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EDITORS’ CHOICE

BEST BAR
The Standard’s Rooftop Bar
Seemingly floating above Downtown Los Angeles like a Jetsons-age oasis, the Standard Hotel’s rooftop bar attracts all types of people. From buttoned-up office workers, who flock to the space for happy hour drinks, to the swanked-out, late-night crowd, the bar is always buzzing. Order any drink here and the result will be a strong concoction delivered to your table (or lounge chair, as the case may be), usually by a very young and very attractive server. The decor is ultra mod, complete with futuristic pod-like cabanas and vibrating waterbeds. Other outdoor areas house a fireplace seating area and a DJ booth and small dance floor. The drinks may be pricy, but there’s a reason people keep returning. At 550 S. Flower St., (213) 892-8080 or standardhotel.com.-Lea Lion

BEST HAPPY HOUR
Point Moorea
The destination on the ground floor of the Wilshire Grand Los Angeles is like three clubs smashed together: It is part sports bar, with pool tables and a mega-sized TV playing the game; part tiki lounge, with dark booths and tiger-skin carpeting; and part nightclub, with open floor space and disco music that beckons you for a dance party. This is part of what makes its happy hour so happy - along with the $5 drink specials and $3 appetizers, among them a Philly cheese steak sandwich and the quarter-pound cheeseburger, as well as lighter fare. Since it has so many identities, you can stop by after work and be anything you want: jock, hipster, barfly. When everybody belongs, there isn’t a frown in the room. At 930 Wilshire Blvd., (213) 833-5100.-Kathleen Nye Flynn

BEST KARAOKE
Genji Bar at the New Otani
The hardest part of karaoke is waiting your turn to sing. Meanwhile, when you finally get called up to belt out “I Love Rock and Roll” or “I Saw the Sign,” your friends are nowhere in sight and you are staring at a bunch of strangers. The Genji Bar, in the New Otani Hotel & Garden in Little Tokyo, solves both these problems with its hip, private karaoke room that you and a dozen or so of your friends can rent for about $10 apiece. It’s got new songs, old songs, odd songs and songs that you wish no one would sing. It also means you can warble “Sweet Home Alabama” all you want without the agonizing wait. Of course, there’s no promise that your friends won’t still sneak off to the back of the room. Open 5 p.m. to midnight. At 120 S. Los Angeles St., (213) 253-9255.-KNF

BEST BOOZY BEVERAGE
Margarita at La Parrilla
Serving the perfect margarita takes untold hours of practice. Fortunately, the bartenders of La Parrilla, at Wilshire and Union just west of Downtown, have a lot of opportunity. They start with nearly a dozen types of tequila, including Don Julio, Oro Azul, Tres Mujeres and El Jimador (and you thought the list stopped at Cuervo Gold). Then come harder decisions: frozen or on the rocks? Salt or no? House brand, or do you order the peach, mango, blue or Cadillac margarita? Why not try ‘em all (though probably not in one night)? On the crazy chance that the margarita’s not your drink, La Parrilla also provides a list of creative concoctions, including the Goodbye Mother, a mix of vodka, rum, gin, blue Curacao and sweet and sour, with a cherry on top. At 1300 Wilshire Blvd., (213) 353-4980 or laparrillarestaurants.com.-KNF

BEST MUSEUM OR GALLERY
Museum of Contemporary Art
The clean lines of MOCA’s Arata Isozaki-designed exterior perfectly complement its classic interior galleries and the world-class contemporary art they hold. The museum houses one of the country’s foremost collections of American and European art created since 1940, with roughly 5,000 objects in a variety of mediums. The museum strives to feature its vast collection in homegrown exhibits, such as the current Robert Rauschenberg: Combines, which includes 11 MOCA-owned pieces. This year, the museum also mounted exhibits of work by Lorna Simpson, Karl Haendel and a survey of international emerging artists titled Painting in Tongues. More than just a viewing destination, MOCA also hosts regular events such as Art Talk, a series featuring lectures by prominent art scholars, and Night Vision, a multimedia clutch of events held over the course of 15 Saturday nights in the summer. At 250 S. Grand Ave., (213) 626-6222 or moca.org.-LL

