The move, holiday craziness, and travel really slowed me down over here, so I’m a little behind on travel posts. Wrapping up our California road trip which ended in my hometown of Los Angeles. I couldn’t wait to show Conor where I’m from and to finally introduce him to my (tiny) family. I thought I’d share a few of my old (i.e. classic) favorite spots along with some new, trendy LA things we did while we were there. Things have been changed since I made the move to Chicago six years ago.

Eat. Let’s start with some old favorites.
X’ian in Beverly Hills for my favorite crispy onion pancakes
Chopped salads at La Scala
Lots of iced americanos with almond milk at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (they’re everywhere)
Brunch at Joan’s on Third

And some not so old but new to me places. 
Grand Central Market in Downtown LA // image via
*we ate at Wexler’s deli

Lunch on the patio at Gjelina
Coffee at Alfred’s

Shop.
Galerie Half
Consort DesignRobertson Blvd in Beverly Hills
Abbott Kinney in Venice

Do.
Malibu Country Mart
This was taken last year, but driving up to the Hollywood sign is always fun. Great views up there!

The Broad Museum

Cubs v. Dodgers at Dodger Stadium

Sleep.
We stayed at the Avalon Hotel in Beverly Hills, which was right in the center of everything. Hotel fun fact: the hotel was home to Marilyn Monroe for 3 years. It’s just a few blocks from Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf on Beverly Drive and central to West Hollywood and Venice.

I’m sure I missed a ton of spots since I had to make it to my old favorites while I was there. Would love any suggestions you might have for my next trip back home!

Feature image via my crazy talented friend Kim Genevieve