Melrose - Los Angeles, CA

Melrose was originally colonized by Spain in the 1700s, who found tar, or "la brea" in Spanish, there to burn for fuel. Eventually, this unincorporated area, originally called Sherman, became known for lawlessness, gambling, and flouting of Prohibition laws in the early 1900s. In 1925, Sherman became West Hollywood. Melrose, in particular, began to attract counterculture types from hippies to punks from the 1960s to 1980s.

The Melrose District has one museum, the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust, with exhibits on the history of WWII and the Holocaust, as well as tales of survivors. Many smaller galleries line Melrose, including Gallery 1988, Toy Art Gallery, Wallspace, and BAIT. The Zephyr and Matrix Theatres provide theatrical performances of new and classical plays in the area.

Melrose has long been a foodie paradise, especially between Fairfax Avenue and La Brea Boulevard. American, Mediterranean, Spanish, and Italian restaurants all lie along this bustling strip.

Ta-eem Grill, Inc. feeds local hipsters and the overflow crowd from the Groundlings, located nearby. Specializing in shwarma, kabobs, and other Middle Eastern classics, this place keeps it inexpensive and casual yet still healthy, making it the perfect spot to stop in for a little snack while shopping or to grab take out before you head back home.

L'Assiette tests the diet of just about everyone who comes within smelling distance. This restaurant does its specialty, L'Assiette steak frites, perfectly, sometimes with addictive black truffle sauce or portobello mushrooms. While locals laud the steak, most remain focused on the decadence of the French fries.

Newcomer Smoke.Oil.Salt has all three of its namesakes in equal measure, applying them to a new version of Spanish cuisine. Paella lovers come for the prix fixe Sunday meal, which feels like stumbling into a warm, Spanish dining room with extended family. If you just want something small before the theatre, check out the small plates with a glass of rioja.

Nightlife in Melrose tends to be lively and varied, not surprising for one of the city's gathering points. From laid-back places such as Glass Hookah Lounge to rowdy American pubs such as the Village Idiot, the bar scene provides lots of variations.

Find several live music venues located along the neighborhood's boundaries of Fairfax and La Brea. The Kibitz Room inside Canter's Deli provides a respite from the world, with a small bar, several tables, and live music ranging from hard rock to folk and spoken word. Genghis Cohen also provides a place for up-and-coming bands to play, while Molly Malone's Irish Pub features traditional Irish music in a homey pub setting.

Other entertainment options include the Groundlings -- a comedy performance outlet for performers from Lisa Kudrow to Melissa McCarthy -- ACME Comedy, and the New Beverly Cinema for art house and retro films.

While driving around Los Angeles forms part of the city's allure, parking can be tough in the Melrose area. If you're going to a restaurant at dinner time or later, expect to pay $4 to $6 plus tip for valet parking. Though metered parking spaces line Melrose, parking on the side streets has a reputation for being notoriously difficult. Most streets allow parking by permit only, and you may be towed if you park illegally.

If you choose to take public transportation, local bus routes serve the area. Though you're not likely to hail a cab on the street, you'll find it easy to call one or to arrange an Uber pickup in this area.

Melrose residents head out of the neighborhood to the 10 and 101 freeways to travel downtown, to Santa Monica or to the San Fernando Valley. Locals love the neighborhood's easy walkability, especially between Fairfax and La Brea. Some bike lanes in the area help make the streets safe for bicyclists.

This neighborhood has two main parks. Pan Pacific Park has basketball courts, baseball diamonds, soccer fields, swings, and lots of walking paths. Benches and picnic tables provide a chance to hang out during a lunch break, or meet up with friends for an impromptu hang.

Bring your kids to Poinsettia Recreation Center to enjoy the great play area, as well as baseball, handball, basketball, and tennis courts plus an indoor gym. In typical L.A. style, these parks charge nothing and give you lots of opportunity to augment your fitness.

Melrose hosts Street Food Cinema, a summer movie night with food trucks in an outdoor setting.

The cost of living in the Melrose neighborhood runs a little higher than the Los Angeles average. A typical one-bedroom apartment in Melrose rents for around $2,300 per month.

You can get to downtown Los Angeles for $1.75 by public transportation. A beer at a local pub should run you around $5, and gas prices run around 12 percent higher than the national average.

Known as a shopping district, Melrose boasts many high-end boutiques such as Marc Jacobs and Diane von Furstenberg in the area west of Fairfax, and quirkier stores such as Goorin Brothers for accessories and hats; Bliss, selling stylish women's clothing and jewelry; and Necromance, for all your taxidermied chipmunk needs, found farther east.

This neighborhood has many options when it comes to grocery shopping, from chain stores such as Trader Joe's, Ralphs, and Whole Foods Market to smaller stores like Kearns' Market and Western Kosher.

Melrose hosts no pop-up farmers markets, but the granddaddy of them, the Los Angeles Farmers Market, sits just south of Melrose along Fairfax Avenue. Look past the elaborate, high-end shopping center the Grove across the parking lot, and head into the ramshackle collection of buildings built in the 1930s to find locally-sourced produce, ethnic foods, and seafood every day of the week.