GAYLETTER

PHOTOGRAPHY BY GAYLETTER

The Line

We spent a week at the newly opened hotel in LA's Koreatown.

By Tom

We’d been hearing about the recently opened The Line Hotel in Los Angeles for a while now, so on our last trip to LA had to go check it out. It’s a very cool space, which comes as little surprise considering the people behind it, The Sydell Group, is also connected with the Ace hotels in New York and Palm Springs, the Saguaro hotels in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Palm Springs, the NoMad Hotel in New York, and the Freehand Miami hostel in South Beach, Miami. Sean Knibb of Knibb Design in LA is responsible for the interiors.

Located in Koreatown the “388-room lodging is surrounded by a big night-life scene, blocks from a snazzy 24-hour Korean spa, three miles west of downtown, six miles east of Beverly Hills. When they open, the hotel’s restaurants are to be Pot (hot-pot cuisine) and Commissary (vegetarian focus), run by Roy Choi, the prolific purveyor of Mexican Korean street food.”

All the other times we’ve visited LA, we’ve stayed in West Hollywood — mainly because it’s closer to the stuff we’re interested in (and I don’t mean just gay bars…but that helps). Being in Koreatown was a new experience. It’s perfect if you’re in to Karaoke or the BCD Tofu House, and for those with artistic interests LACMA is only a few minutes away on Wilshire Blvd.

The rooms at the Line are very comfortable, but quite small, and filled with too many designer knick-knacks. If you can, book a room with a Hollywood Hills view. The rooms have a wall of windows facing out onto the hills, which really opens up the space, and it’s a gorgeous sight at sunset.

Despite the size of the rooms, we would definitely stay at The Line again; once the restaurants and pool open we have no doubt it’s going to become a buzzy hot spot. Enjoy it while you can.

The Line, 3515 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles, CA.

View of the front of the hotel. All the rooms have different color blinds creating the colorful facade above.

View of the entrance. There’s this lovely church facing the entrance to the hotel.

Out front there’s Plenty of greenery for guests to stand around while they wait for their cars.

The hotel is filled with all sorts of interesting design pieces.

The front desk. The staff wear very cute navy uniforms.

Couch in the lobby.

Sample of a stool.

The view from my window. It happened to rain while I was there. People in LA freak out when it rains. They really don’t know what to do with themselves.

The room.

The bedding was very comfortable, crisp and white. Just the way I like it.

The rooms are filled with all sorts of whimsical art pieces like this one, inspired by mid-century artist Curtis Jere‘s metal flocks of birds.

The walls are actually covered in wallpaper. The designers photographed the buildings exposed concrete to create it.

I’m sleeping-in.

The blinds for the window are all controlled from here.

This tomato red lamp was inspired by the colors of Koreatown.

A serape-upholstered chair. It’s available to order from Knibb Design.

Extra seating for guests. How thoughtful.

Every room comes with a copy or Chef Roy Choi’s book L.A. Son.

Plush.

Just in case you were wondering.

The desks are very comfortable, and come with ample power and USB plugs. There’s also a HDMI input that will let you connect your laptop to the rooms TV.