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Welcome to LA Stories, a section where I interview people from all walks of life that have made LA their home.
Today, I’m interviewing Stefan, the founder of @LifeHacksLA. With over 100k followers on Instagram, a podcast and a website, Stefan has created a tight-knit community for those who have made LA their home.
The best part about LifeHacksLA are the meet-ups! I wish I had known about this when I first moved to LA! Whether you’re a micro-influencer, have a big following, or you just want to have a good time and meet awesome people, LifeHacksLA will make your experience in LA ten times better. Whatever activity it is that you’ve been itching to try for a long time, it’s there. From fancy Malibu wine tastings to budget-friendly outings, Stefan strives to create inclusive experiences for everyone, no matter what their budget is. The website is like an a la carte menu.
Let’s get to know Stefan a little bit better!
Where are you from?
Everywhere. lol My father was in the military so my 2 brothers, my sister and I moved around a lot when we were kids. We were always the new ones in school, which was tough at the time. But that experience has helped me out tremendously later in life. I’ve learned how to connect and appreciate people from all kinds of different backgrounds, cultures and perspectives. And I lived in lots of cold places when I was younger, so now I know 100% that no matter where I live for the rest of my life, it has to be somewhere warm. Of course, this is one of the many reasons I love living in Los Angeles.
Why did you decide to create LifeHacksLA?
I’ve lived in LA for over 12 years now but before I moved here, I used to visit a lot. When I visited, it would mostly be the tourist areas like Hollywood, Santa Monica and Venice. But when I finally moved here, I was so blown away by how much there was to do and saw that it wasn’t well advertised to tourists. LA didn’t feel like one large city to me, but rather dozens of tiny little cities, each with their own unique vibe and activity. It became my hobby to find out about as many cool things as I could and go out and explore and experience them every weekend. Eventually, I started a Google doc, just to keep track of them all. It became legendary with my family and friends that were looking for suggestions for things to do.
I had so many cool things on this list, that I decided to start an Instagram account and post a suggestion every day. I called it “LifeHacksLA” because I’d try to mostly post stuff that was interesting, unique or under the radar. At first I was just doing it for myself and a few friends, but after a while, the account reached 5k followers. Then, when it went over 10k, it felt like something other people were enjoying and that maybe I should give more attention to. That’s when I decided to make it a brand and really double down on my passion for sharing my suggestions for this city that I love so much. I then made a blog with weekly articles and later a weekly podcast interviewing people that have interesting connections or ties with Los Angeles.
What is the most rewarding thing about the community you’ve created?
I really believe that ‘like attracts like’. So the most rewarding thing about creating this community has been attracting and getting to know other people who have the same passion as I do. That’s enjoying all the positive things about living in Los Angeles and being on a constant mission to go out and explore and experience as much as we can. Some people might think it’s weird to drive all over SoCal trying to find all these places and take photos and stuff and that’s OK. This isn’t for them. But for the people who do enjoy that, they have a place and a community to go to now and meet people who have the same passion. So that’s been the most rewarding.
What are your favorite places and restaurants in LA?
Wow. This is an unbelievably tough question because there are so many, but I guess it’s only fair because I ask my guests some of these same tough types of questions. As much as I love hidden gems and new hotspots, I also love the history of LA, so hanging out at the classics is probably my favorite even though some of them are considered touristy.
For bar or speakeasy, I’m going to go with Clifton’s Cafeteria or The Edison.
For beach towns, I’ll say Hermosa… I absolutely love the laid back vibes and all the bars on the boardwalk by the Pier. For food, there are hundreds I love! But I’m going to go with another classic: Grand Central Market in DTLA. For the energy and the fact that there is something for everyone to enjoy, so you can go with friends and everyone is happy. For a morning hike with a spectacular view, I’m going to go with the Griffith Observatory and Captains Roost.
What is something about LA that people don’t know much about?
One of the first things people say about LA is how spread out everything is and how you absolutely need a car to live here. Of course this is true, things are spread out and it would be tough to explore and get to work with no car. But Los Angeles is actually a very walkable city! But it’s just in chunks. If you go to one part of the city and try to get to another in the same day, you will be spending lots of time in traffic! However, if you spend most of your day in one area you will have to do very little driving. Most of the best areas are extremely walkable. For example: For shopping and eats’ Abbot Kinney, Melrose or Sawtelle. Very walkable areas. Or hang out all day in Little Tokyo and parts of the Arts District nearby. Of course you could spend multiple days walking and exploring different parts of Downtown. And there are so many more examples.
So yes, you probably need a car in LA, BUT it actually has parts that are extremely walkable. And that’s something most people either don’t know or talk about when it comes to Los Angeles.
What are your top 5 must-see/must-do’s in LA?
