133. In a city with about 4 million people and a county with almost 10 million it may seem hard to believe that there are spaces where you can escape for solitude and some much needed self reelection. But we are here to tell you that they do indeed exist and today on this episode we are going to share all the details about one of our favorites The …

132. On this episode we talk to LA lifestyle Influencer Brynn. She keeps busy with her wide range of interests including her work in the medical field, fitness, veganism, fashion, Disney, day trips, travel, Pilates and so much more. And she shares all these adventures and more with her 38,000+ followers on Instagram as she explores the best of what…

131. Sometimes you have to get through an ugly exterior to discover a beautiful interior. That is often the case when it comes to Los Angeles according to our guest today, Kristin from the blog This Ugly Beautiful City. This Ugly Beautiful City is an itinerary-focused travel blog that features travel tips and guides for anyone exploring Los Angeles…

130. One of the best things about living in Los Angeles is the access to so many incredible eating and drinking options with a restaurant and bar scene that just seems to get better and better by the day. Today we are going to explore some of the many, many, many dining options we have available to us in our city. Because our guest for this edition…

129. Malibu Farms is one of the most popular restaurants in Los Angeles and is a big part of the Malibu scenery with its premiere location right on the iconic pier. The restaurant is beloved by people that live in Malibu and visitors alike.In fact it is such a part of the culture, the landscape and the environment of the Malibu Pier that you may be…

128. October is one of LA's favorite months to go out and explore all the incredible activities going on, especially related to the Halloween season. That is why having todays guest on is perfect timing to discuss all the strange and the weird stories you can find here in California. In this episode we are talking to Joe from Weird California. Joe …

127. The Public Library is such an integral part of good communities and good public service and that is especially true here in Los Angeles. We have an incredible library system here and we want to encourage everyone in our city to go out there and take advantage of this awesome free resource meant for the whole community.Our guest today is a perf…

126. Santa Barbara is without a doubt one of the most beautiful cities in California if not the world and its only a 2 hour drive from Los Angeles. That makes this coastal gem one of the most popular getaway and staycation visits for people living in LA. With so much beauty, culture and activities happening in Santa Barbara it has been nicknamed th…

125. Tony Pierce has been writing about Los Angeles for over 15 years and has worked as a journalist and editor for both the LAist, the Los Angeles Times and KPCC. But now his passion project is his own podcast called Hear in LA where he is on a mission to uncover all the secrets of 250+ neighborhoods in Los Angeles. And how does he do that? Tony g…

124. The Getty Center high above Brentwood and The Getty Villa in the Pacific Palisades are 2 remarkable gifts to the city of Los Angeles from the J. Paul Getty Foundation. With priceless collections of world class art, astoundingly beautiful gardens and landscapes, and epic sweeping views its hard to believe that visiting both locations is complet…

123. You know we love interviewing entrepreneurs who have built amazing brands right here in L.A. And if you love dessert we are talking to one you most likely have heard of and enjoyed and that's the Pie Hole! Yes, Sean who owns this popular Los Angeles brand is going to share all the secrets to how it started, how he branded it and how their rele…

122. We are talking to Erika from TheLAGirl.com and she runs that very popular website which covers events, travel, lifestyle, fashion & more, in the city of Los Angeles & around the world! Now in our conversation Erika is going to share some of her background, how The LA Girl was started and how she became involved with it. She is also going to gi…

121. In this episode we are talking to Todd Barnes the long time general manager of one of the most iconic establishments in Los Angeles and one of the most famous gay bars in the world, The Abbey. West Hollywood has long been known as a beacon for the gay community and attracts visitors from all over the globe and the Abbey is a big part of the hi…

120. In this episode we are talking to John the owner of a popular nerd and pop culture brand called the Nerd Reactor. With over 50k subscribers on YouTube and tens of thousands of monthly visits to his website John really has his pulse on all the latest nerd/geek and pop culture news and events.John also lives right here in SoCal and spends lots a…

119. Summer 2022 is here in Los Angeles and although its not the "Roaring 2022's" that we predicted last year there are tons and tons of fun and exciting activities happening. Not only do we have the regular Summer adventures we always love to enjoy like the beach, road trips and hiking, but many annual events that were sadly canceled the last 2 ye…

118. In this episode we are talking to my friend Gigi from Gigi Exploring. We met through the LA Hackers Club and with her sense of adventure, positive vibes and love of exploring Los Angeles she is definelty the perfect fit for our group. I asked Gigi to come on because she really takes LA Hacking to another level, sometimes attending multiple eve…

117. In this episode we are talking to Evan Lovett the creator of LA In a Minute. In early 2022 Evan started his account on Tik Tok and it has exploded in popularity from Gen X to Gen Z. In each video he breaks down some part of Los Angeles fascinating history into entertaining but informational 1 to 2 minute videos. A passion project for Evan you …

116. In this episode we are talking to Matt the owner of Proudly Serving. They went from a humble pop up spot started on his driveway to a South Bay Smash Burger sensation serving up long lines of fans at their first physical location right on the Redondo Beach Pier. Matt started his business during Covid with no prior professional cooking experien…

115. Today we are sharing secrets from one of LA's most iconic places. The Original Farmers Market on Fairfax! Its a beloved institution that has been in our city since 1934!If you're not from Los Angeles you may be confused why we would make a big deal about a Farmers Market. But if you live here you know that's its not one of these common farmer …

114. In this episode we are talking to the amazing Bobby Green from the 1933 Group. Bobby is one of the most innovative restaurant and bar entrepreneurs in Los Angeles, if not the whole country, and he and his partners own and operate about a dozen local establishments including the historic Formosa Cafe, Highland Park Bowl and Idle Hour. Over the …

113. In this episode our guest is one of my favorite LA Bloggers Caroline from Love and Loathing LA. If you're an LA Hacker you are going to love this interview with Caroline because as she describes on her blog she is 'One woman on a mission to discover & experience all things Los Angeles.' Now Caroline has all kinds of LA based content but she do…

112. In this episode we are talking about one of our favorite beach towns and the one I personally visit the most since its only about 10 minutes from where I currently live. And that's the cool, laid back beach town of Redondo Beach. It might have more chill vibes then some of its beach city neighbors but don't be mistaken, Redondo Beach is jam pa…

111. In this episode we are talking about maybe one of the most overlooked and underrated cities in Los Angeles, the city of Santa Clarita. Well it was for sure for me anyway. I have heard about it of course and been there a few times but didn't realize just how much there is to do in Los Angeles Counties third largest city. Yes that's right. Santa…

Ep 110. One of the things I love most about Los Angeles is the hustle mentality from many of the people you meet here. People in LA always seem to have multiple projects, business and side hustles going on, and lots of them are doing that while still juggling a full time job. As someone who has that same mentality of trying to build a community and…

109. The Modern Hiker is LAs best hiking blog and that's not just my opinion. USA Today actually named it the 2nd best hiking blog in the entire nation! If you type in any search about hiking in Los Angeles or Southern California the Modern Hiker is almost always on the first page if not in the top 3 in results. We have been following this blog and…

108. In this episode we are going to go next level with our LA experiences with Neal Hruby from Date the City. Date the City is your ultimate wingman or woman with completely curated date ideas in Los Angeles that take you from one location to another based on your moods or desires. Its very cool because these curated dates will typically take you …

107. In this episode we are hacking LA neighborhood gems with blogger Mariana in LA. This is one of the websites I read regularly to keep up with all the new and classic spots in Los Angeles. In this conversation Mariana shares how television and movies inspired here to move to LA and pursue her dreams. She also talks about how she quickly learned …

106. In this episode our guest is Rene Reyes and he is the VP and executive director of programming for the Paley Center for Media. If you're not familiar with the Paley Center for Media it is a non profit organization that preserves and champions television history and excellence. Not only do they have one of the largest archives in the world for …

105. In this episode we are talking about one of our favorite subjects and that's day trips and weekend getaways from Los Angeles. You have heard me say it time and time again… one of the best things about living in Los Angeles is all the other spectacular destinations that we can get to within 2 hours… and one of my favorites, one of my family's f…

104. In this episode we are uncovering LA secrets with writer and publisher Danielle Directo-Meston. As a journalist she has for many years written about all things Los Angeles including articles for the Hollywood Reporter, Racked LA, Rolling Stone, Curbed LA and many, many more. But since 2016 Danielle has also been publishing on her own website c…

103. One of our absolute favorite places to hang out in all of Los Angeles is beautiful downtown Manhattan Beach. Our guest on this episode is Jill Lamkin - Executive Director for Manhattan Beach Downtown Business and Professional Association. She lives and works in Manhattan Beach and because of her role, knows what's going on with pretty much eve…

102. We have some incredible entertainment in Los Angeles but some things take it to a whole other level and when you experience them, you realize again, just how lucky we are to live in this city. Made up of 5 massive geo dome bubbles in the Arts District, the Wisdome is a huge and immersive art and music park. Combining art, music, technology, sp…

101. Ok we are not even done with the first month of they year yet and for some of us we are already struggling with our 2022 health resolutions. Why is it so tough to stick with it? In this episode we talk to elite trainer Quan Bailey who shares some of his best tips to planning and sticking to a healthy lifestyle. He also shares his story of rece…

100. Wow! We did it! We are 100 episodes in. Want to thank you so much for joining us so far on this exploration of the city we both love; Los Angeles! To celebrate this milestone episode we had on 5 of our favorite past guests to share what they enjoyed most in LA in 2021 and what they are most looking forward to in 2022! Get some great ideas for …

99. Winter in Los Angeles. Yes we don't exactly have blizzards or snowstorms to deal with like much of the country but we do have our version of Winter here in Southern California. While we are known for sunshine and the Summer we make the best of this time of year and its actually one of the best seasons to be in LA. There is so much to do and peo…

98. David Minkin is an American magician and an International Champion of Close-Up Magic who has appeared in numerous movies, television shows and live productions. David also happens to be from right here in Los Angeles, where he is able to stand out in a city where the best magicians from all over the world come to show their craft. In this inter…

97. Steve Harris has been devoted to sneakers and hip hop since their inceptions as culture movements out of NYC where he is originally from. And after carving out a successful career here in Los Angeles as filmmaker and a producer, that includes winning an Emmy, he has returned to that passion. Along with his co-founder Steve Brown, he opened Snea…

96. Scott Cooper has owned a few popular restaurants in the South Bay over the years but his latest opening, the Nomad Eatery in el Segundo, might just be his true love. Scott carefully crafted his menu and the welcoming intimate vibes of the restaurant based on his cherished memories backpacking across the globe and experiencing different foods, p…

95. Josh Furman has one of the coolest LA based accounts on Instagram. Its called Above Los Angeles and as you can tell by the name it gives us a birds eye view of the city we all love. If you follow his account you will see some of LAs most incredible landmarks from high in the sky with his amazing aerial video and photography. In this interview J…

94. What do most people think of when they picture Los Angeles? Well warm weather and beaches of course. But those of us who live in LA know that people here love when October comes around and the Fall season arrives. Yes, believe it or not the place best known for Summer, actually also loves Autumn. And we have so many fun activities for the seaso…

93. Paul Haddad is a Los Angeles based author who typically writes books about LA or at least set in this city. He is back on the podcast again to talk about his latest work: Freewaytopia: How Freeways Shaped Los Angeles. If you ever wondered about the history of these miles and miles of winding highways most of us spend endless hours of our life o…

92. We love old school arcade games and one of the best is the Neon Retro Arcade in Old Pasadena. In this episode of the LifeHacksLA podcast we talk to the owners of Neon Retro, Mia and Mark. They share the history of how and why they started this beloved small business, how their community rallied around them for support during the pandemic, and s…

91. When it comes to going out for cocktails in Los Angeles its no longer just about having a casual drink. People now expect an all out experience. Well at least if its being done right, according to Matt Landes the founder of the Cocktail Academy. Cocktail Academy was founded in the Arts District in Downtown LA in 2014 by a team of hospitality fo…

90. Our guest today spent years in Santa Barbara exploring this amazing city and experiencing things only locals would know about. Most of us who live in Los Angeles have made a day or weekend trip to Santa Barbara but Andrew Reyes is going to tell us about many fun things to do and see that don't typically show up on the tourist guides. In other w…

89. Have you noticed that lots more attention has been put on appreciating high quality tequila and mezcal lately? Yup. From the Rock to George Clooney we are seeing a recent push for premium tequila that should be savored slowly instead of gulped down. That is one of the reasons why we now have LA Tequila Fest. They are putting together a festival…

88. There are so many amazing hidden gems in Los Angeles. So how do you learn about (or get reminded) about all of them? Well one of the best ways is to follow the right Instagram accounts. And my guest today definitely has one of the best of the best accounts for under the radar but beautiful places to explore in L.A. Paola from Paospostcards shar…

87. One of the best things about living in Los Angeles is easy access to so many other amazing cities. And that is why we love taking road trips. Drive 2 hours in any direction and you will likely end up somewhere pretty awesome. On this episode we focus on one of our favorite road trips and that's heading up North to the beautiful central coast. W…

86. Some of the largest annual events we missed out on 2020 are coming back in 2021. One of those events is the amazing OC Fair. The crazy popular carnival in Costa Mesa is bigger and better than ever this year! We went recently so in this episode we break down exactly what you can expect with a day at the Fair and some special tips and hacks to ma…

85. Los Angeles and the OC are home to some of the most unique and innovative restaurant and eatery concepts in the world. And entrepreneur Andy Nguyen is the co-founder of some of our favorites. From After's Ice Cream, Portside Fish Co, Dough and Arrow, Matte Black Coffee and many more, if you’re a foodie you have likely tried a dish and shared it…

84. Los Angeles and California overall, is all set to completely open up on June 15th 2021. After a year and a half of lockdowns, restrictions and limited openings, we will be able to get back to doing so many things we have been missing. In this episode we share more details on the reopening's, what we are looking forward to most and why this will…