These new and recently renovated private rooms, restaurants, work spaces, townhouses, and more—even a lemon ranch—in and around Los Angeles can accommodate groups small and large for meetings, conferences, product launches, presentations, and other types of corporate gatherings.
1. Recently opened for private events is Space Abbot Kinney, which makes offers a meeting venue with a cool, Venice feel. The 3,000-square-foot, penthouse space has a variety of rooms, including its V.I.P. lounge, glass atrium lounge, grand lounge, and a patio. The entire venue is wired with top-end audiovisual equipment and holds 150 seated attendees.
2. A mile west of downtown and newly available for events and unstuffy meetings is Carondelet, a 7,600-square-foot home with two courtyards and capacity for 500 overall. Furnishings are available, as is JBL sound equipment, wireless mics, and Wi-Fi throughout. Tres L.A. is the in-house caterer, or other caterers may be used for a higher rental fee.
3. Here's a conversation starter: Townhouse Venice originally opened as Minetti's in 1915, so it's Los Angeles's second-oldest operating bar. Its downstairs speakeasy space just reopened this past summer as the Del Monte. It holds 155, or there's room for 125 upstairs. Audiovisual equipment and projection can be brought in for meetings (but is not permanently housed on property).
4. Rosa Mexicano's Sunset Strip location opened in August with a palette of warm colors and bold materials meant to reflect both traditional and contemporary Mexican elements. The 215-seat restaurant has a private room, the Sunset Room, with a wall displaying many tequilas, room for 18 at one long table, and a built-in sound system. The adjacent Agave Room holds 42 and has a drop-down screen.
5. More than 118 years old, Limoneira Ranch is one of the largest lemon and avocado producers in the U.S. More recently, it has become available for events and meetings with a variety of prime views and settings, holding groups of 20 to 3,000. The Limoneira Ranch regulation bocce ball courts are a hit during meeting breaks, and catering is available by Ventura County restaurants.
6. The Deco Building, newly available for events in the Miracle Mile district, has a capacity of 499. The creative office space is modeled on the boutique hotel concept with top-end amenities, flexible office and work spaces, full concierge services, and a renovated interior. There’s a projector and video screen for presentations, with a three-dimensional monitor with surround-sound speakers. There’s a communal work table as well as a media and conference room.
7. Katsuya by Starck Laguna Beach opened in June as SBE's first Orange County venue, and it holds 200 guests in all. The enclosed patio with room for 85 seated attendees that overlooks the Laguna coastline makes for an airy meeting space closed off from the restaurant with glass doors. Master sushi chef Katsuya Uechi is behind the sushi, and there's a full-service bar as well as a built-in sound system.
8. Osteria La Buca has reopened after closing in April for an overhaul by designer Brendan Ravenhill, utilizing reclaimed woods and rustic materials. The second-floor Pasta Room can serve as a loftlike meeting or private-dining space. The room houses Osteria La Buca’s Pasta Extruder, a piece of machinery from Italy that serves as a conversation starter. The space has a view of the neighborhood out of the restaurant’s floor-to-ceiling windows and room for 12.
9. In the hills just east of Malibu, Malibu Golf Club has unveiled Malibu and Vine Bar & Grille, a wine-centric steakhouse with a farm-to-table influence that also offers a 300-seat, outdoor wine bar. Various private areas inside work for meetings, with two private dining rooms that hold as many as 50 each.
10. The Churchill, which at press time was just about to open, offers seasonal American cuisine using sustainable, local ingredients. It has an upstairs foyer with 1,175 square feet of sunlit space that holds 60 guests, or a private dining room that holds 30 in 500 square feet with a top-end sound system and a 60-inch plasma screen. Teleconferencing, Wi-Fi, a speaker podium, and surround-sound speakers are available.