Culver City is for Lovers! (Part One)

Interior of the Culver Hotel
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My first memory of Culver City involves an ill-advised trip to an extremely shady party my freshman year of college. For years I held this image in my head of what Culver City was: run down houses in a dark, unfamiliar night, kegs, and people whose idea of a good time was to stand around with plastic cups and stare at one another. Still, the story of dodgy Culver City was good for future, less terrifying gatherings. I relished telling the part where my Orientation Advisor who had a crush on me had to be called to pick me and my girlfriends up (my desperation at our plight forced me to momentarily forget the dorky boy's advances during the first week of school). To this day, the impersonation of my quivering voice saying, "Marcello? Can you pick us up?" never fails to incite baleful giggles all around. Not to mention the midnight movie showing of Monty Python I had to endure with him.

Still, a gal never forgets her first time drinking...or being drunk. Those Smirnoff Ices were certainly worth it at the time, my gal pals and I being bereft of fake ID's or upper- classmen boyfriends.

When I moved back to the States from my wanderings abroad, it was with great surprise that I drove through Culver City, terrified at the prospect of living there. It was...adorable and...trendy! Truly, I found the best part of Los Angeles and it was CULVER CITY! I could hardly contain my astonishment and I began to wonder just how much those Smirnoffs had gone to my head. Well, it was rather dark and...but, still, it was widely known that Culver City was a bit ghetto.

So, what happened? It's no surprise that someone finally wizened up to the potential of this city. It's on the cool West side, which means it gets lovely sea breezes year-round and is a fifteen minute drive up Washington Blvd. to Marina Del Rey. It's about a twenty-minute drive to trendy Westwood (UCLA town) and Downtown LA (USC's stomping grounds).

Apparently, they hired some great city planners, cleaned the place up, and were able to re-ignite the city's storied and proud history as the first "Screen Town" in LA! Now, I live across the street from Sony Studios and down the road from the Culver Hotel, where the Munchkins from the Wizard of Oz stayed when they were filming at Sony (which was then MGM). I shop at my local Trader Joe's, sip drinks next to Ron Howard at the Rock Bottom Brewery, and browse through the colorful stalls of the Tuesday Farmer's Market on Main Street.

It takes me five minutes to walk to two of the best theatres in LA: the Kirk Douglas Theatre (part of Center Theatre Group), which shows some of the most cutting-edge theatre in town, and The Actors' Gang, headed by Artistic Director Tim Robbins (of Shawshenk Redemption fame). The Gang has Thursday Py-What-You-Can performances of their highly physical and provocative work and the Douglas has a live DJ that spins after performances on the weekend!

The most elegant drink is at the Culver Hotel, where their grand lobby is often filled with studio people from Sony discussing their latest escapades. The evenings often have live piano and there is a Sunday champagne brunch. The eats are great here, with trendy restaurants like Ford's Filling Station (fine meats, cheeses, and breads) as well as healthy bites, such as Tender Greens (best salads in town). An indulgence can be found at Meltdown (specializing in all manner of grilled cheese concoctions) and S and W Cafe is a cute diner with a loyal breakfast crowd. The best cup of joe can be found at the delightful Conservatory, right across the street from Sony. They roast their own beans and have great decor and blueberry scones.

More later on the wonders of Culver...