BEST GARDEN
Maguire Gardens
Adjacent to the Richard J. Riordan Central Library, the Maguire Gardens are decidedly one of the most scenic spots in Downtown Los Angeles. With its multi-tiered fountain, complete with mosaic tiles and sculptural accents, the garden instantly transports visitors away from the hustle and bustle of Fifth and Flower streets to a more bucolic setting. There are plenty of benches and shaded nooks and crannies perfect for a lunchtime picnic. On Wednesdays, it’s a match made in fresh foods heaven when the Financial District Farmers Market sets up on Fifth Street mere steps from the park. Of course, the garden also is an ideal place to sit and read a book borrowed from the library’s vast collection. At Fifth and Flower streets.-LL

BEST PERFORMANCE VENUE
Staples Center
Staples Center changed the face of Downtown when it arrived, purple and glowing, in 1999, and arguably ignited the renaissance of South Park. Seven years later, a snapshot speaks volumes: The arena houses five professional franchises (NBA times two, NHL, WNBA and arena football), hosts the X Games and capital-n Names like U2, and last week, the Ringling Bros. circus, sparking innumerable clown-centric nightmares. The “House That Shaq Built,” aka the “House Where Kobe Will Retire,” can seat 20,000 for concerts, 19,000 for basketball and 18,000 for both hockey and arena football. WrestleMania 21, however, set the venue’s attendance record last year with 20,193, the luckiest among them packed into the arena’s 160 luxury boxes. Last year most of Staples Center’s purple seats were reupholstered to black, the stepping-out clothes for a venue that will turn 10 just in time for the arrival of next-door neighbor L.A. Live. At 1111 S. Figueroa St., (213) 742-7300 or staplescenter.com.-Andrew Moyle

BEST PLACE TO MEET SINGLES
The Standard’s Rooftop Bar
There is no denying that the Standard Hotel’s rooftop bar is sexy. First, and perhaps most importantly, the drinks are strong. Second, the bar’s lounge is populated by intimate clusters of modern yet comfy outdoor couches, perfect for getting cozy with a new “friend.” Third, the whole swinging scene is set against a sweeping view of Downtown’s skyline (sunset is particularly romantic, when every window reflects the brilliant pinks and oranges of the sky). If that doesn’t do the trick, head to the shimmering blue rectangle of a pool, where several futuristic pods house the ultimate sex symbol: a mattress (a vibrating water bed, to be exact). Oh, one more thing: Before the two of you check out for the evening (or check in to a hotel room), don’t forget to hit the black-and-white photo booth outside the first floor restrooms for a memento. At 550 S. Flower St., (213) 892-8080 or standardhotel.com.-LL

BEST THEATER COMPANY
East West Players
With the David Henry Hwang Theater in the historic Union Center for the Arts as its main stage, East West Players produce theatrical performances that give a voice to the Asian Pacific American experience. Established in 1965, the Little Tokyo-based company is known for its award-winning productions that blend Eastern and Western theatrical styles. EWP, overseen by Producing Artistic Director Tim Dang, has premiered more than 100 plays and musicals, including this year’s production of Sweeney Todd and 2005’s staging of Equus and Stew Rice. The company also trains roughly 200 aspiring thespians each year with programs such as the Actors Conservatory, the David Henry Hwang Writers Institute and Theatre for Youth. At 120 Judge John Aiso St., (213) 625-7000 or eastwestplayers.org.-LL

HOTTEST POLITICIAN
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
He’s the guest of honor of the hour, appearing at everything from the Tofu Festival to the opening of Wolfgang Puck’s first Downtown venture. But our own Cheshire Cat isn’t merely a hot addition on the guest list. Whether he’s lobbying to quicken the glacial pace of change in the LAUSD or supporting undocumented workers in a debate that will shape his political future, Villaraigosa has ignited much-needed debate in all corners of the city, raising the profile of his position from uninspired stagnation just two short years ago. He has already done enough to make his the hottest seat in City Hall - not that he sits still long to feel it. He enjoys the heat; now he just has to tap it before it burns him. And then there’s his photogenic looks. At 200 N. Spring St., Room 303, and seemingly everywhere else in Los Angeles.-AM

BEST CAFFEINE FIX
Starbucks
There is something comforting about knowing what to expect. In the case of Starbucks, patrons can count on strong coffee and quick service in the ubiquitous corporate-designated setting: Comfy chairs in retro shades of brown and green and classic jazz piped in through hidden speakers. Not to mention the universal Starbucks’ language, which can be a little tricky at first ("tall" really means “small"), but once you get the hang of it, is like knowing a secret language ("I’d like a double-tall-soy latte please, in a grande cup, thank you.") In the coffee department, Starbucks not only has endless drink combinations to choose from, but offers Fair Trade Certified and organic coffees as well. And for the true caffeine junkie, Starbucks has many Downtown locations. At 138 S. Central Ave., (213) 613-0393, 445 S. Figueroa St., (213) 623-9191 and other locations or starbucks.com.-LL

