In the wide urban city of Los Angeles, whose structure was built to transport cars and not pedestrians, it is common to feel somewhat disconnected: lack a sense of accessibility, of community, or to unconsciously mourn the lost art of the third space. A place for public and informal gathering where people can socialize outside of the home and work.
Although the third space seems like it does not exist amidst the capital-motivated layout of the city’s metropolitan structures, it is possible to find those special spots where capital and that sense of relaxed “Euro” recreation converge. In fact, if you turn left while driving down Melrose Avenue, you’ll suddenly land yourself in one such spot: Melrose Place.
Immediately, its title as a set place, meant for remaining rather than a fluid avenue meant for passing by, distinguishes Melrose Place as a space meant to hold you, to allow you to pause and take a breath, to be away from the linear and fast paced sense of industrial time that pervades the city beyond.
Coffee shops are the prime example of third spaces, and upon entering Melrose Place, a well-loved and familiar coffee shop stands at the left. An art deco Alfred’s Coffee with plenty of indoor seating and an outdoor patio full of chairs and tables. This Alfred’s is not meant to thrust your latte at you and shove you out the door, in fact, every part of its arrangement implores you to stay, to take a seat on the veranda and enjoy the sun, to nurse your cappuccino and start a conversation with the handsome stranger sitting next to you.
The European-style boulevard of Melrose Place is lined by a wide stone sidewalk, lush trees and brick boutiques wrapped by vines. Beyond a “European-esque” space that allows you to gather socially and walk, it also houses the soul of the Euro-American high fashion scene as it is the exclusive location of brands like Maison Margiela and Chloé. Each store characterizing the obscured street is styled with a French tone of gothic and neoclassical facades, which exemplify the saccharine European illusion.
Exclusive locations of high-fashion brands offered include LoveShackFancy, Set Active, Isabel Marant, the new popular cosmetic store Violet Grey and the perfumery Santa Maria Novella, which comes from Florence, first opened in 1612.
If your forté is more food and less fashion, then you’re still in luck. Melrose Place is also the exclusive location of the Yeastie Boys Bagel truck, a New York-Jewish style brand that has amassed a cult following due to its significant domination of LA’s sandwich market. Kreation Kafe is also housed on Melrose Place, and is popular for its low cost and healthy meals.
As though this sense of still time and social recreation is inherent in the nature of the place itself, on Sunday mornings, Melrose Place becomes the location for a farmer’s market, making it the perfect spot to spend your lazy Sunday. Farmers markets not only offer you a variety of free samples that make up for lunch, but they offer a sociable exchange of commerce on a small scale, a real “farm to table” experience.
Enjoy a slow matcha at Alfred’s Coffee before exploring the stalls of the farmer’s market like it’s a sea-tinged summer morning on the Italian riviera and an East Coast New York Bagel before browsing the baroque selection of fun high-fashion window displays and architectural sights whilst you pretend you’re on Boulevard Saint-Germain. While Melrose Place is but a slice of the gâteau that is the long celebrated “Euro-summer,” it’s just enough to spend a perfect Sunday in LA and yet feel an ocean away.
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Featured Image Photographed by Aaron Fu/BruinLife
