Hotel Normandie from “Vanderpump Rules”

Vanderpump Rules is like a fine wine – it just keeps getting better with age.  Six seasons in and the show still hasn’t peaked!  Well, in my opinion, at least.  Not only do the storylines continually get more and more compelling (and ridiculous – “My boyfriend can hang a TV in under seven minutes.  I timed him!”), but the series consistently provides great stalking locations.  I recently visited one of its earlier locales, Hotel Normandie, which was the site of a brief, but notable moment during Season 4.  I originally learned about the historic lodging back in July 2015 thanks to a Cupcakes and Cashmere blog post that featured the property.  Completely taken by the gorgeous detailing visible in the background, I promptly included the place on my To-Stalk List and the Grim Cheaper and I headed out there shortly thereafter.  At the time, I did not think the hotel had appeared onscreen, so I did not snap any photos and was shocked to see it pop up just a few weeks later on VR.  Though I instantly re-added the site to my To-Stalk List, it was not until last week that I finally made it back out there.

Hotel Normandie, named for its location on the corner of 6th Street and Normandie Avenue in Koreatown, was originally constructed by architects Albert R. Walker and Percy A. Eisen in 1926.

A newspaper ad from that year described the locale as “a delightful hotel for permanent and semi-permanent guests.”

Decidedly Renaissance Revival in style on the outside . . .

. . . Walker and Eisen gave the interior a Spanish Colonial Revival feel.

Hotel Normandie was popular from the start, becoming especially well-known for its $1 Sunday-night turkey dinners, homemade by culinary supervisor Mrs. H.F. Bruner.

Several notables lived on the premises during the hotel’s early days, including author Malcolm Lowry who penned portions of his 1947 novel Under the Volcano onsite.  The work has since been called one of the most influential books of the 20th Century.

In 1964, the property was purchased by hoteliers Paul and Adelaide Stockhammer who completely overhauled the site with a $250,000 modernization.

Sadly, much of the hotel’s original detailing was covered over as a result of the project.

It was not long before the place fell into disrepair.  In the ‘80s, the building was transformed into low-income housing and then it later had a short stint as a “pot-tel,” aka a pot-friendly hotel (whatever that is).

Thankfully, in 2011 Jingbo Lou stepped in.  The Pasadena-based architect/preservationist was initially introduced to the aging hotel by a realtor relative who brought him in to advise a potential buyer on a possible renovation.  The buyer was turned off by the costly rehab estimate Lou provided and stepped away from the deal, at which point Lou turned around and made an offer himself.  As a 2015 article in the Commercial Observer notes, the purchase was a labor of love.  Reporter Michael Kaplan states, “Why else would an ordinarily rational architect from Pasadena, Calif., buy a 1926 Renaissance-style hotel loaded with drug addicts and prostitutes and situated on a dodgy stretch of downtown Los Angeles’s pre-gentrified Koreatown?  The property, after all, had been hanging in foreclosure and was ultimately bailed on by the previous owner.”  As Lou explains, though, “When I first walked in and saw the ceiling height, the chandeliers, the columns, a wood-burning fireplace in the lobby, the grandness of it all, I knew it could be something special.”  With Jingbo’s guidance, that is exactly what it became.

Embarking upon a massive restoration, which took 3 years to complete at a cost of $5 million, Lou saw to it that the unsightly drywall and carpeting that covered much of the building’s original design elements were removed, the myriad broken windows were replaced, and the original Mansard roof, which had been dismantled in the 1950s, was re-constructed.  Stucco that had long since marred the hotel’s exterior brickwork was also extracted – well, for the most part.  According to the Los Angeles Conservancy website, the southeast lower-level corner of the structure (visible on the bottom left of my photo below) was left ensconced “as a nod” to the property’s “long history of alterations.”

The reinvigorated space opened to the public in February 2014.

The 4-story property, which is Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #1013, boasts 91 sleek but comfortable rooms, a large ballroom, meeting space, a gym, and countless retro details throughout.

#barcartgoals, amirite?

Hotel Normandie is also home to four onsite restaurants and lounges, including The Walker Inn, le comptoir, The Normandie Club, and Cassell’s Hamburgers.

The later is an L.A. institution that was originally established by Alvin Cassell in 1948.  (Special thanks to my friend Katie for providing the photo below!)

After a change in ownership in the ‘90s, the eatery saw a decline in quality and, subsequently, patronage.  The site was eventually shuttered in 2012.

Figuring the Normandie would be the perfect spot to re-establish the historic burger joint, Jingbo partnered with chef Christian Page and opened a re-invigorated version of Cassell’s on the ground floor of the hotel in December 2014.

To ensure the restaurant would be on par with the Cassell’s of Alvin’s day, Jingbo brought in many of the original furnishings, including vintage signage and Al’s former Hobart grinder.  He also reverted back to the menu used during the eatery’s early years which featured homemade mayonnaise, fresh produce, and absolutely no French fries because, as Cassell explained to Oui Magazine in 1972, “The more things you do, the less chance there is of reaching perfection.”

Cassell’s Hamburgers was the site of James Kennedy and Lala Kent’s first – and last – date in the Season 4 episode of Vanderpump Rules titled “Cock of the Walk.”  Both the outside of Hotel Normandie . . .

. . . and the inside of the restaurant were shown in the episode.  During their early evening meal, the duo discuss James’ ex-girlfriend, Kristen Doute, and toast to “making music and babies.” (Insert major eye roll emoji here!)   Though the date goes well, Lala calls it quits the very next episode after discovering that James has slept with one of her friends.  (He’s such a catch!)

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Until next time, Happy Stalking!

Stalk It: Hotel Normandie, from the “Cock of the Walk” episode of Vanderpump Rules, is located at 605 Normandie Avenue in Koreatown.  You can visit the hotel’s official website here.

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