Esperanza Resort

IMG_1164

Another celebrity hot spot that my husband and I stalked while honeymooning in Cabo San Lucas last week was the world-famous Esperanza Resort hotel – a place my girl Jen A. has checked into frequently over the years.   The 17-acre property, which is a member of the Leading Hotels of the World, is consistently referred to as Cabo’s most luxurious and exclusive resort.  The hotel is made up of only 57 rooms – fifty individual casitas and seven over-sized suites – so it truly offers its guests, many of whom are movie stars, the ultimate in privacy – and service.  Just a few of the amenities offered at the resort include a private beach, an award-winning spa with steam caves and waterfalls, an infinity pool overlooking the ocean, a yoga and Pilates studio where the classes are free, an art gallery, loaner iPods, and coconut-milk popsicles which are doled out regularly to those guests lying poolside.  Needless to say, the hotel, which is part of the exclusive Auberge Resort chain, has won countless awards over the years, including three of Travel + Leisure Magazine’s 2010 “World’s Best Awards” – #1 Resort, #1 Spa, and #1 Service for their Best in Mexico section.  It truly is a remarkable and absolutely beautiful place!

IMG_1162

I absolutely fell in love with Esperanza’s The Signature Restaurant, which is pictured above.  The restaurant is composed of three different levels of terraces, all of which overlook both the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Cortez, and is breathtakingly beautiful.  I SO wanted to grab dinner there during our stay in Cabo, but the Grim Cheaper was having none of that.  🙁

ScreenShot5295

Esperanza’s extensive celebrity guest list reads like a Who’s Who of Hollywood.  Just a few of the stars who have been spotted there include Fergie and Josh Duhamel (the Esperanza was where the famous 2008 picture of Josh D. painting on the beach was taken), Chelsea Handler, Debra Messing, Courteney Cox and David Arquette, Sheryl Crow, Ashley Simpson and Pete Wentz, Jennie Garth, Usher, Owen Wilson, and Will and Jada Pinkett Smith.  In 2003, Elizabeth Berkley married Ralph Lauren’s nephew, Greg, at the Esperanza.  That same year Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin honeymooned there, as did Katherine Heigl and Josh Kelley in 2007.  And according to this Forbes.com article, the Esperanza gifted a free weekend stay to all of the 2002 Academy Award winners. 

IMG_1171

And as proof that visiting the hotel almost guarantees one a celeb sighting, while we were there my husband and I spotted LeAnn Rimes and Eddie Cibrian, who were in town to celebrate LeAnn’s 28th birthday.  To clarify, I should say that I actually spotted the two stars – the Grim Cheaper was absolutely clueless.  He had gone to the restroom immediately upon our arrival at the hotel, while I grabbed a seat in the resort’s outdoor lounge.  Shortly after I sat down, who should walk into the bar area but LeAnn Rimes followed by Eddie C.  I recognized the two of them immediately and just about had a heart attack I was so excited!  When the GC returned from the restroom, he told me that he wanted to head down to the beach right away to search for the rocks where Jennifer Aniston recently posed for the ad for her newly released perfume (the rocks were our sole reason for visiting the Esperanza and I will be blogging about them on Monday) and grab a drink afterwards.  I started making faces at him to alert him to the fact that we were in the presence of celebrities, but he remained clueless.  I finally grabbed some paper out of my purse and wrote the above-pictured note.  GC took one look at the note, glanced over towards LeAnn, and then said, “Oh OK.  Well, come on, let’s go down to the beach.”  LOL  Needless to say he was not at all impressed.  We stayed at the bar for a few more minutes while I debated about going up to LeAnn and Eddie to ask for a photograph, but I ultimately decided against it.  They were on vacation at an ultra-exclusive and ultra-private resort and I felt that it would be inappropriate to bother them.  And I was happy enough just to have seen them in person, anyway.  🙂  When we returned from the beach about an hour and a half later, we again spotted LeAnn and Eddie swimming and eating nachos at the resort’s pool.  And I have to say that while I’ve never thought LeAnn was especially attractive in photographs, she is absolutely GORGEOUS in person.  I’d even go so far as to say that she was luminous.  Needless to say, seeing her was one of the highlights of my honeymoon.  🙂

ScreenShot5296 ScreenShot5297

ScreenShot5298 ScreenShot5300

ScreenShot5301 ScreenShot5303

And, of course, the Esperanza is also a filming location!  The hotel stood in for the Cabo San Lucas resort where Eddie (aka Ben Stiller) and Lila (aka Malin Ackerman) honeymooned in the 2007 movie The Heartbreak Kid.