BEST WEEKEND HANGOUT
The Standard’s Rooftop Bar
The destination is one of Downtown’s most scenic overlooks, offering a panoramic view of glittering office buildings, rolling hills and distant mountaintops. Of course, the rooftop holds its fair share of jaw-dropping sights as well, from bikini-clad revelers splashing in the turquoise infinity pool to swanky guests relaxing in the bright red pod-like cabanas to the multi-colored cocktails doled out by servers in red miniskirts (or pants as the case may be.) The only drawback is that the Standard’s rooftop bar is so popular that unless you are an early bird (or a hotel guest) it can be near impossible to get in. So skip the weekday happy hour rush and hit the bar over the weekend for more space and less suits. At 550 S. Flower St., (213) 892-8080 or standardhotel.com.-LL

BESTDOWNTOWN EVENT
Multiple Winners (Readers’ choice)
Grand Avenue Festival (Editors’ choice)
Downtown voters’ preferences are almost as numerous and varied as the events Downtown hosts. Some love the Los Angeles Marathon, which starts and ends in the community, while others go gaga for the Blessing of the Bicycles, the Good Samaritan Hospital gathering in which religious leaders try to give higher help to the two-wheeled set. A handful of apparently affluent voters selected Lakers games, while freebie aficionados named the always gratis Grand Performances shows at California Plaza. A winter tradition, the Pershing Square ice rink, got several nods, as did the ever-growing Fiesta Broadway. There were even votes for Downtown’s biggest and most unpredictable event of the year - the immigrants rights marches.
It has been established that if you provide something entertaining enough, even Westsiders will drive Downtown to see it. Still, the Grand Avenue Festival, which turns three this year, goes above and beyond with an assemblage of events that in 2005 convinced more than 20,000 people to spend a Saturday afternoon hanging out on the streets of Downtown. The daylight festival on Grand that stretches from the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels to just north of the Central Library mixes free entertainment on numerous stages with A Taste of Downtown, a food sampling event. There is also an art fair, free admission to MOCA and the potentially scary drum circle. This year’s festival is 11 a.m.-5 p.m. on Oct. 7, Grand Avenue between Temple and Fourth streets, (213) 624-2146.-Jon Regardie

BEST DARK BAR
Bar 107
On the hottest days of summer, it is always good to know where to find the darkest corner of the darkest bar. Fortunately, once past the keyhole entrance, Bar 107 has vinyl booths that the sun never sees. Adding to its cool, the bar offers deep red walls, high ceilings with low lights and room to dance. Not to mention an oddly wide selection of 1980s video games, including Ms. Pac-Man, strange animal heads that watch you from the walls and a photo booth, which is about as cool as it gets. Live jazz, punk bands and DJs rock out throughout the week. And on those especially hot days, just remember that happy hour is 3 to 8 p.m. At 107 W. Fourth St., (213) 625-7382.-KNF

BEST REIMAGINED BAR
Little Pedro’s
The old Little Pedro’s was interesting - raucous mariachi bands, pick-up jazz jams and crooner Mickey Champion, who often left her microphone at the stage and wandered outside to sing to whomever interested her, be it cops or homeless guys. The new incarnation of Little Pedro’s comes courtesy of Dana Hollister and Jim Venetos, owners of Silver Lake’s Brite Spot. It lacks the old version’s madcap anything-could-happen-tonight X-factor, but it’s still a great place to wile away the evening. There is a more consistent rock and roll vibe now, a steady bar crowd whether there’s a band or not, a surprisingly popular shuffleboard set-up, along with taxidermy. Sure, that polar bear is what patrons notice first, but the confounding mystery creature behind the bar will keep them talking. At 901 E. First St., (213) 687-3766.-Kristin Friedrich

BEST PRE-STAPLES DRINK
Holiday Inn’s Second Floor Bar
The Fox Sports Bar in Staples Center is the closest drinking spot to the game, but it gets very loud and very filled very, very fast. Those seeking a more civilized watering hole walk a couple minutes north to the Holiday Inn and pop up the stairs (passing some of the ugliest sports memorabilia ever seen) to the second floor bar adjacent to the Emerald Grille. There, a passel of easygoing drink jockeys will pour you a Red Hook draft or mix any concoction with the heavier stuff. They’ve got the requisite bar snacks, including Buffalo wings, along with a television slightly smaller than the Titanic. Best of all, it’s quiet enough so you can actually have a conversation. So arrive at 7:02, leave at 7:20 and you’re there in time for tip-off or face-off. At 1020 S. Figueroa St., (213) 748-1291 or hicitycenter.com.-JR

