Forget buying a star map. If you really want to see how stars live, hit up these bars and clubs instead. You’ll be surprised how many spots on this list are simple neighborhood joints that anyone could waltz in to. Ladies: for the über-exclusive spots, we recommend donning a miniskirt and getting breast implants. Dudes: Cross your fingers. And wear nice shoes.
Picture the ultimate bachelor pad. Minus the STDs. MyHouse is pimped out with a contemporary kitchen that serves as the club’s main bar, a formal dining room with a long table that “pierces” through the glass wall and ends up in the “backyard,” a living room-like lounge, a fire pit outside and, even more exciting, a Jacuzzi. The best feature of all, is a master bedroom upstairs with a leather-crafted bed and—wait for it—“all the necessities you may need … discreetly hidden away in the nightstand drawers.” Ahem.
Aside from being on TV herself, owner Allison Melnick claims the Hilton sisters and Lindsay Lohan among her best friends. Nicky Hilton even designed the uniforms!
Don't be surprised to see Ryan Gosling DJ'ing at this '20s-style glam escape above the Avalon.
Attention, die-hard Scott Speedman fans: We spotted the "Felicity" heartthrob sitting at the bar at this kitschy Russian vodka joint. But don’t count on bumping into him here on a regular basis—he said he doesn’t venture far from his Eastside haunts very often.
If you read the celebrity profiles in Vanity Fair, then you know that stars such as Brad Pitt love to get interviewed at the Chateau Marmont. Stars with an interest in getting in the tabazines, however, check in to the hotel’s bar next door. Elisha Cuthbert and Britney Spears are two examples.
Central
This earthy-meets-glam lounge hasn’t been open long, and it’s already lured some of the hottest guys ever: Chace Crawford, Dave Annable, Nick Zano. The girls haven’t been too shabby either: Rachel McAdams, Ashlee Simpson, Emmanuelle Chriqui. OK, maybe the guys have been hotter.
Cha Cha Lounge
People chuckle about the time an Olsen twin was forced to wait in line before getting into this arty Mexican-style bar that’s usually packed with dudes in bands, many of them famous. We weren’t there the night Jake Gyllenhaal was spied here, but we were the night "Scrubs" star Sarah Chalke was passing out homemade chocolate cake.
If Emilio Pucci were in the business of designing bars, they’d probably look a lot like Coco de Ville, the exclusive lounge connected to the trendy STK restaurant. The girly spot has been a hit with the ladies, notably the Kardashian sisters and Kate Beckinsale. And where there are ladies, the men are sure to follow. Is it any surprise that Brody Jenner has?
It might look like a 1940s-era gentleman’s club, but it was ladies’ night when Lindsay Lohan reportedly cried over DJ Samantha Ronson, only to be comforted by Lauren Conrad.
Remember when Paris Hilton was trying to fool the media into thinking she might be “switching teams” and holding hands with Brittny Gastineau? She was doing it at Falcon’s popular lesbian night, which goes down Sundays during "The L Word" season.
Antonia Lofaso, made famous on "Top Chef: Chicago," isn't the only hot thing about Foxtail. Above the art deco restaurant, there's a ’70s-chic club so exclusive that even dinner reservations won't grant you access past the velvet rope. If you roll with producer Brett Ratner, who's also an investor at the venue, or are married to Janet Jackson, you should have no problem getting in. Once inside, you can sip cucumber-pomegranate martinis with the likes of Ashley Olsen, who's been seen hanging out in the DJ booth with nightlife kingpin Brent Bolthouse.
It’s been a while since we’ve seen Tara Reid tripping over herself at Geisha House, but we can always count on seeing Wilmer Valderrama here on Wednesdays for karaoke night. Other celebrity fans of this hump-day party include Nick Lachey, Drew Barrymore, Vince Vaughn, Ludacris, Brian McKnight, John Legend, Rosario Dawson and Busta Rhymes.
Forget the premieres at the ArcLight down the way. The real action is going down across the street at Green Door, a restaurant/club that has the feel of a turn-of-the-century French estate. Leo, Orlando and Jack have partied here; so has Heidi Klum, who chose it as her location for her annual Halloween party. But perhaps the most exciting celeb to waltz through the Green Door is Prince, who has performed there before an intimate crowd.
