June 2014 – IAMNOTASTALKER

June 30, 2014July 21, 2014

Sur from “Vanderpump Rules”

Last November, the Grim Cheaper and I became obsessed with the Bravo reality series Vanderpump Rules. Like obsessed. We binge-watched the entire first season in about two days. For those who have not seen the show, it centers around West Hollywood eatery Sur (which is co-owned by The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Lisa Vanderpump) and its drama-fueled staff. And yes, as strange as it may seem, said staff does actually work onsite at the restaurant. If you stalk the place, you will see them. Naturally, the first words out of my mouth upon realizing this fact was, “We have to go to dinner there!”

[ad]

Wrongly assuming that Sur would be exorbitantly expensive (as it turns out, the place is completely affordable), I told the GC that the only thing I wanted for my birthday in June was dinner there. When he found out that my good friends Lavonna, Kim, Katie and Kaylee would be in town on my big day, he included them in on his plans and promptly made reservations (eight months in advance!) as a surprise for me. Yep, he’s a keeper!

To say that we had a blast would be an understatement. The evening honestly could not have turned out more perfect or more fun, as evidenced by the picture below.

Prior to doing research for this post, I was under the impression that Sur was a relatively new restaurant. Come to find out, the place has actually been around since 1998! It was originally founded in January of that year by Argentinian chef Guillermo Zapata.

It was not until 2005 that Guillermo brought in Lisa and her husband, Ken Todd, as partners. The eatery was then expanded and revamped with Lisa’s special touch shortly thereafter. The result is nothing short of spectacular!

Everywhere one looks, there is something new and fabulous to discover – from unique chandeliers to vintage mirrors to repurposed doors and windows used as wall hangings. It is worth a trip to Sur just to check out the interior design alone!

When the property next door to Sur became available in 2011, Lisa jumped at the chance to purchase it. She transformed the 2,500-square-foot space into what is now Sur Lounge. It was there that we started off our evening. We arrived on the scene about twenty minutes prior to our reservation time and were informed that we could either be seated immediately or grab a drink in the lounge first.

Upon deciding to grab a cocktail, the host, Adam, informed us that we were welcome to take our time and to just let him know when we were ready to be seated. How incredibly nice is that? (That’s Adam pictured below. While not a Vanderpump Rules cast member, he is a Wilhelmina model, so we had to get a picture with him!) Amazingly, everyone at Sur was beyond nice! The place had zero hoity-toity attitude and all of the staff we encountered went above and beyond to make our evening special. And believe me, the way we were carrying on and running around the place (we were absolutely ridiculous as you will come to see in later pictures), they would have had every right to be annoyed. Instead they bent over backwards to make our evening special! We were treated as if we were VIPs and we loved absolutely every minute of it!

Sur Lounge is like a dream world!

The courtyard area is especially stunning and does not look like part of a restaurant at all, but like the backyard of your hippest, classiest friend.

The interior of Sur Lounge is just as beautiful, with private seating spaces and vintage décor tucked into every nook and cranny.

Of the design, Lisa said in a 2011 The Hollywood Reporter interview, “I took a bit from here, a bit from there. There are some industrial elements mixed with little velvet mushroom stools that I had made. Huge, extra-long leather Chesterfields. Lots of plants. Things I’ve bought during my travels and brought in. I was looking for an eclectic feeling. Is it Vietnamese? Balinese? French? I wanted you to not be able to put your finger on it.”

After enjoying Happy Hour cocktails (the prices were amazingly low!), we headed to our table and shortly thereafter saw Guillermo. Because he regularly appears on Vanderpump Rules, we had to get a picture with him. After we did, the woman sitting at the table next to us also asked him for a photo. As it turns out, she, too, was dining at Sur because of her love for Vanderpump Rules. She said to us at one point, “I am so glad that I am sitting next to you guys, otherwise I wouldn’t know what I was doing!” To which I responded, “Oh honey! You don’t know how lucky you are! We are the ultimate stalkers!” Winking smile

Prior to ordering, I sent Lavonna – and her thick Southern accent – to speak with a man standing near Sur’s entrance. (I assumed he was a manager and never did actually find out his job title.) Lavonna explained to him that she, Kim, Kaylee and Katie had come from out of town to celebrate my birthday and that we were all huge Vanderpump Rules fans. Well, from that point forward, the man, whom we found out was named Ali, pretty much became our personal guide. He helped us get photographs with the cast, took us around the restaurant and gave us info on the filming that was going to be taking place there later that night. He was absolutely amazing and our evening would not have been nearly as fun without him! (That’s Ali pictured below.)

