Store Opening: Prada in Los Angeles' Beverly Center

Confession time. I grew up in Los Angeles and spent the formative years of junior high doing a lot of hanging out in malls. The most influential mall that I amassed hours at? The Beverly Center, a space-age structure that is a kitschy mimic of Paris' Le Pompidou. Here, I would watch movies on the top floor, lounge around the endless commercial establishments that lay stretched out before my pre-teen eyes and spend hours angstily chatting with friends in the food court. Back then, the Beverly Center was a bit of strip mall, with the Gap, J. Crew (before it was cool), pet stores, ear piercing stalls and the a jumbled assortment of shops. So it came as a great surprise to hear that it is on a rampage to reinvent itself, much like Madonna, and lure in in high-end brands to adorn the formerly downtrodden corridors of my youth. Last time I visited (the prodigal son doth returneth every visit home), there was a Louis Vuitton and an Apple Store staring at me, a bit mockingly. So it was with nostalgic longing that I gasped when I heard that none other than Prada, the mother of all luxury labels -- effortlessly marrying art and commerce each season -- was moving in. The store will be Los Angeles' first non-stand alone store and will feature ready-to-wear, accessories and shoes for both men and women. The 2,422 square-foot space was designed by Roberto Baciocchi, and is expectedly both luxe and sumptuous, while maintaining a level of retstrained mystique. 

To be sure, on my next trip home, I will be giving Los Angeles' newest Prada a visit. And using our Out City Guide: Los Angeles to find additional new haunts.  -- MAX BERLINGER

Confession time. I grew up in Los Angeles and spent the formative years of junior high doing a lot of hanging out in malls. The most influential mall that I amassed hours at? The Beverly Center, a space-age structure that is a kitschy mimic of Paris' Le Pompidou. Here, I would watch movies on the top floor, lounge around the endless commercial establishments that lay stretched out before my pre-teen eyes and spend hours angstily chatting with friends in the food court. Back then, the Beverly Center was a bit of strip mall, with the Gap, J. Crew (before it was cool), pet stores, ear piercing stalls and the a jumbled assortment of shops. So it came as a great surprise to hear that it is on a rampage to reinvent itself, much like Madonna, and lure in in high-end brands to adorn the formerly downtrodden corridors of my youth. Last time I visited (the prodigal son doth returneth every visit home), there was a Louis Vuitton and an Apple Store staring at me, a bit mockingly. So it was with nostalgic longing that I gasped when I heard that none other than Prada, the mother of all luxury labels -- effortlessly marrying art and commerce each season -- was moving in. The store will be Los Angeles' first non-stand alone store and will feature ready-to-wear, accessories and shoes for both men and women. The 2,422 square-foot space was designed by Roberto Baciocchi, and is expectedly both luxe and sumptuous, while maintaining a level of retstrained mystique. 

To be sure, on my next trip home, I will be giving Los Angeles' newest Prada a visit. And using our Out City Guide: Los Angeles to find additional new haunts.  -- MAX BERLINGER