About the City Weather Airports Transportation Hotel Hotel Restaurants Area Restaurants Highlights About the City Los Angeles is the largest city in the state of California by population, the largest on the West Coast, and the second most populous city in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A., the city has an estimated population of more than 3.8 million people and spans 469.1 square miles. The Los Angeles–Long Beach–Santa Ana metropolitan area is home to an estimated 13 million people. The Greater Los Angeles Area, encompassing a larger area of five counties, has an estimated population of over 17.7 million people. Los Angeles is the county seat of Los Angeles County and its inhabitants are sometimes referred to as Angelenos. Los Angeles was founded in 1781 by Spanish governor Felipe de Neve as El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles de Porciúncula (The Village of Our Lady, the Queen of the Angels of Porciuncula). It became a part of Mexico in 1821 following independence from Spain and then a part of the United States in 1848 at the conclusion of the Mexican-American War. It was incorporated as a municipality on April 4, 1850—five months before California achieved statehood. Los Angeles is one of the world's centers of culture, science, technology, international trade, and higher education, and is home to world-renowned institutions in a broad range of professional and cultural fields. The city and its immediate vicinity lead the world in producing popular entertainment—such as motion picture, television, and recorded music—which forms the base of Los Angeles' international fame and global status. Back to Top Weather Southern California's climate has often been described as "perfect" with good reason. It is mostly sunny and warm with gentle ocean breezes in the summer. The humidity is low with little rain. The last time it snowed in L.A. was on January 10, 1949, and even then, it was only 3/10 of an inch. Annual precipitation: 14.89 inches Average sunny/partly sunny days: 329 days Average mean temperature: 65º F Back to Top Airports Airport Los Angeles International (LAX) Van Nuys (VNY) LA/Ontario International (ONT) Bob Hope - Burbank (BUR) LA/Palmdale Regional (PMD) LAX Back to Top Transportation TRAIN SERVICE- UNION STATION The iconic rail annex first opened in May 1939. Since then, this historic station has become known as the "Last of the Great Railway Stations." In addition to long-distance Amtrak routes, Union Station serves two Metro subway lines (the Red and Purple Lines) and one light rail line (the Gold Line). Metrolink passenger trains also pass through this transportation hub and service five regional lines: Ventura County, Antelope Valley, San Bernardino, Riverside and Orange County. TAXI SERVICE Taxicab services are operated by nine city-authorized taxi companies and regulated by Authorized Taxicab Supervision Inc. (ATS). ATS maintains a taxicab holding lot under the 96th Street Bridge where, at peak periods, hundreds of cabs queue up to wait their turn to pull into the central terminal area to pick up riders. A number of private shuttle companies, among them Prime Time Shuttle and SuperShuttle, provide door-to-door airport transportation as well. Back to Top Conference Hotel MILLENNIUM BILTMORE HOTEL LOS ANGELES 506 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, USA 90071-2607 Reservations: 1 800-245-8673 Telephone: 213 624 1011 Fax: 213 612 1545 Email: biltmore@mhrmail.com Website: www.thebiltmore.com A historic landmark, the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, has been home to presidents, kings and Hollywood celebrities since it opened in 1923. The hotel is centrally located in downtown Los Angeles' business, financial and cultural district. Upon arrival you are greeted by stunning Italian-Renaissance architecture with ornate columns, vivid frescoes and grand European charm. Once home to the Academy Awards, the hotel's Crystal Ballroom is where the Oscar statuette was first created. Back to Top Millennium Biltmore Hotel Resaurants Gallery Bar and Cognac Room The Gallery Bar has been recognized by Los Angeles Magazine as "one of the best places in town to have a cocktail." This elegant lounge offers fine wines and exclusive liqueurs under the watchful eyes of gracefully carved angels that float above the polished granite bar. Enjoy live jazz Friday and Saturday nights (schedule may vary). The restaurant is opened daily from 4:00 pm to 1:00pm. Please call (213) 624-1011 for reservations or more information. Grand Avenue Sports Bar Recently voted "Downtown Los Angeles' Hottest Sports Bar," it features billiard tables and 17 overhead monitors that broadcast sporting events from around the globe. The full-service menu features favorites such as buffalo chicken wings and signature classic burgers. Please call (213)624-1011 for reservations or more information. Hours of Operation: Monday to Friday: 4:30 PM - 12:00 AM Saturday: 12:00 PM - 12:00 AM Sunday: 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM Happy Hours 4:30 PM - 7:30 PM Rendezvous Court The famed Rendezvous Court, adorned with Moorish carved wood ceilings and gold accents also features travertine stone walls and a rose marble fountain. Traditional afternoon tea is served daily from 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm. Tea selections range from Ceylon & India Black Tea to Apricot Cinnamon Herbal Tea or guests can choose to enjoy the Victorian Tea, which includes a pot of tea, a selection of tea sandwiches, freshly baked scones and miniature French pastries. Another option is the Princess Tea, which offers a pot of tea, freshly baked scones and an assortment of miniature French pastries. The Victorian Tea is offered at $22 per person or $26 including a glass of Champagne, Sherry or Kir. The Princess Tea is offered at $18 per person. Please call (213) 612-1562 for reservations or more details. Hours of Operation: Sunday from 6:00am - 10:00pm. Cocktails and light menu served daily from 11:00pm - 10:00pm Afternoon Tea served daily from 2:00pm - 5:00pm. Sai Sai (Modern Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar) The cuisine of Sai Sai is inspired by using fresh ingredients to create modern, innovative Asian cuisine. The chef has created a menu of vibrant dishes that are tasteful, clean, and simple. Please call (213) 624-1100 for reservations; reservations are suggested for dinner. Hours of Operation: Lunch- Monday to Friday: 11:30 am - 2:00 pm Dinner- Monday to Saturday: 6:00 pm - 9:30 pm Smeraldi's Restaurant (California Mediterranean Cuisine) Enjoy fine dining in a relaxed Mediterranean ambiance featuring breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. Highlights include a carefully hand-selected wine list, sumptuous desserts, daily specials and weekday buffets. Hours of Operation: Breakfast: 6:30 am - 10:30 am Lunch: 11:30 am - 2:00 pm Dinner: 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm Back to Top Area Restaurants AMERICAN Sam’s by the Beach 108 W. Channel Road, Los Angeles, CA 90402 With nearly every new restaurant offering some sort of fusion cuisine today, Sam’s by the Beach rises above the mark and delivers fresh, smart food in an intimate neighborhood setting just off Pacific Coast Highway. The seasonal menu includes traditional California basics that seem familiar until the taste reveals unique Mediterranean details, while the unassuming outside belies the quiet romance waiting inside. Dedicated staff members cater to your every dining need, implementing a special menu for your tasting pleasure if requested and treating each patron as a regular. Visit this surprising getaway to relearn all your old favorites. 555 East Restaurant 555 Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802 555 East is a classic steak house, full of old world style, charm, and superior beef. Dedicated to the art of dining well, 555 East offers choice cuts of USDA Prime beef prepared to perfection, complemented by a wine list with over 600 selections. In addition to succulent and tender steaks, the menu boasts a varied offering of appetizers and accompaniments, from grilled artichokes to fresh oysters, as well as equally succulent seafood, live Maine lobster, and Colorado Rack of Lamb. The ambiance is classic and charming, with marble floors and wood paneling, and on most evenings a low buzz fills the air. Traxx 800 N. Alameda Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 The landmark Union Station, located on the eastern edge of downtown Los Angeles, is an impressive sight. The structure fuses the Spanish colonial, Art Deco and streamline Modern Architecture that represent California's heritage and future ambitions. Traxx is where the romance of the past and the spirit of the future seamlessly merge. Since 1997, Traxx has brought fine dining back to historic Union Station while acting as major player in Los Angeles' downtown renaissance. Its presence, along with the Staples center and the revitalized shopping and cultural venues, adds extra vitality to the cityscape. Even with modern Los Angeles blossoming in its midst, Traxx's ambience recalls the glamour and wonder of train travel's golden era. Edendale Grill 2838 Rowena Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90039 Tucked in a remodeled 1924 Craftsman-style firehouse in the peaceful community of Silver Lake, the Edendale Grill offers exquisite cuisine in a comfortable, unassuming setting. Accented with fresh flower arrangements, cozy armchairs, antique sconces and walls of old black and white photos, the setting has the potential to make single diners and large groups alike feel like they are home. As is only fitting in this comforting setting, Executive Chef and Co-Owner Patti Peck offers an amazing array of comforting dishes including Kobe steak tartar, a Caesar salad for two prepared tableside, and the signature Edendale Meatloaf wrapped in applewood smoked, house-cured bacon and accompanied by ethereal mashed Yukon Golds. ASIAN Yamashiro 1999 N. Sycamore Avenue, Hollywood, CA 90068 Set in a landmark 