One place that we were all desperate to see was the back alley where the Vanderpump Rules cast is often shown taking smoking breaks – and creating massive drama. When we told Ali, he marched us right through the rear employee-only areas (which we had seen on the show!) to take us there and, let me tell you, we were pretty much dying the whole time!

That’s me and Kim re-living some Rules drama.

While we were outside, Lavonna happened to spot a film crew sitting in a van nearby, so she rushed right up to ask them some questions. That’s one of the camera guys below. He was quite amused at how excited we were and when we mentioned some of the intel that Ali had told us about the filming that was taking place there that night, he said, “You guys know more about our schedule than I do!” Yep, that’s how we roll!

A little bit later, while we were ordering our meal (we still had not yet ordered any food at that time!), Ali informed us that Jax had just arrived on the scene, so we all rushed over to get photos with him. Jax was very nice at that point in the evening, but when we encountered him again a few hours later he was rather douchey, which came as a surprise to no one. Winking smile

We also met Scheana Marie;

a new cast member named Rachel;

Tom Sandoval;

and Katie Maloney, all of whom were very nice. I did not get to meet my favorite cast member Stassi Schroeder, because she, sadly, left the show at the end of last season and currently resides in New York.

I should mention here that the poor GC spent most of the evening sitting at our table by himself, while we ran around taking pictures. The crap that my poor husband has to put up with! Thankfully though, the meal was exceptional! And completely affordable! I opted for the Crispy Chicken Breast (which Stassi had stated in an episode was her favorite menu item) and it was OUT OF THIS WORLD.

I cannot more highly recommend stalking Sur! We had such an incredible night there and it turned out to be the best birthday present I could have asked for! A big, HUGE THANK YOU to the GC, Lavonna, Kim, Katie and Kaylee for making it all happen!

For more stalking fun, be sure to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Los Angeles magazine online. And you can check out my other blog, The Well-Heeled Diabetic, here.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Sur, from Vanderpump Rules, is located at 606 North Robertson Boulevard in West Hollywood. You can visit the eatery’s official website here. Lisa’s newest restaurant, Pump Lounge, is located just around the corner at 8948 Santa Monica Boulevard.

June 27, 2014June 26, 2014

The “Must Love Dogs” House

One location that I had always wondered about, but never put much time into tracking down was the charming bungalow where lovelorn preschool teacher Sarah Nolan (Diane Lane) lived in the 2005 romantic comedy Must Love Dogs. Then, this past May, a fellow stalker named Linda challenged me to find the place and just a few days later I got an email from Geoff, from the 90210Locations website, with an address. He had seen Linda’s challenge and decided to do a little digging and, lo and behold, found the locale. Thank you, Geoff!

[ad]

Geoff was able to find the residence thanks to an address number of “1181” that was visible above the front porch in several scenes. Figuring that the pad was most likely located in Pasadena due to its Craftsman-style architecture, he began searching 1100 blocks in the area and it was not long before he found the right spot.

I was not at all disappointed when I finally saw the house in person. The place is just as adorable and picturesque as it appeared to be onscreen.

In real life, the 1921 dwelling features four bedrooms, one bath, 1,874 square feet of living space and a 0.32-acre plot of land. It was last sold for $280,000 in October 1997, which means that the people who own it today owned it at the time that Must Love Dogs was filmed. Love that! Wish I could have spoken to them while I was there.

The exterior of Sarah’s residence popped up repeatedly throughout Must Love Dogs.

Sadly, the gorgeous interior shown in the movie was just a set.

I am absolutely in love with Sarah’s décor (hello, claw-foot tub!). The entire place just looks so cozy and inviting. You can read a great Hooked on Houses article about Sarah’s interior design style here.

I managed to find some photographs of the real life interior of the residence online and, as you can see, it looks quite a bit different than what was shown onscreen. Some of the set does appear to have been modeled after the actual home, though. The built-in buffet in Sarah’s dining room is very similar to the property’s actual buffet.

