Everyone's familiar with the world famous Rodeo Drive, but not that many people know that quite a few stars prefer to shop on another street a short distance away.

Wedged between Beverly Hills and West Hollywood, Robertson Blvd runs for six miles, but the boutiques & restaurants that attract celebs there are concentrated mostly in a couple of short blocks of Robertson, between Beverly Blvd (on the north) and Third Street (on the south). (That's just two blocks west of the giant Beverly Center mall.)

The neighborhood has been making the news lately, especially with stories involving young actresses and their cars.

In October of 2005, actress Lindsay Lohan ("Mean Girls", "Herbie: Fully Loaded") was driving her convertible Mercedes north on Robertson (near Beverly Blvd.) when she struck a van from the Newsroom Cafe that was making an illegal U-turn in front of her. Lindsay and her friend got out of the car and ran into a nearby antiques store, Hideaway House (143 N Robertson Blvd). Her PR people blamed paparazzi, who had been shooting photos of Lindsay lunching at The Ivy before the incident.

In June of the same year, Jennifer Love Hewitt ("Garfield", "Ghost Whisperer") was driving her green mini-cooper she ran out of gas on Robertson in late 2005, and had to push the car. Fortunately for her, a paparazzo ran and got her got some gas, and didn't even shoot any pictures of her (convincing her that they aren't all bad.)

In December of 2005, the Olsen Twins (Kate & Ashley) had to call the cops when they were surrounded by a crowd when they came out of Maxfield (151 N. Robertson Blvd).

At first glance, Robertson Blvd is modest in appearance; you could easily drive down the street without ever realizing that it's a celebrity hang. That is until you spotted the limos pulling up in front of the The Ivy (at 113 N. Robertson Blvd), or the paparazzi camped out across the street from that famous restaurant.

While just about every star in Hollywood has shown up on the brick patio of The Ivy, you can also spot a few stars at the far less expensive Newsroom Cafe (120 N. Robertson Blvd), a natural foods restaurant which attracts stars such as ... Jessica Simpson, Elijah Wood, Jennifer Lopez, Billy Bob Thornton, Lindsay Lohan, Dana Carvey, Kim Delaney, et al.

Then there is Tagine restaurant (132 N. Robertson Blvd.), a small restaurant owned by actor Ryan Gosling (star of TV's "Young Hercules" and earlier, "The Mickey Mouse Club"). Tangine offers Moroccan cuisine, plus the occasional belly dancer. Without a sign, it's not easy to find, though... Look for the heavy wooden door...

But it's mainly the trendy stores that bring most of the celebs to Robertson Blvd. (That, and the fact that the neighborhood isn't as inundated with tourists as Rodeo Drive). Stores such as the Kitson boutique (115 N. Robertson Blvd), which has seen the likes of Halle Berry, Angelina Jolie, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie,Gwen Stefani, Sarah Jessica Parker, Christina Aguilera, Victoria Beckham, Katie Holmes and Lindsay Lohan. It has also carried celebrity lines from Paris and Nicky Hilton,

Meanwhile, Kitson for Men (146 N. Robertson), has been seeing the likes of Colin Farrell, Zac Efron, Justin Timberlake and Bobby Trendy.

Boutiques such as Ghost (125 N. Robertson Blvd), which boasts celeb customers such as Sandra Bullock, Cindy Crawford, Elisabeth Shue, Gillian Anderson and Heidi Klum.  Madison (106 S. Robertson) sells trendy shoes (and other duds) to the likes of Jennifer Lopez and Reese Witherspoon.  Near the top of the list are the two Lisa Kline shops, Lisa Kline (136 S. Robertson) and Lisa Kline For Men (123 S. Robertson), with celeb customers such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Winona Ryder, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Minnie Driver.

Even the mattress store on Robertson, Royal Pedic (111 S. Robertson), has filled orders for the likes of Tom Cruise and Bob Hope. And don't forget about "Mac" (133 N. Robertson), a cosmetics store with a celeb following that includes Meg Ryan, Janet Jackson, Drew Barrymore, Cher and LeAnn Rimes, among others. And Curve, a clothing store (at 154 N. Robertson), also has a celebrity following that includes Lindsey L.

At 310 Robinson Blvd., you'll find the Michel Richard pastry shop and French restaurant, the original home base of the world famous chef who created the Citrus and Citronelle restaurants.  [Update: Michel Richard has moved to 707 N Stanley Ave., in the Melrose district]

The nearby stretch of Third Street (in the 7900-8200 blocks) is also filled with trendy shops such as Scout, Milk, Satine & South Willard attracting trendy window-shoppers.

While you're in the general neighborhood, you can catch a few other celeb spots nearby. The Beverly Center (at 8500 Beverly Boulevard, within walking distance of Robertson) draws more celebs than you can shake an Oscar at (although spotting them at that cavernous mall isn't always easy).

Toast (at 8221 W. 3rd Street) is located about a half a mile to the east of Robertson, but is a trendy yet inexpensive breakfast/brunch spot, where Courteney Cox & David Arquette, Julianne Moore, Queen Latifah, David Schwimmer, Sean Hayes, Topher Grace, Jared Leto and Tia Carrere have been spotted.

While the nearby Joan’s on Third (8350 W. 3rd St) is a busy gourmet take-out place that has served the likes of Kirsten Dunst and Jake Gyllenhaal.

In between the Beverly Center and Robertson Blvd, you'll find the huge Cedars-Sinai hospital complex. Numerous stars have given birth there, including Julia Roberts, Jodie Foster, Mira Sorvino and Catherine Zeta-Jones. Other stars have died at Cedars-Sinai, including Lucille Ball, Bobby Darin and Charles Bronson.

And less than a mile to the north, at Robertson & Melrose, you'll find Morton's, perhaps the ultimate showbiz restaurant, and site of the town's biggest annual Oscar party.

Getting there: From Rodeo Drive & Wilshire, take Wilshire Blvd east one mile to Robertson Blvd. Turn left (north) on Robertson and go north half a mile to just past 3rd Street.