Though infamous club kid James St. James, who wrote "Party Monster," will never find the type of fame he had in New York’s after-dark scene, we’ll always consider him a celebrity, which is why we nearly died when we saw him at Guatelinda for a Club Called Rhonda.
You never know what major star you’ll at this Sunset Strip club during Steel Panther’s comedy metal show on Mondays. One week Pink’s in the audience, and the next week Pamela Anderson is joining the rockers onstage for an impromptu performance.
Expect total utter madness at the Kress on Friday nights when you're likely to see some of the most famous Hollywood couples--Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo, Lauren Conrad and Lo Bosworth--as go-go dancers in Frederick's of Hollywood lingerie shake their best assets.
If you’ve seen just one episode—heck, one scene—of "The Hills," chances are you’ve seen Les Deux, a fave nightspot among the young and trendy. Lauren Conrad isn’t the club’s only fan, though. When Paris Hilton and Adrien Grenier were dating, they made themselves comfortable here.
This dingy dive might look like the last place you’d spot a supermodel, but this is where Metromix’s own professional leisurist, Alie Ward, recently partied with Kate Moss as her limo idled outside. Chloe Sevigny is another fashionable out-of-towner who has a heart-on for Little Joy.
This Vegas-style club packs a double whammy with a sexy, red-hued lounge on one side (Crimson) and a dramatic dance club on the other (Opera). It’s served as the perfect setting for Usher’s “Love In This Club” video and Us Weekly’s Hot Hollywood Awards, but it’s no less star-powered on regular night, when you’ll see anyone from Tyson Beckford to Juliet Lewis joking around with the paparazzi in front.
Rock stars (and the aging groupies who love them) never tire of this Sunset Strip institution, nor does Cypress Hill’s B Real, who always seems to be here.
Cheap beer, free popcorn, kids in dirty jeans and…Karen O? Yup, the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s Karen O hangs out here with her girlfriends.
Skybar might never achieve the blockbuster success it had a decade ago, when it was packed with supermodels and major players including Leonardo DiCaprio, but Leo still stops by his old stomping grounds occasionally.
There’s always a chance of seeing Cindy Crawford at the Stone Rose Lounge: Her husband, Rande Gerber, owns the place! But Jessica Alba, Adam Brody and Kristin Cavallari are also known for being fans of the lounge inside the Sofitel Hotel.
Most nightclubs lose their buzz in less than a year, depending on how long it takes Paris Hilton to get bored with the space. But the celebutante still comes to Teddy’s, the Roosevelt’s intimate lounge that has the feel of a secret-society clubhouse. So do Cameron Diaz, Eva Longoria Parker and Maroon 5’s Adam Levine. Cherry on top: Danny Masterson hosts a jazz night called Fat Sam’s Grand Slam on Thursdays.
Villa
Forget velvet ropes—this club, designed to look like a Hollywood Hills mansion, suffices with a heavy wooden door guarded by burly bouncers who are near impossible to get past. That’s a good thing for stars seeking privacy, such as Nicky Hilton and Kevin Connolly, who made up here after their public split in 2006, and moms Kate Hudson and Christina Aguilera.
Celebrities don’t come to this dark dive east of the Sunset Strip to make a scene. That must be why Christina Applegate and "Chuck" star Zachary Levi chose it as a spot for their flirty rendezvous. Unfortunately for them, though, it’s not that dimly lit.
The short-lived Stork Lounge known for its iron-clad velvet rope and burly bouncers has been replaced with H-Wood; a bar that’s, ironically, less Hollywood and more relaxed, despite the name. The original industrial, art-loft design (made from antique salvaged bricks and windows from Andy Warhol’s factory in New York) has been given a makeover with comfy brown leather couches and wood tables. Want to spark up a conversation with the cute artist-type by the bar? Invite them to play a game of chess on the boards you’ll find scattered about. The lounge is still under the helm of Loyal Pennings (who also owns LAX) and John Terzian, but gone is partner Grace Fernandez and taking her place is Amanda Scheer-Demme, who initially designed the space. In layman’s terms, dress in your best if you want in.
Alexandra Le Tellier is Bars & Clubs editor for Metromix Los Angeles.
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