And her green tiled fireplace is also very reminiscent of the the real home’s fireplace.

Sarah’s bedroom looks nothing like the real life master bedroom, though.

The two kitchens do not resemble each other, either. You can check out the real one here.

Big THANK YOU to Geoff, from the 90210Locations website, for finding this location! Smile

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Sarah’s house from Must Love Dogs is located at 1181 East Elizabeth Street in Pasadena.

June 26, 2014August 28, 2014

New “Los Angeles” Magazine Post – Eli Wallach’s House from “The Holiday”

Today’s Los Angeles magazine post was written in honor of the legendary actor Eli Wallach, who passed away yesterday at the age of 98. Wallach portrayed one of my favorite movie characters of all time. Rest in peace, dear Arthur Abbott. You can read the post here. My columns typically get published in the late morning/early afternoon hours.

June 25, 2014June 24, 2014

The Viper Room from “Entourage”

Once I found the location of Zebra tattoo parlor, on which Jeremy Piven’s name was displayed during the opening credits of Entourage each week (I blogged about it here), I just had to track down the spot where cutie Jerry Ferrara’s moniker was showcased. Upon finally doing so, I was a bit embarrassed that I had not recognized the place beforehand, being that it is one of Hollywood’s most well-known landmarks – The Viper Room in West Hollywood.

[ad]

Although arguably most famous for the fact that it was where River Phoenix died of a drug overdose in 1993, The Viper Room had a long, storied history prior to that time. The space was originally the site of a night spot named The Cotton Club, which then became Greenwich Village and then the Rue Angel – all during the first half of the 20th century. When the Rue Angel was burned in a fire in 1950, its doors were shuttered. The site reopened shortly thereafter as The Last Call, a drag show venue, which did not prove fruitful. The Last Call was closed in April 1951 and was subsequently transformed into The Melody Room, a small jazz bar that opened on June 14th of that same year. The Melody Room was successful for almost two decades and was reportedly frequented – and maybe even backed -by mobsters Bugsy Siegel and Mickey Cohen.

In 1969, The Melody Room was sold and became Filthy McNasty’s, a live rock ‘n’ roll venue. Sometime during the late ‘70s/early ‘80s, the property’s name was changed once again, this time to “The Central.” By 1993, The Central, which had remained a forum for rock ‘n’ roll acts, was on the verge of closing. When actor Johnny Depp found out, he decided to invest. Along with a few partners (one of whom, Anthony Fox, mysteriously went missing in 2001), he revamped the place and dubbed it “The Viper Room.” It opened to the public on August 14th, 1993, with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers serving as one of the inaugural acts. The Viper Room was immensely popular from the get-go, especially with the young Hollywood set. Just a few of the celebrities who were spotted there during the early years include Christina Applegate, Drew Barrymore, Jen Aniston, Nicole Eggert, Tim Burton, Quentin Tarantino, Sean Penn, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mick Jagger, Johnny Cash, Tommy Lee, Pamela Anderson, Gwen Stefani, Ellen DeGeneres, and Michael Keaton.

Shortly after its opening, The Viper Room would be forever marred by the death of 23-year-old actor River Phoenix, who passed away on the sidewalk just outside the club’s front doors in the early morning hours of October 31st, 1993. Following the tragedy, the venue closed down for a full two weeks.

While stalking The Viper Room recently with Mike, from MovieShotsLA, we were shocked to see a payphone nearby. (I wasn’t aware those things still existed!) After some research, I learned that it was the payphone where Joaquin Phoenix made his now infamous call to 911 following River’s collapse. The phone is located in front of the Sun Bee food mart at 8860 West Sunset Boulevard. And yes, I realize how morbid this subject matter is, but I was absolutely astounded to discover that it was still standing, all these years later, especially considering the fact that payphones are such a rarity in today’s world.

In 2004, in the midst of a lawsuit with his partners, Johnny Depp sold his portion of The Viper Room. Today, the property is owned by Harry Morton, son of Hard Rock Café founder Peter Morton. You can check out some photos of the venue over the years in all of its many incarnations here and you can see some pictures of what the interior of the club looks like today here.