BEST NEW MUSIC HOT SPOT
Second Street Jazz
For the last few years, Second Street Jazz (also known as the Live Jazz Bar and Grill) has seen occasional jazz sets, with a few musicians who also play at Chinatown’s Grand Star. But a collective named Cocaine has been inhabiting the club in recent months, taking over Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday nights, and infusing the place with a louder, younger and edgier sound. What with the name and the unlikely Little Tokyo locale, it would all feel a bit self-consciously underground if it wasn’t so, well, nurturing - the scene, and the band lineups are very democratic, very experimental. You may fall in love with a band you’ve never heard of, or you may seek refuge on the quieter street to shake your head at the latest American Apparel poster. Whatever you think of the act that’s on, it’s a lively addition to the area. At 366 E. Second St., (323) 661-9649 or thecocaine.com.-KF

BEST MUSEUM TRICK
JANM’s Noguchi Cell Phone Exhibit
Whip your cell out in most L.A. museums and security guards will materialize out of thin air, asking that you take your chatter to the lobby. At the Japanese American National Museum’s Isamu Noguchi - Sculptural Design exhibit earlier this year, however, cell phones were encouraged. The museum dispensed a toll-free number of an audio tour guide. Visitors chose the segments and could hang up and call back as often as they liked - even after they left the show. The audio tour meant that the exhibit was free of text panels and wall essays, in keeping with the cleanliness of Noguchi’s aesthetic and the trademark sparseness of theater director Robert Wilson, who conceptualized the exhibit. But if a visitor wanted the information, it was a great addition, and as anyone who has ever been ensconced in a cryptic Wilson opus knows, you need all the help you can get. At 369 E. First St., (213) 625-0414 or janm.org.-KF

BEST LOCAL FREEBIE
Grand Performances
Twenty years after its founding, Grand Performances is Southern California’s largest presenter of free performing arts programs. This summer’s line-up boasts 50 events featuring artists from around the globe, as well as from around Los Angeles. Perhaps the most unique factor is that the world-class series, orchestrated by Executive Director Michael Alexander and Programming Director Leigh Ann Hahn, is always free. The shows are a mix of weekday performances aimed at Downtown workers and weekend events that pull in thousands of people from across the city. Acts like El Vez, Ozomatli and the Diavolo Dance Theatre always draw thousands of people to the California Plaza Watercourt. The current season runs through Oct. 15. At 300-350 S. Grand Ave., (213) 687-2159 or grandperformances.org.-LL

BEST PERFORMANCE MOST PEOPLE MISSED
‘Lost Chord Radio’ at REDCAT
The idea of “Hey kids, let’s put on a show!” has a long and storied history. But when the kids hail from Holland, the topic is a storm in New Mexico and there’s a loud rock band involved, the recipe seems disastrous. Still, it was a Dutch treat when theater troupe Wunderbaum brought Lost Chord Radio to REDCAT. The crowds during the March run were small, likely a result of people making assumptions based on ingredients. But those who showed up saw a comely group of actors and actresses hilariously poke fun at and embrace American movie stereotypes, all in charming accents as thick as gouda. During the story the floodwaters rose, the band Kopna Kopna pounded their instruments, and the few in the crowd knew they had seen something very special indeed. At 631 W. Second St., (213) 237-2800 or redcat.org.-JR

BEST RENDEZVOUS POINT
Union Station
Let’s face it, there’s nothing memorable in Los Angeles about meeting up by car - even with a snazzy Benz and valet parking. So take the train. Built in 1939 as America’s last great railway station, Union Station is still among the most picturesque - and most convenient - places to find that old buddy or lost love. Long after the Iron Horse met its end as the backbone of inter-city passenger travel, the building designed by John and Donald B. Parkinson gained another use; earlier this year it became the terminus of the Union Station FlyAway bus from LAX. Along with Amtrak, Metrolink, Metro Rail, the DASH and more long-haul buses than you can count, the latest addition means that Union Station will serve as a Golden Age backdrop to an ever-wider sphere of travelers, be they happening through or stopping to await whomever they seek. And, for you Benz drivers, the station has parking, too. At 800 N. Alameda St.-AM

