Monday, October 21, 2013

Hidden Los Angeles: The City's Best Finds

By Debrah Elliot


In a metropolitan area with more than 18 million people, you won't find it hard to find things to do. Everyone knows that Los Angeles offers plenty of great beaches, as well as sites such as Disneyland and Universal Studios. But if you want to bypass the popular touristy sites and really find the best that this metro area has to offer, you have to dig a bit deeper. Here are a just a few places to visit that will showcase the wonderful, wacky and wild place we call The Southland.

There's really no shortage of great food in the L.A. area, but if you are looking for something cool, fun and historic, drive over to Alameda Street in the city's downtown area to Philippe's. This restaurant has been a downtown staple since 1903, and is known as the spot where the French dip was invented. This sandwich happened by happy accident when a customer's bread was dropped into the meat juices. The customer loved the sandwich so much, he came back to Philippe's the following day with several friends in tow. It quickly became a favorite at the restaurant, and soon the sandwich was famous nationwide.

If you want the best cup of coffee in Los Angeles, bypass the chain shops and head to Culver City. Island Monarch Coffee offers made-to-order espressos, cappuccinos, lattes and much more using only the finest fresh roasted beans from Kona, Hawaii and Colombia. Even the water has been filtered seven times to remove any impurities. The beans come to L.A. still green and are then roasted within days of use for maximum flavor. It's definitely the best way to start off any morning in Los Angeles.

For some quirky fun, Southern California offers some interesting venues. There are two zoos in the City of Los Angeles, the current L.A. Zoo and the Old Zoo. The Old Zoo is empty and abandoned, but you can still explore the grounds and walk into cages and through various enclosures. The Old Zoo is located in Griffith Park and if you were heading to the current zoo, you would look for a sign that says, "Old Zoo Picnic Area." Park in that lot and then you walk up the hill, across a field and you will find this old relic.

If you are a car enthusiast, you will want to visit the Petersen Automotive Museum which is located on Wilshire Boulevard along the Miracle Mile. However, outside of the city in the town of Sylmar, you will find the Nethercutt Museum. This museum houses a vast collection of pristine automobiles dating from about 1910 to the 1930s. In addition to the cars, there is also a restored 1937 Canadian Pacific Royal Hudson locomotive and a Pullman Private Car that dates back to 1912. In addition to the museum, you can schedule a guided tour of the Nethercutt Collection which includes automobile collectibles, historic musical instruments and music boxes, antique dolls and much more.

Obviously, in a city as vast as L.A., there are still many other exciting attractions, restaurants and outdoor adventures. There are many historic sites, hundreds of art galleries, gigantic flea markets, farmer's markets, whale watching excursions and even rides on majestic tall ship replicas where you can sail around the coast in a manner similar to the Buccaneers of centuries ago.




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