In the Entourage opening credits, Jerry Ferrara’s name was shown in neon lettering above The Viper Room awning. As I mentioned earlier, I am embarrassed to admit that I did not recognize the site during all my years of watching the series. No, it was not until a couple of weeks ago, when I did a Google search for “Terner’s Liquor,” a neighboring storefront visible in the Entourage credits, that I made the connection. In my defense, though, The Viper Room looked quite a bit different in the opening, as you can see below.

You can watch the Entourage opening credits by clicking below.

The Viper Room has been spotlighted onscreen several times over the years. In 1983, when it was still operating as The Central, its interior popped up in the movie Valley Girl as the site of the club where Randy (Nicolas Cage) took Julie Richman (Deborah Foreman) shortly after meeting her. Only the interior of The Central was used, though. The exterior was a bar in Hollywood that has since been torn down.

In 1991’s The Doors, The Central masqueraded as the London Fog where Jim Morrison (Val Kilmer) and the group played in their early days. At the time, the exterior, which has since been painted black, looked considerably different than it does today.

The real life interior of the club also appeared in The Doors.

In 2005’s Be Cool, The Viper Room was where Chili Palmer (John Travolta) heard Linda Moon (Christina Milian) sing for the first time. Only the exterior of the site was used in the shoot.

The interior of the club that appeared in Be Cool is far larger than The Viper Room’s actual interior. I have been to The Viper Room a few times over the years (one of my acting class friends used to date a bouncer there, so we were VIP all the way, all the time! Winking smile ) and the inside of it is tiny. I’m talking tiny. Like I’m pretty sure my apartment has more square footage. I am guessing that the interior of the Be Cool bar was a set. Either that or filming took place inside of a a different Los Angeles nightclub.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The Viper Room, from the opening credits of Entourage, is located at 8852 West Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood. You can visit the club’s official website here.

June 23, 2014June 20, 2014

and Jeremy Piven Nightclub from “Arrested Development”

Thanks to Netflix streaming and the boredom of summer reruns, I just recently started watching Arrested Development. And, let me tell you, I am hooked! My interest in the show was first piqued when I randomly came across this Wikia article about a fictitious nightclub on the series named “and Jeremy Piven.”

[ad]

I just about died laughing upon seeing a screen capture of the place (pictured below) and my first thought was, “How am I not watching this show?” So I quickly remedied the situation and, so far, have not been disappointed. Any series that absurd is pretty much guaranteed to wind up one as of my favorites. For those for whom the screen capture below does not have any significance, let me fill you in.

In the opening credits of the now-defunct HBO series Entourage, the cast’s names were showcased on the front of several Hollywood buildings. Jeremy Piven’s was the last moniker to be shown, hence the word “and” in front of it. (You can watch those credits here.) Arrested Development decided to poke fun at the Entourage opening by creating a nightclub named “and Jeremy Piven” for a couple of Season 4 episodes. Hilarious! And even though I have not yet gotten to Season 4, I decided I just had to stalk the nightclub location, as well as the location of the building from the Entourage opening.

The storefront used in the Entourage opening credits was a snap to track down thanks to the fact that it is wrapped in a zebra print and bears signs reading “Piercing” and “Tattoo” (or should I say “Tat oo”?). A simple Google search of “Zebra,” “tattoo” and “Hollywood” led me to the Zebra tattoo parlor at 6660 Hollywood Boulevard and, sure enough, it was the right place. Aside from the fact that the exterior lacks neon signage reading “and Jeremy Piven,” it looks much the same as it did onscreen in Entourage.

The and Jeremy Piven nightclub was also a snap to track down thanks to fellow stalker Geoff, of the 90210Locations website, who had the locale listed on his Arrested Development page. The nightclub first showed up (very briefly) in the Season 4 episode titled “A New Start,” in the scene in which Debris Bardeaux (Maria Bamford) was randomly picked up by a limo.

Ironically enough, Zebra tattoo parlor can be seen in the background of an earlier scene in that very same episode.

The nightclub’s next appearance was in the Season 4 episode titled “Colony Collapse.” It was featured as the spot where Gob Bluth (Will Arnett) inadvertently became part of a young pop star’s entourage.

In real life, the and Jeremy Piven nightclub is a 6,200-square-foot building located right around the corner from Zebra tattoo at 1638 North Cherokee Avenue. The space is currently vacant, but most recently housed a studio prop house. You can check out a LoopNet listing for it here.

