Andaz West Hollywood050

If you're looking for all the luxury, amenities, and spaciousness of a luxury hotel, combined with the friendliness and charm of a small B&B, Andaz West Hollywood is the place to go. In fact, it's gonna knock your socks off!

It did ours.

Surrounded by every kind of restaurant and cafe imaginable, as well as boutiques and bookstores, the hotel is so much in the heart of things that it might be days before you need to get behind the wheel of a car. What Andaz West Hollywood also provides is the feeling that you've just shown up at your best friend's place for the weekend. Er, your best friend's very stylish and hip 238-room estate, shall we say.

A hotel "host" greeted us when we pulled up, introduced himself, and called for the valet. He then led us into the lobby, handing us some wine and soft drinks and sat us down in comfy chairs for our check-in. That's right: no waiting in line to stand at an imposing reservations desk; at Andaz, vacation starts immediately.

Nate, our host, gave us a bit of history on the hotel - how every Andaz is designed by local designers and staff also dress in clothes by local designers. This attention to detail might go unnoticed by younger kids, but teens will go ga-go over the authentic Southern California feel!

Nate handed us some breadsticks and said he'd be back in a minute to show us to the room. When we apologized for the multitude of suitcases, bags, toys, and groceries, Nate laughed and said, "Oh, this is nothing. You gotta bring stuff to make yourself at home, right?" Ah, a parent's dream - to be at a hip hotel and not feel derided for all the un-hip parenting accoutrements.

There were three of us so a suite with a king bed and living room couch worked great. We loved the spaciousness, incredible view, and the distinctive tall marble dining table with four designer chairs and cool crystal lights. The original art and music album covers were a huge hit, too. Quotes on the glass underscored how unique the hotel is: "It's beauty that captures your attention; personality which captures your heart."

The large living room boasts a comfy couch, huge work station with free Internet access, a flat screen television with cable and pay-per-view, and stylish lamps as well as recessed lighting. Oh, and the Geneva iPod/CD player provides a great sound system.

The bedroom has a luxurious king bed, plenty of closet and drawer space, an iPod home, full-length framed designer mirror, original modern artwork, separate heating control, and great natural light provided by huge windows.

Our family especially appreciated having two bathrooms, providing for beautiful marble tiled his 'n' hers.

Amenities include a mini-bar stocked with complimentary juice, water, and soft drinks as well as snacks, plush bathrobes and slippers, a fitness room, and always-available fresh fruit in the lobby. Art/design books are stacked everywhere.

In the morning, the lobby bustles with wake-me-up music and a real sense of community as some guests gather for complimentary coffee and croissants, while others mingle and work on hotel-provided laptops. In-room dining is available 24 hours a day, offering a complete menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and a limited overnight menu from 11pm to 6am.

One of the most amazing amenities is the sundeck, with an incredible 360-view of the city and hills. Private cabanas with mattresses overlook all of Los Angeles. The heated pool is delightful and the lounge furniture is the comfiest we've seen.

Kids can munch poolside on quesadillas or burgers with a glass of fresh-squeezed juice (seven kinds), while parents might sip a glass of wine with a classic Caesar salad. Forgot sun lotion, glasses, or a hat? No problem - buy 'em at the pool.

While there are plenty of restaurants nearby, you'll want to check out RH in the hotel lobby. RH serves Southwestern French cuisine with a "market-to-table" feel. RH prides itself on serving only the freshest of California ingredients. We loved the salmon, ginger carrot soup, and wildly unique rice pudding. And we were grateful that they're willing to serve room service food - including grilled cheese or hamburgers. (Kids will be kids!) Our server also mentioned that they can prepare child-size portions of menu items.

Check out the online menu by visiting the website. While we were dining, we saw several families, including one with a newborn baby and others with tweens and teens. Everyone looked right at home, no matter what the age.

After dinner, when we were walking along Sunset toward Book Soup, we happened to look up at the hotel. In one of the rooms we saw two kids, about five and seven years old, having a pillow fight. We could tell they were squealing with laughter. Yep, that's what it feels like at Andaz West Hollywood: lots of fun in a gorgeous setting.

What did we love the most? The contemporary feel and that the rock-star treatment. It's obvious that Hotel Andaz lives its motto: "Treat every guest well; they may have sold 1,000,000 records."