When Los Angeles' notorious traffic jams its serpentine freeways and gridlocks its intricate streets, any exploration slows to a crawl. Nonetheless, LA boasts plenty of architectural gems and design destinations worthy of the four-wheel fight. Get off to a star-studded start at the Pacific Design Centre (8687 Melrose Avenue, tel: 1 310 657 0800). Designed by Argentine architect Cesar Pelli, California's largest collection of designer showrooms (130 at last count plus two Wolfgang Puck restaurants and a 380-seat cinema) was often referred to as the Blue Whale when the cobalt blue glass-clad futuristic structure opened in 1975. Pelli added an equally untraditional Kelly-green section 13 years later but, by then, the iconic structure seemed to blend almost naturally into LA's eclectic skyline.
HBO's hit show Entourage saw its characters shopping their Hollywood hearts out for minimalist sleek sofa-chaise combinations (US$6,000-US$15,000) at Menzie International at the design centre (suite B-267, tel: 1 310 475 2331). Brad Pitt has been spotted outfitting his office space with pieces such as the retro-chic Partners Desk in Macassar ebony (US$37,500) from Dakota Jackson (suite G-170, tel: 1 310 659 7424) and Reese Witherspoon considered the Chateau Settee (from US$5,200) in shocking pink at Kravet (suite B-624; tel: 1 310 659 7100).
Find inspiration by taking a tour of the 1922 Schindler House (835 North Kings Road, tel: 1 323 651 1510; makcenter.org; admission US$17), which is considered the first modernist building in California. Vienna-born Rudolph Schindler sought to blur the line between indoor and outdoor space in this single-storey, live-work unit outlined in exposed concrete and hand-hewn redwood and set among overgrown gardens. It was intended as an experiment to see if two families could cohabit. Glass walls screened with canvas hint at the Japanese rice paper shoji effect Schindler picked up while working for Frank Lloyd Wright on Tokyo's Imperial Hotel.
These days, LA's modern mansions have no problem housing two families. Some of LA's biggest home-decorating budgets are spent at Orange (8111 Beverly Boulevard, tel: 1 323 782 6898), where the focus is on vintage pieces by American and European names from the 1930s to 70s. The sprawling street-level gallery in the heart of West Hollywood attracts the trained eye, with George Nelson wood-top desks (US$8,500) and Charlotte Perriand chrome and leather chairs (US$995 each), but it's the shop's shearling rugs (from US$550) and oversized beanbags (US$2,800), made in Britain, that customers have been known to redecorate their rooms around.
LA has long been known as America's plastic-surgery capital and, hence, a place where everything is artificial. Turning that aspect into a creative asset, Plastica (8405 West Third Street, tel: 1 323 6551051; plasticashop.com) feels like a playpen filled with fun, ergonomic designs. Inflatable Rody rocking horses (US$50) ride the plastic Oriental rugs (US$40-US$90) and shelves overflow with child-friendly Candaloo nightlights (US$56), woven African baskets (US$16-US$20) and rooster-shaped egg cups (US$5). Russian Never Falls dolls (US$18-US$48) are scooped up by design-savvy singles who want their homes to smile.
Head west towards the Pacific sunset for dinner at Katsuya (above; 11777 San Vicente Boulevard, tel: 1 310 207 8744; sbeent.com/katsuya), one of the sexiest restaurants in Tinseltown. Okinawa-born chef Katsuya Uechi's lollipops made from tuna sashimi, avocado and cucumber wound atop a bamboo skewer are heavenly. Close-up photographs of a Geisha girl's luscious red lips and alluring eyelids, chosen by Philippe Starck, look down on guests. More likely to inspire home decor is the all-white Dragon Room, which is filled with pillow-lined leather couches not normally seen at the dinner table. This Californian casual vibe gets an infusion of Starck's dramatic flair with his signature ornate mirrors, but it's his smooth white ceramic sushi trays and glass-pebble chopstick rests that more than a few diners have been sneaking out in their designer handbags.