Only the exterior of the property was used in Arrested Development. The interior of and Jeremy Piven nightclub was actually Beso Hollywood, a place that I will be blogging about soon.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The and Jeremy Piven nightclub from Arrested Development is located at 1638 North Cherokee Avenue in Hollywood. Zebra tattoo parlor from the opening credits of Entourage is located just around the corner at 6660 Hollywood Boulevard.

June 20, 2014July 11, 2014

Hal’s Bar & Grill from “13 Going on 30”

Last week, while shopping in Venice Beach with my girls Lavonna, Kim, Katie and Kaylee, we made a brief stalking stop at Hal’s Bar & Grill, which appeared in one of my favorite movies of all time, 13 Going on 30. During our visit, we happened to have the good fortune to speak with Don Novack, one of Hal’s owners (that thick Southern accent of Lavonna’s worked for us once again!), and I just about fell over when he informed us that the eatery had appeared in Single White Female in 1992! So even though I’ve already blogged about the place once before, I decided Hal’s was most definitely worthy of a redux.

[ad]

Don’s foray into the restaurant world was a circuitous one. While working as a real estate broker in 1985, he unwittingly found himself part-owner of a sandwich shack/antique shop named Merchant of Venice after a business deal fell through. Don remained a silent partner for two years, until he learned that the eatery was facing certain financial failure. He decided to take over operations of the place at that point and brought in his wife, Linda, to help. He also partnered up with Hal Frederick, a fellow real estate broker, whom he had just recently met. The group remodeled the space into an upscale venue, gave the menu a full revamp and renamed the site “Hal’s Bar & Grill.” The property opened its doors to the public in 1987 and very little of it has been changed since.

Hal’s became an immediate success, despite the fact that the neighborhood was rough (to say the least) at the time. Abbot Kinney Boulevard has since experienced a major revitalization and patrons continue to flock to Hal’s, 27 years after its inception. The eatery is also a major celebrity hot spot. Just a few of the stars who have been spotted dining there include Jessica Simpson, Eric Johnson, Robert Downey Jr., Mike Tyson, Lindsay Lohan, Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Sammy Davis Jr., Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan, Tom Hanks, Kobe Bryant, Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson, Dermot Mulroney, Ewan McGregor, Reese Witherspoon, Rachel McAdams and Josh Lucas.

Hal's Bar & Grill (5 of 8)

In the 1992 thriller Single White Female, Hal’s stood in for the supposed New York restaurant where Allison Jones (Bridget Fonda) made a deal to sell her computer program to Mitchell Myerson (Stephen Tobolowsky).

Surprisingly, although 22 years have since passed, the eatery still looks much the same today as it did onscreen in Single White Female. LOVE that!

In 2004’s 13 Going on 30, Hal’s masqueraded as the New York City bar where Jenna Rink (Jennifer Garner) hit on a teenage boy. Only the interior of Hal’s appeared in the movie.

The exterior of the restaurant can actually be found about 3,000 miles away in New York’s SoHo neighborhood. You can read the post I wrote on the exterior here.

Don also informed us that Hal’s had appeared in two episodes of Californication. Because I am not very familiar with the Showtime series, I asked fellow stalker Geoff, of the 90210Locations website, if he happened to know which two episodes had been lensed on the premises. Sure enough, he did. Thank you, Geoff! In 2007, Hal’s was the site of the very bad double date between Hank Moody (David Duchovny) and Meredith (Amy Price-Francis) and Charlie (Evan Handler) and Marcy Runkle (Pamela Adlon) in Californication’s pilot episode.

Hal’s also popped up this year in the Season 7 episode of Californication titled “Faith, Hope, Love,” in a flashback scene in which Hank remembers going on another double date, this time with his ex-wife, Karen (Natascha McElhone), and Charlie and Marcy. Several areas of the eatery appeared in the episode, including the exterior;

the front entrance and bar;

and main dining room.

Don told us that Hal’s was featured in an episode of another show that I am unfamiliar with, Curb Your Enthusiasm. So I enlisted the help of fellow stalker Owen, from the When Write Is Wrong blog, to figure out which episode and, thankfully, he came through. Hal’s stood in for Primo Trattoria in Season 6’s “The TiVo Guy,” which aired in 2007. In the episode, Larry David (who plays himself) gets snubbed by his favorite restaurant after his wife, Cheryl David (Cheryl Hines), leaves him. Both the interior . . .