BEST PERFORMANCE
Alfred Molina in ‘The Cherry Orchard’
Annette Bening was the biggest name in the cast of the Mark Taper Forum’s winter production of The Cherry Orchard, but Anton Chekhov’s play belonged to Alfred Molina. The 53-year-old actor, familiar to many in the audience as Doctor Octopus from Spider-Man 2, did not so much act as inhabit the role of Yermolai Lopakhin.  Playing a self-made merchant trying to help a formerly wealthy family seemingly intent on destroying themselves, Molina melded together an astounding series of contradictions. He exhibited love for one woman, confusion over another, and infused it all with bits of self-confidence and anger that his father and grandfather were once servants for the downwardly spiraling Ranyevskaya clan. He was so convincing that you could be forgiven for wanting to ask Lopakhin/Molina for a loan at the close of the show. At 135. N. Grand Ave., (213) 628-2772 or taperahmanson.com.-JR

BEST CELEB SPOTTING
Music Center Opening Nights
Celebrities have long hit the opening night performances at the Mark Taper Forum and the Ahmanson Theatre. But since Michael Ritchie became executive director of Center Theater Group and increased the star power on the stage, the celeb count in the audience has skyrocketed. The opening of Dead End last September drew mixed reviews, but the crowd included William Shatner, Martin Short, “West Wing” actor Bradley Whitford and his wife, Jane Kaczmarek of “Malcolm in the Middle,” and magician Ricky Jay. Ed Begley, Jr. and Monty Python alum Eric Idle seem to show up at every opening, while two presidents from “24” have been spied: Dennis Haysbert (President David Palmer) attended Romance and Gregory Itzin (the brilliantly Nixon-esque President Charles Logan) was in the orchestra seats at The Black Rider. At the opening of The Cherry Orchard, Downtown News even buddied up with Best Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman. “Do you where the party is?” Capote asked after the show. “Right over there,” we said, pointing. Fast friends forever. At 135 N. Grand Ave., (213) 628-2772 or taperahmanson.com.-JR

BEST ART GALLERY
de Soto
Considering its location in the historic Higgins Building, de Soto is shockingly modern. A huge picture window reveals a stark white interior with movable walls and exposed pipes. Established in 2005 after a renovation by SCI-Arc-associated designers, “the idea was to make everything versatile and modular,” said owner Shelley de Soto. The only throwback to the building’s architectural roots is a single oversized wooden window frame embedded in a wall. Currently, almost every vertical surface in the space hosts one of Jeff Beck’s hauntingly pleasant landscapes from his solo show Suburban Gothic, on view through Aug. 5. Past exhibits have featured work by L.A. artists Kelley Reemtsen, Trujillo-Paumier and Felipe Dupony. At 108 W. Second St., Suite 104, (323) 253-2255 or gallerydesoto.com.-LL

BEST OUTDOOR BAR
Figueroa Hotel
The Figueroa Hotel manages the unique feat of making you feel you’re in the heart of the city, and removed from it at the same time. The light-filled Veranda Bar is just steps from the clear, glittery pool, and it’s common to see suit-clad Downtowners a few feet from swimsuit-wearing tourists. Skyscrapers surround in three directions, but with a blue adult beverage known as the Fire and Ice, they seem so far away. When it gets too hot poolside, the bar offers plenty of seating in the shade. With a few after-work drinks, you won’t be the first person to wile away four or six hours at the bar, and then stay the night. At 939 S. Figueroa St., (800) 421-9092 or figueroahotel.com.-JR

BEST PLACE TO WINE AND DINE
San Antonio Winery
The film Sideways may have caused a nationwide frenzy for Pinot Noir, but the experts at the San Antonio Winery take it all in stride. In business since 1917, the family-owned enterprise has seen trends come and go, and the friendly staff is always happy to give advice. If you’re in the wine department, there are winery tours, as well as an on-site store with offerings from the Maddalena, San Simeon, San Antonio and Kinderwood labels, among others (they also sell tequila, single malt scotch, brandy and other bottles to bring to a party or consume at home). If you’re looking to dine, the Maddalena Restaurant has classic pastas (such as a meat lasagna and homemade ravioli), along with chicken, seafood and meat dishes. And yes, they have osso buco. At 737 Lamar St., (323) 223-1401 or sanantoniowinery.com.-Kathryn Maese