distinct vibe
Words by BROOKE PORTER KATZ
In Downtown Los Angeles’ booming Arts District, a 1927 fire station has been transformed into the aptly named Arts District Firehouse Hotel (rooms from $295/night), the latest project from Hotel Covell’s Dustin Lancaster. Located across from Warner Music’s sprawling new offices, it caters to an artsy crowd — complete with Tokyobikes to borrow, a cool coffee bar that brews Counter Culture Coffee and a retail space curated by design firm ETC.etera, which also created the hotel’s cozy urban interiors. There’s an A-list team of (mostly female) collaborators, including handbag and accessory queen Clare Vivier (who made custom tassel key chains) and Ellen Bennett, founder of culinary apparel company Hedley & Bennett, who designed the uniforms for the leafy outdoor restaurant and lounge, also named Firehouse. And chef Ashley Abodeely, former chef de cuisine of the NoMad Hotel in L.A., helms the food program, which includes a wood-burning grill that turns out a killer burger (finished with smoked onions, spicy mayo, cheddar and a pretzel bun).
Each of the nine rooms is focused around a single color, from red to violet, with three suites (Green, Blue and White) featuring separate bedroom and living areas. “The vision was to bring new life to this incredible, historic building — a fixture on South Santa Fe for almost 100 years — and make it a vibrant gathering place,” Lancaster says. “We looked to our community and friends to craft everything we needed, and the result — we hope —is that you feel a real sense of place, whether you’re staying in a guest room, eating at the restaurant, or just popping in for coffee.”
Meanwhile, Avi Brosch’s Palisociety continues to take over Los Angeles’ hospitality scene, opening up three new locations. The Palihotel Culver City (rooms from $250/night) brings a 1920s boarding house back to life, with 49 rooms and an indoor-outdoor restaurant and bar Simonette outfitted in a sophisticated, idiosyncratic style befitting a West Anderson film. Across town, the Palihotel Westwood Village (rooms from $250/night) opens in June less than a mile from UCLA. Also set to debut this summer, Silver Lake Pool & Inn (rooms from $275/night), has an indoor Italian-inspired restaurant and spacious, sunlit rooms just blocks from Sunset Junction. For postcard-worthy vistas of the Griffith Observatory, ask for a room on the third floor.
Feature image: PALIHOTEL Culver City’s indoor-outdoor bar and restaurant SIMONETTE. Photo courtesy of Palisociety.