1914 building on the eastern edge of the Hollywood Hills, Yamashiro is renowned for its views over Los Angeles. But while the vistas are stunning, the spectacular CalAsian cuisine should not be overlooked. The menu is vast, encompassing sushi, sashimi, sushi rolls, soups, salads, steaks, fish, and more – but whether you’re here for drinks at the bar, to dine in the sophisticated dining room, or in the beautiful interior courtyard, you won’t be disappointed. You might leave with your wallet noticeably lighter, but it'll be worth every cent. Asia de Cuba 8440 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069 Asia de Cuba aims to transport diners to unseen worlds, and they very well may accomplish this with an innovative menu, unique ambiance, and hip crowd. The atmosphere combines the best of both indoors and out, with a hip, see-and-be-seen vibe indoors and a quiet and romantic landscaped patio outside. The menu equally fuses two drastically different worlds, inventing a new type of cuisine in the process. As the restaurant's name suggests, Asian cuisine mingles with Latin flavors, with such dishes as Seafood Pad Thai, “Havana Style” and Cuban Spiced Chicken with Thai coconut sticky rice and avocado fruit salsa. The result is a delectable culinary adventure. Café Del Ray 4451 Admiralty Way, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292 Located on the harbor, Café Del Ray’s dining room offers a contemporary setting in which to enjoy stunning views. The seasonal menu focuses on fresh seafood and braised meats. Freshness is evident in the weekly menu’s day boat selections, which list not only the fish but the captain, boat, and seaport where the fish were caught. In addition, the menu features a limited sushi selection, starters, and entrees that range from curry ahi tuni with forbidden rice to boar bacon wrapped filet mignon with béarnaise sauce. Executive Chef Frank Fronda’s culinary style pulls heavily from classic French technique while incorporating ingredients from a range of worldly cuisines, resulting in a delightfully diverse selection of the highest quality. Fat Fish 616 N. Robertson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90069 Owner James Han has created an eclectic menu that makes use of the freshest seafood and typically “Japanese” preparations, but is a decided mix of Eastern and Western influences. This stylish Euro-Asian restaurant offers elegant dining that will please every mood. FRENCH Coco Palm 1600 Fairplex Dr., Pomona, CA 91768 CocoPalm embraces guests with a heady Havana experience starting with its greeters, Toucan twosome Ricky and Lucy, and continuing with the interior’s brilliantly hued artwork and Chef Felipe Castro’s flavorful Cuban and Spanish cuisine. Perched atop a hillside alongside the San Gabriel Valley in Pomona, 10 minutes east of Downtown Los Angeles, CocoPalm combines an enviable location with unparalleled valley views, which serve as stunning accompaniments to the savory cuisine and colorful décor of this popular restaurant. Whether a table for two or two hundred, CocoPalm is a destination restaurant seeking to wine, dine, and entertain it guests with generous Latin hospitality. Lucques 8474 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90069 On Melrose, along a popular strip of hip West Hollywood restaurants, Lucques retains its standing as an ideal spot for lunch, dinner, and drinks. In its eighth year, the restaurant excels with its short-list of savory French-Mediterranean cuisine combining subtle, yet distinct, flavors with fish, poultry, and meat. Executive Chef Suzanne Goin uses seasonal ingredients to create dishes that are inventive, fresh, and flavorful. While not extensive, the selections are sufficiently unique to appease finicky Angelenos and most likely tantalize them to return. The wine list is extensive and hand selected by co-owner Caroline Styne. Maison Akira 713 E. Green Street, Los Angeles, CA 91101 Near the Playhouse, in one of the quaintest districts in Pasadena, a rare jewel sparkles in the Crown City—Maison Akira. Step off the bustling Green Street into the foyer door and find yourself halfway around the world in an elegant restaurant just off Cours Mirabeau in Aix-en-Provence, France. Though distinctly French, a peaceful Zen-like esthetic pervades the atmosphere. That is because Maison Akira is home of the world-renowned chef Hirose Akira. His menu is like a symphony of truly beautiful French classics, made modern and dazzling with subtle Japanese influences, like his signature Miso-infused Chilean Sea Bass, which has made him famous throughout the world. Joe's 1023 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice, CA 90291 Joe’s is an intimate, neighborhood spot in Venice Beach serving delectable French-California cuisine. The restaurant’s namesake and Chef, Joe Miller, offers and innovative, seasonal menu with dishes such as Kurobuta Pork Loin & Red Roasted Pork Belly with autumn shell beans, roasted onion, and tamarind mustard jus, and Porcini Mushroom Ravioli with