Hidden Los Angeles

12/30/2024

Years in the making, the Evangeline Swamp Room draws design and culinary inspiration from the French Quarter.

12/30/2024

The iconic, family-owned San Pedro Fish Market is set to open in a new location in 2026, marking a new chapter for the seafood destination. https://abc7.la/49X3njJ

12/30/2024

IYKYK

Based on a true story. Chibson USA presents the official documentary on one of the greatest musical acts of the 20th Century. Dread Zeppelin: A Song Of Hope ...

12/24/2024

12/17/2024

P-22’s miraculous journey across two of Los Angeles’ busiest freeways and his incredible story of survival captured the hearts and imagination of Angelenos — and people from all over the world. His story inspired a new ethic of coexistence and led to the support for the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing .

Now, the National Wildlife Federation 's campaign and Friends of Griffith Park are partnering to commission a memorial sculpture to honor P-22. This piece will be installed in Griffith Park, offering a space for the community to celebrate their personal connections to this extraordinary mountain lion.

📅 Deadline to submit proposals: January 31, 2025
🔗 Learn more and apply here: bit.ly/P22Sculpture

12/17/2024

The Last Bookstore’s new location is bringing 500,000 books and Zen vibes to the Valley.

12/16/2024

👎🏼

Some neighbors in Torrance’s Sleepy Hollow are mourning a holiday tradition — selling hot chocolate from their front yards.

The decorative, string-light lined community draws visitors from all over, bringing long lines of cars and crowded sidewalks. But residents are no longer allowed to sell festive drinks or small snacks once the sun goes down, or anywhere outside their home.

🔗 https://ow.ly/hRLB50UroAJ
✍️ Makenna Sievertson
📷 Tiffany Ujiiye/LAist

12/15/2024

12/09/2024

12/09/2024

Raising Canes announced Wednesday that it will no longer present its case to take over the Norms at 470 N. La Cienega Blvd. The chicken chain was slated to present its case during the Cultura…

12/08/2024

http://www.micelisrestaurant.com - Joe Miceli from Miceli's Italian Restaurant in Studio City takes you through a short story of how the first Miceli Pizzeri...

12/04/2024

The AI-powered massage robot will open to the public in L.A. on Friday. It scans your body to deliver a precise, if impersonal, spa service.

12/01/2024

11/23/2024

Vroman’s Bookstore Turns 130: Pasadena’s Literary Landmark Celebrates Community Legacy

Southern California’s oldest independent bookstore, Vroman’s, is marking 130 years of literary and cultural significance with a community celebration in Pasadena this month.
---> https://pasadenanow.com/main/vromans-bookstore-turns-130-pasadenas-literary-landmark-celebrates-community-legacy

11/20/2024

Last Sunday, as some of you who follow this page already know, I had lunch at The Chowder Barge in Wilmington. It’s the only floating restaurant in the LA harbor.

Well, realizing I was in Wilmington, home of the Los Angeles Oil Refinery, formerly known as the Union 76 Oil Refinery, and Phillips 66 Oil Refinery, and realizing it was only a couple of weeks since Halloween, I thought I’d go see if Smilin’ Jack, the giant Jack O’Lantern was still painted on the huge gas tank.

I drove to the location, and noticed there was no locked gate, so I drove on to the parking lot. There was a tall metal gate between the tank and myself, as well as a fair distance, but I got as close to the gate as I could before I heard a voice calling to me. It was from the guard shack. I lowered my camera (iPhone) and the guard told me I had to leave the premises. I explained I just wanted to take a picture of Smiling Jack, and she politely explained I wasn’t allowed on the premises, but there was a park I could go to for a better view.

I apologized, thanked her for the info and noticed she was taking my plate numbers down. When I asked why, she explained she was just doing her job. Figuring I was already on record, I thought I may as well get some pix out of it. So I started snapping away.

Again, this time not as politely, she told me I wasn’t allowed to do that. Now, in fairness, I guess it was implied, but never stated, and since I was already on record, I felt I may as well grab what I was going to be accused of.

I drove off, found the park, and she was right. It it was less obstructed, though the smile wasn’t head-on.

By the way, the entrance to the park was lovely, but the spot I took the pictures from looked a little shady. Shady-looking people, hanging out by themselves in shady-looking cars in a pretty shady-looking spot.

Of course, they may have thought the same of me.

I grabbed this pic and left, shadily.

The pic I took from the parking lot is in the comment boxes below. I don’t know when they paint Jack back to gas tank color, or if he’s left that way nowadays. I’ve seen him at night before during - Halloween, but never in the day.

He’s shadier-looking in direct sunlight.