. . . and the exterior of Hal’s (which I somehow failed to get any photographs of) were shown several times throughout “The TiVo Guy.”

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Hal’s Bar & Grill, from 13 Going On 30, is located at 1349 Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice Beach. You can visit the restaurant’s official website here.

June 19, 2014August 28, 2014

New “L.A.” Magazine Post – “The Karate Kid” Dojo

Be sure to read today’s Scene It Before post for Los Angeles magazine – about the dojo from the 1984 classic The Karate Kid. You can find it here. My columns typically get published in the late morning/early afternoon hours.

June 18, 2014June 18, 2014

Hotel Erwin from “Cougar Town”

I have never been a big fan of Venice Beach, but during my weeklong birthday celebration in L.A. my pals Lavonna, Kim, Katie, and Kaylee wanted to do some shopping, so I suggested hitting up Abbot Kinney Boulevard. While there, Lavonna asked if I had any stalking to do in the area and a light bulb went on in my head. I had long wanted to visit Hotel Erwin, where the Cul-de-Sac Crew stayed in the Season 4 episode of Cougar Town titled “Have Love Will Travel.” Because I typically avoid Venice like the plague, though, I had yet to do so. So the five of us headed right on over there. (That’s Katie and Kaylee, Kim’s daughter and Lavonna’s niece, respectively, in the photo above.)

[ad]

Since Angelinos tend to be much friendlier toward tourists than locals (at least when it comes to stalking), I always utilize Lavonna’s thick Southern accent whenever stalking with her. (She jokes that I just use her for her voice. Winking smile ) This particular venture was no exception. The area of Hotel Erwin that I most wanted to see was its rooftop lounge, High, which was featured in several scenes on Cougar Town, so I promptly sent Lavonna to the front desk to inquire if we could go up there and snap some photos. Upon drawling to the concierge, “Y’all got a rooftop bar?”, Lavonna was informed that the lounge was closed, but that we were more than welcome to head up there to check it out and take pictures. (See, that accent works every time!) So we did just that. And, let me tell you, the place is nothing short of spectacular.

High Rooftop Lounge is absolutely HUGE, encompassing the entire roof of the Erwin.

Glass walls surround the premises, allowing for stunning beach and city views from pretty much every seat.

I mean, check out that scenery! Uh-ma-zing!

Hotel Erwin, which was built in 1967, originally housed the Best Western Marina Pacific Hotel. In 2008, the Joie de Vivre Group took over management of the site and cut its name to the “Marina Pacific Hotel.” A short five months later, management changed once again and an extensive, multimillion-dollar renovation project was begun, during which time an entire floor of ocean-view suites and new rooftop were added to the property. You can check out a photograph of what the structure looked like as the Best Western here. As you can see, the hotel lacked a fifth floor and rooftop lounge at the time and looked quite a bit different than it does in comparison to the pictures below. The site was re-dedicated as the Hotel Erwin, named in honor of owner Erwin Sokol, in mid-2009.

In the “Have Love Will Travel” episode of Cougar Town, which was the Season 4 finale and one of my favorite episodes of the entire series, Jules Cobb (Courteney Cox) and the gang headed to Los Angeles for a short vacation. While there, they stayed at Hotel Erwin. Quite a few areas of the 119-room property were shown in the episode, including High Rooftop Lounge, where the Cul-de-Sac Crew regularly hung out.

A night scene also took place at High. As you can see in the screen captures below, the bar’s views are even gorgeous after the sun sets. Oh, Grim Cheaper, I sense a field trip to Venice on the horizon! Winking smile

Hotel Erwin’s front entrance was also utilized in the episode.

It was dressed quite a bit differently for the shoot. In real life, there is no furniture or concierge desk in that area.

The entrance does feature a little outdoor lounge, though.

The exterior of Hotel Erwin was also briefly visible in the scene in which Travis Cobb (Dan Byrd) and Laurie Keller (Busy Phillips) discussed the fact that fate seemed to be against them being together.

The interiors of the rooms where the gang stayed in the episode were sets and not actual Hotel Erwin rooms. Photographs of the property’s real life accommodations can be viewed here. As you can see, they do not match up to what appeared onscreen.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Hotel Erwin, from the “Have Love Will Travel” episode of Cougar Town, is located at 1697 Pacific Avenue in Venice Beach. You can visit the property’s official website here. High Rooftop Lounge is open daily, starting at 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

June 17, 2014June 18, 2014

Fat Sal’s Deli – Jerry Ferrara’s Restaurant

I’m back, people! To say that last week was a blast would be an understatement. It was honestly one of the best weeks of my life and a really special birthday celebration. There was never a dull moment and I am officially exhausted (and now have a cold), but it was well worth it! A huge THANK YOU to the Grim Cheaper and my friends Lavonna, Kim, Katie and Kaylee for making it all happen. One of our many adventures (and I will be blogging about all of them soon) included hitting up the premiere of How to Train Your Dragon 2 in Westwood. We arrived on the scene bright and early only to learn that the premiere had been postponed from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Yeah, no thank you! After quickly deciding to bail (and after randomly running into fellow stalker Anushika, from the Mike the Fanboy family – that’s her in the above picture), we did some shopping nearby (I got an adorable dress at Brandy Melville) and then I dragged the entire gang over to grab a bite to eat at Fat Sal’s Deli, a place I had wanted to stalk for ages due to the fact that it is owned by cutie Jerry Ferrara, aka Turtle from Entourage.

[ad]

Jerry founded Fat Sal’s in 2010, along with his childhood pals Josh Stone and Sal Capek. Frustrated over their inability to find good East Coast-style sandwiches in Los Angeles, the three native New Yorkers decided to open up their own place. Their first outpost was on Gayley Avenue in a walk-up space that formerly housed a sausage stand named Spoc’s. Thanks to its fab food, late night hours (it does not close until 3 a.m. most days) and proximity to UCLA, Fat Sal’s became wildly successful and two sister restaurants were eventually opened – one in Hollywood and one in San Diego. A fourth is set to launch later this year in Austin, Texas.

Fat Sal’s menu is unique to say the least, with such offerings as Pepperoni Pizza Fries (French fries covered in chopped pepperoni, mozzarella cheese and marinara sauce), the Fat Jerry (a hero sandwich comprised of chicken fingers, cheesesteak, fried mozzarella sticks, bacon, eggs, French fries, mayo, ketchup, salt and pepper) and Meat Luv’rz Pizza Rolls (spring rolls filled with pepperoni, ground beef, sweet Italian sausage, provolone, mozzarella and marinara sauce). I played it safe and opted for Fat Sal’s Cheese Dog, which, as you can see below, I was pretty darn excited about. And I am happy to report that the dog did not disappoint. It was delish!

The gang all loved their orders, as well. (That’s our group pictured below.) And while we tried to convince Lavonna to order the Big Fat Fatty, she was having none of it. For those not in the know, the Big Fat Fatty is a 27-inch (!!) hero filled with five cheeseburgers, a pound of pastrami, cheesesteak, chicken fingers, bacon, mozzarella sticks, fried eggs, jalapeno poppers, French fries, onion rings, chili, marinara sauce and fat sauce. The monster sandwich costs a whopping $49.95, but if a patron can eat the whole thing in forty minutes or less, it’s free! If someone does manage to accomplish such a feat, he or she gets to design and name a sandwich that will then be added to Sal’s menu.

In 2011, Fat Sal’s was featured in the pilot of Planet Green’s Suzilla: The Mouth that Roars. In the episode, series star Suzanna French, aka “Suzilla,” who just so happens to be the fourth-ranked competitive eater in the world, attempted to eat a Big Fat Fatty. Spoiler alert – she was not successful.

You can watch the Suzilla: The Mouth that Roars episode by clicking below.

The eatery was also featured in the Season 19 episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives titled “Righteous Bites,” which just aired a couple of weeks ago. You can watch the episode on Amazon, iTunes or Xfinity here.

I was super excited to see Guy Fieri’s autograph on the wall while we were there.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The original Fat Sal’s Deli is located at 972 Gayley Avenue in Westwood. You can visit the restaurant’s official website here.

June 12, 2014August 27, 2014

Latest “Los Angeles” Magazine Post – About Chicago Lake Michigan University from “Perception”

Be sure to read today’s Los Angeles magazine post – about the location of the fictional Chicago Lake Michigan University from Perception – here. My columns typically get published in the late morning/early afternoon hours.