Los Feliz & Silver Lake Los Angeles

The Los Feliz and Silver Lake Los Angeles neighborhoods, often discussed and considered together, are a unique personality in the LA landscape. While outsiders have rarely heard of these areas, being frequently upstaged by more famous areas like Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica and Malibu, insiders know how cool, unique and "hip" these areas are. You might not like "hipsters", but what they have done for these young, artist-y communities is a lot of fun, diverse and exciting.

Not far from the beautiful Griffith Park and all it has to ofter (including the pony rides, hiking trails, train rides, train museum, LA zoo and more), these neighborhoods are just to the south and south-east of the park. They are by no means "new" neighborhoods, as there have been thriving communities here for decades. But after being a rather afluent area long ago, they became a bit run down and out of favor for many years. But a couple decades ago they began a comeback. They started to be colonized by young, artistic types who wanted to take back the area and make it their own. What has resulted is a funky, lively and diverse set of neighborhoods that really stand out with a personality all their own.

In case you are unfamiliar with the area, it is roughly the area east of Hollywood, south of Griffith Park and west of downtown. If you are familiar with the modern classic LA movie "Swingers", much of the footage was shot in locations in and around Los Feliz and Silver Lake Los Angeles. Of note, sometimes Silver Lake is writen as Silverlake and they appear to be used almost interchangeably.

Los Feliz and Silver Lake Los Angeles, particularly the strips along Glendale Blvd, Sunset Blvd, north Vermont and Hillhurst Ave, is litered with cool coffee shops, bookstores, restaurants, bars and more. A few of our favorites include the funky old Dresden Room (made newly famous by "Swingers"), the Bigfoot Lodge, Pazzo Gelato (seriously good gelato), Yuca's taco stand (pictured below left) and the Red Lion Tavern (pictured below right). The later is a really cool German-styled beer hall and tarvern that has three levels of bars of different styles including a patio up top that feels like a Munchen beer garden.

Silverlake and Los Feliz do seem to attract a mostly young-ish, hip crowd. But if you aren't a "hipster" don't fret. We love these areas too and we are a young family with kids. Is there anything LESS "hip" than kids? :)

What we love about it is the history, diversity and unique blend of things it offers. One the one hand, it feels like a slice of old Los Angeles. The architecture and vibe is very old and full of character. But at the same time there is diversity, from the new and hip to the old and classic... from the artistic to the urban. There is also definitely an intellectual feeling to it that reminds us a bit of the bay area, the kind of people who embrace both the bohemian and the elite. You can go from a street art fair in the morning and hit a wine bar in the afternoon.

Speaking of wine, as you know, wine and food are two of our passions. And with Los Feliz and Silver Lake Los Angeles natives and visitors alike can not do much better. Be sure to check out the Cheese Store of Silverlake (above right and below left). Initially a sister store to the Cheese Shop of Beverly Hills (another of our favorites), as far as we understand it is now independant of that store. If you love food and cheese, just walk in and be prepared to be amazed and delighted. Not far away is Silverlake Wine which is definitely not the biggest or most comprehensive of wine shops in LA. But it makes up for that with its funky, fun and esoteric blend of wines and wine events that stray far from the mainstream.

Los Feliz & Silver Lake Los Angeles: