Local News Briefs

New Concierge Lounge at SM Place

On December 23 at 10:00 am, Santa Monica Place held a ribbon cutting ceremony to officially inaugurate the new Concierge Lounge. In celebration of the grand opening, the public was invited to visit the Concierge Lounge during mall hours for refreshments.

“The Concierge Lounge is fashioned for our guests to create a memorable experience,” said Shoshana Puccia, senior marketing manager, Santa Monica Place. “Because we have a heavy tourist attraction, we want to ensure their experience at our center was worth making a stop during their visit to Los Angeles.” 45% of Santa Monica Place visitors are tourists.

Designed to be a luxurious space for visitors to relax and a place to regenerate, the Concierge Lounge offers personalized assistance in addition to providing services such as: a storage for shopping bags and luggage; a lounge for tourists and locals to hangout; a sales desk that offers information on tours, theme parks, the theatre and other entertainment activities; free Wi-Fi connection; travel planning to assist with arrangements, transportation and reservations; a retail outlet filled with iconic memorabilia and shopping guides and tips underlining the shopping center’s retailers.

CBS Radio L.A. Partners With The CW For Pet-A-Palooza In Santa Monica

CBS RADIO’s LOS ANGELES stations are partnering with THE CW’s “World Dog Awards” to Present “PET-A-PALOOZA” in SANTA MONICA, CA, on SATURDAY, JANUARY 10th. The free EXPO features entertainment, education and dog adoptions as part of this inaugural event, being held from 10a-3p next to the BARKER HANGAR at SANTA MONICA AIRPORT.

The interactive event was created to bring animal lovers together to learn and grow with their pets. It will feature “Ask the Trainer” with dog specialists from SPCA L.A, weiner dog races, K9 units, agility demonstrations, an expo of products and services, education aids and other “paw-some” activities. Dogs will be available for adoption from BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY.

The event will be hosted by popular 97.1 AMP RADIO personality McCABE. who will be giving away $1,000 every hour in a random drawing. The day will commence with a blessing of the animals by an ordained minister.

THE CW NETWORK’s two-hour television event, “The World Dog Awards,” will air on THURSDAY, JANUARY 15th from 8p-10p (ET).

Cheesecake Factory Taking Over the Top Floor of SMPlace in March

The Cheesecake Factory closed in Brentwood without much ceremony a few years ago, but the chain is poised to come back to the Westside in the major way (they also operate a huge outlet in Marina Del Rey).

Founded over thirty years ago in Beverly Hills, the mid-range eatery known for lengthy waits, massive cheesecake slices, and waist-busting calorie counts is taking over Richard Sandoval’s La Sandia and Zengo at the third floor of Santa Monica Place. Eateries will continue to operate in the space until March 2015, when the switchover takes place.

Sandoval’s dual concepts always seemed to offer promotions to try and drum up new business, but the sizable area and prime location (well, at least in the bigger sense) will now make way for one of America’s favorite chain restaurants.