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Three years after the opening of the first local Planet Hollywood in 1991 (in Orange County), and following the opening of dozens of new Planet Hollywoods around the globe, Sly Stallone, Bruce Willis, Demi Moore and Arnold Schwarzenegger finally got around to coming home to Hollywood. But when they did it, they did it right. Planet Hollywood opened in Beverly Hills on Sunday, Sept. 17, 1995, with the most spectacular grand opening gala in the history of restaurants. They roped off nearby Rodeo Drive for a giant celebrity block party, and rolled out the red carpet for a dazzling parade of stars. Danny DeVito and Chuck Berry performed live in concert - as did Bruce. And Sly was only slightly exaggerating when he told reporters 'there are more stars here than at the Oscars." Guests included Bruce, Demi, and Arnold (of course), plusPatrick Swayze, Whoopi Goldberg, Tim Allen, Brooke Shields, Danny Glover, Cindy Crawford, Rod Stewart, Steven Seagal, Dean Cain, Oprah Winfrey, Kelsey Grammer, Paul Reiser, George Clooney, Claude Van Damme, Pierce Brosnan, Wesley Snipes, Roseanne, Chris O'Donnell, Danny DeVito, Tony Danza, Paula Abdul, Charlie Sheen, Geena Davis, Warren Beatty, John Laroquette, Faye Dunaway, David Hasselhoff, Jennifer Aniston, Luke Perry, Penny Marshall, Pauly Shore, Robert Downey Jr., Alice Cooper, Little Richard, Aaron Spelling, Tori Spelling, John Stamos, Jim Belushi, and many more. And
the stars occasionally pop up here even when there isn't some special
event underway. I
ran into Della Reese
("Touched By An Angel")
having lunch here not long ago (she was nice enough to sign an autograph
for the young women at the table next to me). Another fan reported seeing
Antonio Banderas,
Melanie Griffith
and Meat Loaf
there for a wrap party for "Crazy in Arizona." Jack
Nicholson was
here recently for a private party. And actor Nick
Nolte shocked quite a few locals by showing
up for breakfast on Easter weekend wearing his pajamas and a robe. This is the 28th restaurant in the Planet Hollywood chain. It's located at the southwest corner of Wilshire Blvd. and Camden Drive, two blocks west of Rodeo Drive. Because of complaints from its stuffy Beverly Hills neighbors, this branch had to settle for a more subdued look - a traditional sign, and lots of dark green awnings. No giant, rotating globes here. You may actually have to look for this theme restaurant. But they made up
for it inside, where their collection
of movie & TV memorabilia is unsurpassed.
A virtual mini-museum, it showcases a spectacular collection that the Smithsonian
would be proud of including:
And from the world
of television,
Planet Hollywood offers:
And that's not to mention the submarine over the bar, the giant mural of stars' portraits, (including Sly, Arnold, Bruce & Demi), or the melted-Terminator statue of Arnold... The menu is similar to the standard Planet Hollywood menu, but this is Beverly Hills, so it includes a section labeled "For the Industry," offering low-fat, low calories dishes such as seared tuna and vegetable pizza. Drinks have clever names such as "Planet of the Apes" (rum, banana and blackberry liqueur), "Tootsie" (Creme de Cacao and orange juice), "The Exorcist" (vodka, rum, Triple Sec, Midori, Sprite), and "The Terminator" (vodka, rum, gin, Grand Marnier, Tia Maria, Kahlua, cranberry juice and beer). Entrees range from : $10 to $18; appetizers are in the $3 to $10 range. Visit the gift shop and you can pick up keepsakes such as Planet Hollywood boxer shorts ($14), Planet Hollywood sunglasses ($36.), or a Planet Hollywood leather jacket ($325). [See the separate
page about the other Planet
Hollywood at South Coast Plaza.] Getting there: The restaurant is located on the bottom two floors of an office building on Wilshire Blvd, just a block west of Rodeo Drive. / From Rodeo, go south to Wilshire, turn right (west), and go one block to Camden. The restaurant will be on your left (south) side, at the southwest corner of Wilshire & Camden. (Warning: Camden Drive is a one-way (north-only) street, so you cannot turn left on Camden.) [For
more information on this subject, you can access the official Planet Hollywood
website at: http://www.planethollywood.com.] |
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