Mr & Mrs Smith

Petit Ermitage

Los Angeles, United States

Just off Santa Monica Boulevard, Petit Ermitage is an eccentric muddle of art, antiques, flora and fauna. The owners’ collection of artefacts and paintings are displayed throughout the hotel, adding gallery-like gravitas. One thing’s for sure: you won’t be bored here, whether dining in the Garden–the outdoor restaurant packed with vibrant blooms which also doubles as a butterfly and hummingbird sanctuary–watching the sunset from the deck by the flickering flames of the outdoor fireplace, or sipping a mojito by the rooftop pool.

Need to know

• Rooms 80 suites, including 11 in the Masters Quarters.
• Rates Double rooms from $255.00, excluding tax at 14 per cent.
  The price shown represents the lowest nightly rate for a double room available at this hotel over the next 21 days. Any price conversions from the hotel's local currency ($255) have been conducted using today's exchange rates from xe.com.
• More details Rates exclude à la carte breakfast (from US$22).
• Facilities Garden, gym and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: minibar, iPod dock, flatscreen TV, and CO Bigelow bath products.
• Poolside The heated outdoor saltwater pool is surrounded by kumquat trees and striped loungers with umbrellas. There’s also a cabana for lounging and city-gazing.
• Check-out Noon, but flexible, subject to availability and a half-day charge. Earliest check-in, 4pm.
• Children Although Petit Ermitage is best for grown-ups, cots can be added to rooms free and a sofa-bed can be added for US$35. Babysitting is available with a local nanny for US$20 an hour (three hours minimum), with 24 hours’ notice.
• Also Smokers can light up on the rooftop in any of the outdoor spaces excluding the restaurant. Petite pooches (15lb and under) are welcome for a refundable deposit of US$150.

Food and drink at Petit Ermitage

• Hotel restaurant

  Crystal chandeliers, fairy lights strewn around wrought-iron gates and playfully mismatched furniture decorate Petit Ermitage’s restaurant, the Private Rooftop Club. At breakfast, tuck into the truffle oil-infused Odessa Omelette, made with black caviar, yogurt and chilli sage butter. Ask the bartender to whip up a spicy cocktail from the Bloody Mary cart to wash it down. Try the braised lamb shank simmered in coconut milk with candied kumquats and pistachios. The cardamom chicken is another favourite, served over fluffy saffron couscous with minted cucumber salad and harissa.

• Dress code Mrs Smith will feel at home in a floaty batik caftan and wedges. White chinos and a lightweight button-down shirt work for Mr Smith.
• Top table Dine wherever you wish at the Private Rooftop Club: go for a sun-drenched table on the roof for people watching; duck into one of the quiet, canvas-enclosed cabanas in ‘The Garden’s End’ if you're after a more intimate affair; order a snack by the pool.
• Last orders Breakfast is from 7am to noon; lunch is served until 5pm and dinner is from 5pm to 11pm Sunday to Thursday (midnight at weekends). Cocktails are mixed until midnight at the Butterfly Bar.
• Room service The full restaurant menu can be enjoyed in your room 24 hours a day.
• Hotel bar

  Two large wood panels decorated with painted butterfly wings back the Butterfly Bar, part of the rooftop club. Soundtracked by a blend of lounge, hip hop and house music (flamenco and jazz on Sundays), this drinking den has plenty of laidback bohemian bonhomie. Turquoise chairs and round tables dot the patterned Turkish carpet. Try the Moytelek, a riff on the mojito, subbing pear vodka for rum.

Also worth knowing

• Weddings This property is suitable for weddings. More...

Petit Ermitage 8822 Cynthia Street, West Hollywood, Los Angeles, California 90069