Top 10 Date Spots in Hollywood

It’s date night in L.A. and your date's a music lover? Seal the deal with a stroll around this vast vinyl and CD emporium. The world’s largest independent music store is sure to inflame your date’s desire as you demonstrate your knowledge of obscure jazz, early black metal, and the finest offerings from Sub Pop. Hosting live performances several times a week, Amoeba Music is a date spot that will score you valuable cool points forevermore.

There’s no greater mood killer on a coffee date than bright lights and a loud pop soundtrack. With a pool table and blacklight back room resembling the set of A Midsummer’s Night Dream—complete with faux tree, moon and stars—Bourgeois Pig has all the nooks, crannies, old couches and atmosphere to make you and your rooibos-sipping honey feel at home until the wee hours.

With a late 3am close, it’s a chill spot to stop by for good conversation if you’re searching for late night date ideas Los Angeles style.

Your date is bad to the bone, a babe of the rock ’n roll variety, so take them to the Burgundy Room for a stiff late night cocktail with a rockin’ soundtrack to match. At this longtime dive bar hangout, find a dark corner to hide and talk about how much you miss Lemmy, Bolan and Cobain. Don’t forget to thank the punk rock gods that circus-like holes in the wall like this still exist in Hollywood.

One of the best date spots in L.A.,the art deco majesty of The Dresden’s dining room, replete with cozy white leather booths, make this a sure-fire win for a night steeped in romance, as featured in the 1996 movie Swingers. Soak up the retro charm of this beloved Los Feliz establishment over steak or angel hair pasta, and once 9pm rolls around, retire to the front bar where resident musical love birds Marty and Elayne (married since 1974) will serenade you into the early hours with their iconic renditions from the American Songbook. With $3 valet parking and priced for starving mid-career artists, this is a one-stop date spot that won’t break the bank.

The views of the city extend before you for miles. There's the aroma of sage and eucalyptus. The fiery sunset dips beneath the Downtown L.A. skyline. There’s literally no more romantic place to share a kiss with your honey than at the Griffith Observatory - hovering high over the City of Angels, your hair whipped by a gentle breeze. Wander inside and watch the Foucault Pendulum and the Tesla coil in action, then snuggle up for the 3D planetarium show, where you and your date can travel to infinity and beyond.

If you’re an early bird Hollywood’s Farmers Market is one of the best places for a date. Nothing spells romance like the scent of hand-cut flowers, organic orange juice and freshly shucked oysters, all on offer at this bustling, charming market where you can stroll hand in hand from 8am to 1pm each Sunday. Get a custom poem typed for you, tap your toes to local musicians jamming, and sample some of the best organic farm fresh produce in the region. For a nice view of the Hollywood Sign, walk east on Selma to Argyle Avenue, and gaze north on Argyle—there’s no better way to spend the morning after the night before.

It’s candle-lit, it’s decadent, it’s French. What more do you need for a romantic night out? Take your artsy, poetry-loving date to Franklin Village mainstay La Poubelle and imagine yourselves on the Left Bank, as you share champagne and oysters at this lively bistro. Afterwards, stop into Counterpoint, a wonderful second hand bookstore next door where you can treat your boo with a tattered collection of Rimbaud's poetry, or a collection of interviews with Jean-Luc Godard. You can guarantee they’ll immortalize this moment in their screenplay.

For dinner, Old School glamour never fails to impress. Start the night with a few of Musso & Frank’s famous Martinis—Dita Von Teese’s favorite—and ask the bartender to share some stories about literary legend Charles Bukowski, who used to prop the bar up here night after night. Packed with a mixed crowd of Hollywood old timers and young ingenues, this is the oldest operating restaurant in Hollywood - its menu is still filled with classics that the stars of the Golden Age shared with their dates too.

Your date loves nothing more than strolling around nature—how about a dog-friendly afternoon at The Trails, a woodsy, outdoor coffee spot at the foot of Griffith Park? Once you’ve ordered, walk your lattes and your labs across the street to the beautiful, leafy path along a babbling brook that's filled with frogs, fish and turtles, with enough waterside benches for you to take a seat and maybe sneak in a smooch.

You’ve done dinner, now it’s time for a movie. Avoid the cold, impersonal vibe of the multiplexes and head straight for the Vista Theatre on the border of East Hollywood. It’s date night Los Angeles style and the spectacular 1923 Egyptian-style decor and handprints in the foyer by Spike Jonze and John C. Reilly set the scene for a truly special film experience. Don’t forget to tell your date that this was the theatre where Alabama and Clarence meet for the first time in Quentin Tarantino’s True Romance—it doesn’t get much sexier than that, does it?