The Hollywood Roosevelt review: a celebration of movie making’s golden era

If there was ever a city that symbolised “love it or hate it”, then surely it’s Los Angeles? It’s a city of contrasts, of glitz and grit, high rises and ocean vistas, freeways and countryside, old school glamour and endless new building works, the ultra-rich and an increasingly depressing homeless situation.

It’s also oddly addictive, capable of changing your opinion from love to hate and back again in a matter of seconds, utterly incoherent, and nigh impossible to navigate without a car or a very large Uber budget. It has an energy unlike anywhere else – and is dotted with legendary hotels such as The Hollywood Roosevelt.

Why stay here?

You want LA? Well, this is LA distilled into a block or two. On the north side of the building, well, check the address, you’re on Hollywood Boulevard, right on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and virtually opposite the TCL Chinese Theatre. Head south and there’s Sunset Boulevard (plus a very handy In-N-Out Burger for that true taste of California). And, in the distance, you can see the Hollywood sign and the Griffith Observatory.

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Hell, if you’ve only got a night to see the sights, that’s many of them ticked off there… Oh, and you should also stay here because the Hollywood Roosevelt is a jolly nice hotel. A (relatively) recent renovation has kept the old school charm, but nudged things into the 21st century. As befits the name, it’s still a celebration of the golden era of movie making, of the stars who’ve passed through their doors since they opened in 1927 (indeed the hotel’s tower is where Clark Gable and Carole Lombard began their affair), but with all mod cons, an elevated F&B offering – including the latest from Nancy Silverton – and then there’s the pool…

As the rest of LA swelters and steams, guests at the HR can cool off in, and chill by, a pool that’s literally a work of art. British artist David Hockney famously painted a lot of pools, but only literally painted one: the bottom of the Hollywood Roosevelt’s Tropicana pool features a mural Hockney added in 1988.

Eating and drinking

The new(ish) star of the Hollywood Roosevelt’s F&B offerings is, undoubtedly, Nancy Silverton’s The Barish, a modern Italian steakhouse, offering woodfired classics, straightforward bits of protein and local and seasonal California produce.

For a more casual approach, there’s the Lobby, while 25 Degrees – named for the temperature difference between medium rare and well done – is a fine all-day burger restaurant. Yes. All day. And the breakfast patty melt – sirloin, American cheese, bacon, fried egg, caramelised onion, mayo on thick cut brioche – is one of the best and totally inexcusable breakfast sandwiches I’ve ever consumed. And I’ve consumed a few…

For (mostly) lighter fare, the Tropicana Bar offers poolside classics and cocktails, ditto the nearby Rosy Café. And for drinks, there’s the prohibition-era themed Spare Room, complete with custom-made wooden board games and two-lane bowling alley.

What to do

Well… it’s LA. The immediate surrounds of the hotel are full-on touristy classics but, frankly, as mentioned above, you will need a car or a very large Uber budget to really move around the city. On cooler days, LA remains a surprisingly walkable city, but those days are few and far between. Buses are better than you might anticipate and the Metro, while limited in scope, runs efficiently to the bits of the city it covers.

Personally, I’d always recommend venturing to Santa Monica for the farmers market (Wednesday and Saturdays) – the man with the masses of sunblock on his face and the big floppy hat sells the best dried fruit in the world, fact. Other attractions worth a look include the genuinely jaw-dropping LA County Museum of Art, the fascinating La Brea tar pits, and the new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.

But, you know, it’s the most major of major urban cities. There’s genuinely something for everyone. It’s also worth checking out local music and comedy listings for the dates of your visit… Or just sprawl by the pool and try to spot a celeb or two.

How to get there

The nearest Metro to The Hollywood Roosevelt is a couple of miles away so, frankly, it’s car or cab. The hotel does have a large car park (with the normal eye-popping valet charges) and is very friendly to Uber drivers. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is about an hour’s drive away.

Rates at The Hollywood Roosevelt, a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts, start from £219 for a double room; preferredhotels.com