American Girls Store in LA

[robinsmommy]

We're headed to Ca this summer, and we have an overnight in LA before hitting DL.

I looked at reviews for the AG store at Tripadvisor, and they are very mixed.

??? Any info is greatly appreciated, or ideas for doing AG on a budget. I have mixed feelings about taking dolls - one more big thing to carry around and/or lose....

Thanks!

[Tondi G]

You mean at The Grove? I live a few blocks from there! The AG store is BIG, used to be a huge FAO Schwarz store. I have boys so we haven't spent any length of time in the store but they are very busy and you see a lot of girls walking around with big shopping bags from AG. The Grove is a nice outdoor mall adjacent to the Original Farmers Market. The Grove has a grassy area, a small dancing fountain and a free double decker trolley to ride. It is worth a stop for a few hours if your girls love AG. The AG store has a cafe but I think it is quite expensive.... there are many other places to eat the The Grove or inside the Farmers Market.

[robinsmommy]

Hey, a local!

Can I please get some more recommends for things to do, places to eat, etc?

We're staying at the Wilshire Crest, hopefully it's ok - most of the stuff in that area is $$$$.

We love to eat at good restaurants - at least, the ones that are kid friendly, and also need to hit a natural grocery store and/or Trader Joe's on the way to DL. I know there is a Whole Foods close by.....

Are the Tar Pits worth a visit? Anything else we shouldn't miss?

The trolley sounds fun, is there a good place to eat outside of AG? One of the biggest complaints I hear is about the ridiculous cost of the food....

We will have a rental car, but in general we'd druther walk whenever we can.

[AnnieW625]

I took a trip to the AG store a month or so ago to get DD1's single Bitty Twin doll and I was really impressed with the store and the SAs are really nice there. I went alone, but I think I might take DD1 back in a few months to shop during the holidays (she'll be 5/1/2 then) and I think she'll have a good time. I might investigate the food at the AG Cafe, but I honestly don't think that you can do a mom and daughter tea in the general LA area for less than $40 (you can barely do lunch on a weekday with no alcohol at a sitdown for less than $20, and I work in Orange County) so I might take some of what the Trip Advisor reviews a little less seriously because it's more expensive to eat in the LA area than it is in say Lincoln, Nebraska (or any other largish city in middle America).

I love the LA Farmers Market there is a great variety of stuff to eat; there is something for everyone. Sometimes certain parts are crowded but I have been for Sunday brunch a few times and things still move. I love the vibe. I think and I am just making a HUGE generalization here (so :bag) but the area in general has a very large Orthodox Jewish population so if you are there on Saturday for brunch it may not be as busy as it will be on Sunday. I love the Greek place, Paul's Hot Dogs (I think?), and I have heard that the Mexican place in the middle of the market is great too. Many years ago I went to the breakfast place (in college) and it was awesome. I am horrible with names, but it's mainly been the same places for the last 20 years; the Mexican place is somewhat new I believe (less than 10 yrs maybe).

There is a Trader Joe's on La Brea, but I think the parking is kind of bad and or at a bad intersection (I know I saw one there). There is a Whole Foods directly across from the Farmers Market. It might be less stressful to stop at Trader Joe's outside of LA closer to Disneyland.

The Tar Pits were kind of cool when I was a kid, but not my favorite thing, and they are right next door to the LA County Museum of Art aka LACMA. The LA County Museum of Natural History is cool, but that's further away near USC, as is the California Science Center. The Science Center will be on our to do list because they are getting a whole Nasa exhibit (but not sure when). The Petersen Automotive Museum is fun for car lovers, and is in the general Fairfax area.

[Tondi G]

Hey, a local!

Can I please get some more recommends for things to do, places to eat, etc?

We're staying at the Wilshire Crest, hopefully it's ok - most of the stuff in that area is $$$$.

Funny enough my family stayed at the Wilshire Crest when my father passed away and we needed to find somewhere close and not rediculously overpriced. It is fine. It's not fancy but they said it was clean and the people were nice. They had a little continental breakfast in the mornings.

We love to eat at good restaurants - at least, the ones that are kid friendly, and also need to hit a natural grocery store and/or Trader Joe's on the way to DL. I know there is a Whole Foods close by.....

there is a Whole Foods Directly across the street from the Farmers Mkt/Grove if you venture a little farther north to Beverly you will find a smaller natural food store called VP discount (west of Fairfax Ave.)
http://maps.google.com/maps/place?client=safari&rls=en&oe=UTF-8&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=vp+discount+health+food&fb=1&gl=us&hq=vp+discount+health+food&hnear=0x80c2c75ddc27da13:0xe22fdf6f254608f4,Los+An geles,+CA&cid=1718292253289629906

if you go East of Fairfax you will find Erewhon (it can be quite expensive, on par with Whole foods for sure, but smaller and has a wide range of natural foods)

http://www.erewhonmarket.com/retailer/store_templates/shell_id_1.asp?storeID=D75C352CBF6F4DDEAC31FE4AA9F 34525

We have quite a few Trader Joes in the area... 3rd and La Brea, Sunset and Crescent Heights, Santa Monica Blvd and Poinsettia .... they are supposedly putting another one in directly across from the Farmers Market but it's still a dirt lot at this point. I guess yo ucan say people in the neighborhood like TJ's!

Restaurants .... there are tons near by. If you want a close place for coffee and interesting breakfast go straight down (south) Crescent Heights to Wilshire and you will find Cafe Latte. They roast their own coffee beans here and give you yummy little poppy seed muffins. It is in a strip mall with a few other eating places.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/caffe-latte-los-angeles

Up on 3rd Street is a great restaurant for breakfast or lunch called Toast. They are very popular so on weekends the wait to sit down can be quite long. The food is delicious!
http://www.yelp.com/biz/toast-bakery-cafe-los-angeles#query:Toast

3rd street has quite a few good restaurants/Cafes ... The little door, Joan's on 3rd, Quality food and beverage... if you want quick yummy tacos hit Plancha on 3rd and Sweetzer the steak street tacos were delish 3 for $5!

Up on Beverly Blvd. (just north of The Grove) there is a great Italian place Terroni http://www.terroni.com/~menu/Los-Angeles

Are the Tar Pits worth a visit? Anything else we shouldn't miss?

The Tar Pits can be cool but the Museum there is very small. It is right next to LACMA ... don't know how you feel about art museums with kids ... some kids are great, mine would probably be too loud and disruptive. The Peterson Auto Museum is right there on Wilshire as well.

The trolley sounds fun, is there a good place to eat outside of AG? One of the biggest complaints I hear is about the ridiculous cost of the food....

Within The Grove you have the options of
Marmalade Cafe
The Farm of Beverly Hills (Yummy)
Cheesecake Factory
Morels
La Piazza
There is a Chipotle next to the Children's Place store too for quick eats. And a smaller place Freshii just opened over there too.

Within the Farmer Market you have a ton of stalls offering food from pizza and deli to Brazillian BBQ and Gumbo/Jambalaya (which is delicious) to Mexican (Loteria is YUM) and crepes/sandwiches. So many options here. If you like English Toffee stop by Little Johns ... our friend used to manage the place and their toffee and caramel apples are SO GOOD! Oh and if you want Diner style for the kids there is a Johnny Rockets.

We will have a rental car, but in general we'd druther walk whenever we can.