Duration: from sunrise to sunset
Itinerary: Downtown LA to Pacific Palisades, crossing Beverly Hills, Fairfax and Venice Beach
Equipment: your helmet, a windbreaker for the evening, to be stored in the under-seat compartment
Meet the innovative Vespa Elettrica
It's a glorious, radiant mid-morning in LA and the sun envelops the hearts and souls of the Angelenos. Downtown is a bustling area featuring renowned art museums, cutting-edge restaurants, and modern architecture. In a city where traffic is a staple, the Art District offers a breath of fresh air. Relax on a wooden bench, surrounded by super colorful murals, sip a delicious hibiscus and lime drink with your stylish Vespa Elettrica, the most ecological proposal of all the range, by your side.
Connectivity, sustainability, silence are not only its main features but also the words of the future. The under-seat compartment accommodates the helmet and the battery recharge cable which makes it is ready in just 4 hours. Let's go!
Savor art and food in the Art District
The first stop of your journey will be right in the heart of the Art District, at Bestia, a popular Italian restaurant proposing innovative seasonal fare; its desserts are superb. A few blocks away, the Fashion District is also the home of a glitzy Italian enoteca style restaurant, Rossoblu.
Here, chef Steve Samson proposes Bolognese inspired food, topped with homemade pasta and Italian wines. The Stone Fruit Panzanella, a toasted ciabatta bread served with Tuscan kale, plums, peaches, fennel, and roasted apricot vinaigrette, is a perfect appetizer to start a lavish gourmet experience. The restaurant also offers orecchiette pasta with lamb ragù and shredded pecorino and milk-braised pork shoulder with caramelized cabbage and pickled cherries. A Sunday afternoon menu is also available for late-night party-goers and food-lovers, eager to try sweet corn Crespelle with brown butter, sage, Parmesan cheese, and ricotta.
Nimbly drive the Vespa through Hollywood glamour and Italian heritage
Heading West, riding the most popular scooter in the world, say hi to the Hollywood sign powerfully overlooking the city of Los Angeles at Western Avenue. Through Beverly Boulevard reach another Italian landmark for excellent cuisine and savoir-faire: Angelini Osteria, at 7313 Beverly Blvd. The restaurant has been a pioneer for many Italian dishes in Los Angeles, including its famous Linguine Sea Urchin and the sought-after Spaghetti Norcina. The family-owned Osteria also manages Angelini Alimentari, a gourmet dining concept featuring light California-Italian inspired breakfast, lunch and dinner proposals with a focus on pickup and delivery. Warm hospitality in a more secluded way is available in the private dining area in a courtyard patio. Enjoy its Mediterranean atmosphere tasting the cold-cut selection available with the Salumi Board, featuring Parma ham, mortadella, salami, fresh burrata, and mixed baby greens. As a main course, you can order lemon-infused homemade pasta with cream, cheese, and basil.
If you are a fish gourmet, the Whole Mediterranean Branzino roasted in sea salt, and aromatic herbs is the ideal choice. In the same neighborhood, Jon and Vinny’s Fairfax is another fantastic eatery whose specialties are morning pastries and innovative pizzas.
With Vespa Elettrica up the hills to Rodeo Drive
It's a hot day in LA. The feeling for a long drive having fun on your faithful Vespa is intense, therefore find time for some leisure moments. Drive-up on La Cienega and reach Beverly Hills. Park your Vespa to the rhythm of the "Pretty Woman" soundtrack and indulge in a bit of movie-like, trendsetting, window shopping. Then get on Sunset Blvd (a name, a promise), quickly crossing paths with The Getty Center and say hello to Vincenti Ristorante, at 11930 San Vicente Blvd, a high-end Italian hub with a wood-burning oven and an extensive wine list. For nearly two decades, the restaurant has intensified gastronomic sensations by presenting Italian excellence in the exclusive neighborhood of Brentwood. We suggest that you try Master Chef Nicola Mastronardi's award-winning dishes. Benvenuto!
The menu revolves around fresh, seasonal products and while some ingredients are imported directly from Italy, most of them are sourced from the finest local producers. We genuinely recommend Gnocchi with zucchini flowers, topped with grated summer black truffle and the Sonoma County duck dish, with sautéed spinach, and roasted potatoes.
Every Monday it's pizza night: if you feel like being alternative, order a pizza Bianca, served without tomato sauce, hence white, and topped with earthy artichokes, burrata, zucchini flowers, and ham.
Reach up for the sky at sunset
California, synonymous with sun-kissed skin and hair, surfing life and the ocean; where else can you end your Vespa journey if not along the coast? Get your windbreaker previously stored in the practical under-seat compartment: the desert climate can be quite chilly in the evening. Head towards Venice Beach, the bohemian beach town in Western LA, and on the way stop at the Lodge Bread Company and pick up a sourdough whole-grain loaf to toast for breakfast the next morning. A good reminder that eating healthy is as vital as being eco-friendly. By the free-spirited Venice Boardwalk, with its street performers and funky shops, there is another exciting restaurant, Felix, inspired by the culinary traditions of regional Italy and enriched with ingredients grown by California’s most celebrated family farms. Finally drive your much-loved scooter on Pacific Palisades to get to splendid Malibu, home to the rich and famous and sandy beaches. Stop at Tramonto Bistro – it is that time of the day, sunset – at 22235 Pacific Coast Hwy, a posh Italian eatery with a warm, Tuscan vibe with Pacific Ocean views. Enjoy a glass of wine from their exclusive wine list, then relax for a bit observing the magnificence of nature.
Breath in and let go!