Ok, another tough one because not only is there so much, but it also depends on what someone is into and what they have seen before. So I’m going to answer this question like its a recommendation for a tourist that has never been here before. My number one recommendation for tourists is to always plan to spend each day in one general area. If you try to go to Malibu the same day as Hollywood you will spend most of that time in traffic. So here is my top 5 suggestions based on that.
1) Spend a day in Venice and Santa Monica. During the day you can bike ride from Venice Boardwalk to Santa Monica Pier. Stopping for eats and drinks along the way. Hit up the Santa Monica Pier at night and go to the Promenade area for dinner.
2) Griffith Park Observatory. I’d suggest another day in Griffith Park. You can go hiking, check out the Observatory and hang out in nearby Los Feliz or Burbank after for great eats and other activities. For dinner Castaway in Burbank is awesome with unbelievable views and a speakeasy bar.
3) Spend a day in MidCity. Here you can find the LACMA, Little Ethiopia, the Grove, Original Farmers Market, Melrose and more just a few minutes apart. At night, you can go to nearby Koreatown for some of the best bars, restaurants and late night entertainment in LA.
4) Spend a day in DTLA and the Arts District. There is so much to see here, so you will have to choose an area. For DTLA you could go to Grand Central Market, Angeles Flight, California Plaza, MOCA, Disney Concert Hall and Grand Park on one long walk. So that might be the choice if you’re only here for a day. For the Arts District, go at night for dinner because it’s where many of the top notch restaurants are.
5) Lastly, I would probably go with Malibu. I’ve left out so many other incredible areas but Malibu really is special and you will need a whole day to enjoy it. Get up early to beat traffic and to enjoy those views on PCH as you make your way down to Malibu. You can stop at iconic spots like Neptune’s Net, Malibu Pier, and Malibu Country Mart for lunch. So many incredible beaches, but I would go to el Matador for beauty, and Zuma where you might spot some dolphins. At night for dinner, go eat on the water at somewhere like Dukes, Nobu, Moon Shadows or Geoffrey’s
What’s your favorite neighborhood in LA and why?
I lived in a few and I love to visit them all but for me, the South Bay is my favorite. I live here now and it really matches my personality and vibes. It’s a little more laid back and less congested and of course you’re right by the beaches. It’s also usually 5-10 degrees cooler than most of LA. Now the South Bay itself is a collection of neighborhoods like Redondo, Torrance, Carson, Palos Verdes (PV), Hermosa, Manhattan, el Segundo, San Pedro, etc.. and much like Los Angeles, each neighborhood has its own personality. But overall, the entire South Bay shares some similarities in the lifestyle and vibes and that’s why I would choose it as my favorite.
In your opinion, what’s the best place to watch the sunset in LA?
From DTLA rooftops to Hollywood Hills hikes and beach Piers, there are many incredible places to watch a sunset in LA. But for me, nothing beats the sunset in Palos Verdes. Palos Verdes is up in the hills above Redondo and Torrance and it features unbelievable ocean views. There are also gorgeous cliffs and on a clear day, you can see all the way out to Malibu and Catalina Island. At sunset, it really looks like a perfect postcard. If you want to watch the sunset in Palos Verdes, a great place to go is the Queen’s Necklace Overlook, Point Vicente Park and Lighthouse or Founders Park.
Can you tell me about the monthly meet-ups?
We have built an awesome audience on Instagram with over 128k followers, but I knew that eventually I wanted to build a smaller community offline for our most passionate LA Hackers. A community where we could meet and do some of these great LA activities together. So I created the LA Hackers Club. As a member, you get a text every Friday morning with our top suggestions to do that weekend in LA. And it also includes freebies, discounts and giveaways. You also get added to our private stories on Instagram where we share extra specials secrets and updates about the club.
Finally, and what I’m most proud of is, we host monthly meetups for club members only. We typically do these meetups at iconic LA places that we all love. We have done a “Hallo-Wine Hike at Malibu Wines, a foodie day at Smorgasburg, a Game night at Two Bit Circus and many more. And the meetups are only going to get more epic as I’ve started to work with the venues to give us a special, one of a kind access. So it’s a unique experience for members that they can’t get anywhere else. For example, our next meetup is at one of the most famous and iconic bars/speakeasies in LA. They are giving our group a private tour of the historic venue, giving us our own private space and waiving the cover charge to enter for our members that night.
The crazy thing is this membership is only $5 a month —- a pretty good value if you love LA experiences. We will probably have to raise that soon though because the more people that join, the more expensive it is to run. And we also want to keep the membership limited and exclusive. So you definitely want to jump in soon if you’re interested. https://lifehacksla.com/jointheclub
It really makes me happy when I see all the people who met through the club and now have become close friends.
Whether you join the club or not, I really recommend everyone out there who lives in and loves Los Angeles to take advantage of all this city has to offer. Explore and experience all there is to do and always keep hacking LA!
Make sure to keep up with Stefan’s latest LA adventures!