wild mushrooms, reggiano parmesan broth, and white truffles. The restaurant’s wine list offers a collection of quality vintages from small boutique wineries, housed in the newly renovated 2,000 bottle wine cellar. The dining room offers a comfortable yet upscale setting, while the outdoor patio, complete with a calming fountain, offers equally fitting environs in which to enjoy fresh, innovative dishes from talented Joe Miller. Whist at the Viceroy 1819 Ocean Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90401 Whist is a full-service restaurant recently rated one of the "top 50 hotel restaurants" by Food & Wine magazine. Whist serves California-French cuisine with a sophisticated twist for breakfast, lunch and dinner. ITALIAN L'Opera 101 Pine Avenue, Long Beach, CA 90802 As you ascend the marble steps and enter L’Opera between two massive columns, it is as if you are stepping off a great Florentine piazza into a historic monument. Once inside, the dining room appears surprisingly modern, and it is this mix of antiquity and modernity that gives L’Opera its elegance. Serving Northern Italian cuisine in a refined setting, L’Opera offers a stunning dining experience, with warm and friendly service, a comfortably elegant ambiance, and exquisite cuisine. Il Cielo 9018 Burton Way, Los Angeles, CA 90211 In this confection of a restaurant, Il Cielo presents a wondrously elegant and stunningly romantic setting that is sure to bewitch even the most cosmopolitan of patrons. Owner and Executive Chef Pasquale Vericella has meticulously created a destination restaurant where guests can bask in the charms of Il Cielo’s visual beauty and revel in its exquisite Northern Italian cuisine. Nestled in a residential area of fabled Beverly Hills a couple miles east of Rodeo Drive, Il Cielo beguiles guests with a captivating romantic beauty created by its casually elegant décor, twinkling lights, and lush foliage. Il Grano 11359 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90025 Chef-owner Sal Marino, who was raised and trained in Naples, Italy, has delighted Angelenos for the past decade with his contemporary, market-driven approach to traditional Italian cuisine. Centrally located near the intersection of the 10 and 405 freeways, Il Grano draws a steady crowd of well-heeled Westsiders craving pristine crudo, house-made pastas, and unpretentious entrees. He writes a new menu every month, to capitalize on “whatever swims in the ocean and grows on Mother Earth.” Noted sommelier Peter Birmingham keeps pace with inspired wine pairings and pastry chef Corinne Sidelsrud’s desserts share Marino's seasonal approach, minus the swimming ingredients. Trattoria Tre Venezie 119 W. Green Street, Los Angeles, CA 91105 Homemade pasta and a flair for the less-familiar cuisine of Coastal Northern Italy are the hallmarks of this unassuming and friendly Trattoria located on a quiet, tree-lined street near Old Town Pasadena. Diners are treated to delicacies such as fresh fish, venison medallions, stewed tripe, and whipped salted cod as well as more traditional fare of assorted fresh pastas. The small restaurant (17 tables in all) has a comforting feel, with cozy banquettes, sound-absorbing carpeted floors, white walls, and white linens. With ample space between the tables, it doesn't feel cramped. Servers are knowledgeable and friendly. Pitfire Pizza Company 108 W. 2nd Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 After seven years of success in the North Hollywood Arts District, Paul Hibler and David Sanfield took their Pitfire Pizza concept downtown in 2005. Across from St. Vibiana’s Cathedral and in the shadow of skyscrapers, office workers flood this modern Italian café at lunch for thin-crust pizzas, hearty pastas, and market-fresh salads. At night and on weekends, the rush subsides and Pitfire offers a more relaxed dining experience with the same value. Order at the counter, where a board lists seasonal specials and fresh-baked desserts are on display. To drink, there’s fresh sangria and watermelon lemonade, plus wine and beer. For a host of other restaurants, please visit www.losangelesrestaurants.com. Back to Top Los Angeles Highlights   Attractions Hollywood Sign Griffith Park Observatory Mann’s Graumann’s Chinese Theatre Hollywood Walk of Fame Santa Monica Pier Capitol Records Building The Rose Bowl Museums Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) Museum of Contemporary Art Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Museum of the American West Museum of Latin American Art Museum of Jurassic Technology Getty Center Shopping Destinations West Third Street Rodeo Drive Melrose Heights Wilshire Blvd Ventura Blvd   Day Trips / Recreation Visit the Tidepools and sandy coves at Crystal     Cove State Park Surf the waves at Huntington Beach Enjoy the rollercoaster mayhem at Six Flags     Magic Mountain Enjoy the charm of an earlier century in Old     Town Pasadena Sports & Recreation Options Hiking Yoga Golfing Surfing Walking Tours (i.e. El Pueblo) Camping Bicycling Back to Top