ScreenShot5302

On a side note, one of my former acting teachers, Roy Jenkins (pictured above), played the role of Buzz in The Heartbreak Kid.  So darn cool!

IMG_1160

Until next time, Happy Stalking!  🙂

Stalk It: Esperanza: An Auberge Resort is located at Carretera Transpeninsular KM 7 in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.  You can visit the hotel’s official website here.

Watermark On Main

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1464

This past weekend, while in Ventura, my parents, my fiance, and I ate dinner at a newly opened restaurant named Watermark On Main.  And, even though my eyes are ALWAYS peeled, I wasn’t exactly expecting to see a celeb during our meal.  But, sure enough, we did!  As it turns out, Watermark is something of a celeb hot spot.  🙂  So, I just had to blog about it. 

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1456

Watermark On Main, which just recently opened last August, is located inside of the Theodore Groene/Brahn Jewelry Store Building, which is a City of Ventura Cultural Landmark.  The Spanish Revival style building  was originally built in 1928 and was designed by architects Frederick M. Ashley and John C. Austin, who also designed L.A.’s Griffith Park Observatory.  The structure, which was marked by tiled curtained walls, hand-painted murals, and ornately decorated ceilings, was built to house the Ventura Guarantee Building and Loan Company, who had a large safe installed on the premises.  In 1938, the building was sold to Theodore Groene, who subsequently covered up and painted over much of the structure’s ornate decoration and detail.  The building had several different occupants following that sale, including the Brahn Jewelry Company, until March 16, 2004 when it was purchased by the Hartley Family.  From March of 2004 to August of 2008, the Hartleys began the huge task of renovating the historic building.  What they uncovered was a structure that can best be described as a work of art! 

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1446

Working with artist Michael Kelly, the Hartleys painstakingly brought their historic building back to life.  And it truly is remarkable to see!  A few of the restaurant’s unique details include travertine floors, an onyx gold wraparound bar,  ceiling murals, which were originally hand-painted by artist Norman Kennedy in 1928 (pictured above);

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1448

handpainted plaster ceilings;

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1444

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1445

and African mahogany woodwork throughout.

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1460

The Hartleys also added a third floor to the building, which required a 61,000 pound steel support structure to be built on top of the existing roof.  The third floor now houses the restaurant’s rooftop lounge, named W2O.   

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1449

 I honestly can’t recommend stalking Watermark On Main enough!!  The restaurant is beautiful, the service was superb, and the food!  Oh, the food!  It was simply A-MA-ZING.  It was so good, in fact, that I scarfed down about three pounds of appetizers, bread, and salad making it virtually impossible for me to eat any of the actual meal that I ordered!  I’m not kidding – I think I ate two bites of it!  LOL  Oh, well, that’s what to-go boxes are for.  🙂 

watermark-restaraunt-ventura-1465

And, oh, yes, the celebs!  : )  The night we were there, actor/singer Kris Kristofferson was hosting a benefit concert for farm workers at the Majestic Ventura Theatre (pictured above), which just so happens to be located directly across the street from Watermark On Main.  The concert pre-party was being held at Watermark’s lounge, W2O.  And while I didn’t expect to see any celebs, before we knew it several familiar faces walked by.  Unfortunately, though, I couldn’t place exactly who they were and my fiance, who is usually great at remembering names, wasn’t paying any attention whatsoever.  UGH – I think I need to give the ring back.  🙂  LOL  The one face he did recognize, though, was that of Stephen Root, aka the Stapler Man from fave movie Office Space.  Love it!  🙂   Other celebs who have dined at Watermark include Kevin Costner (who held the premiere of his movie Swing Vote  at the Majestic Ventura Theatre), Leann Rimes, Kenny Loggins, and singer Michael McDonald.  Mark Hartley, the owner of Watermark, is also a big time country music manager who represents such stars as Brad Paisley, Leann Rimes, Colbie Caillat, and Vince Gill.  Apparently, his famous clients stop into Watermark on a regular basis.  Love it!   

Until next time, Happy Stalking!  🙂

Stalk It: Watermark On Main is located at 598 East Main Street in Ventura.  You can visit their website here.  Reservations are recommended.  You can make reservations here or by calling (805)643-6800.  Watermark also has a dress code – no shorts or flip flops are allowed and, for men, collared shirts are preferred.