Imagine a place with French style and a sprinkle of Hollywood glamour and you’ve got yourself the Stone Rose Lounge at the Sofitel Hotel Los Angeles. Run by Rande Gerber, you can only expect excellence. If being married to Cindy Crawford isn’t cool enough, him and his brother Scott run the Gerber Group; one of the most influential and innovative restaurant/bar/lounge groups in the nightlife industry. With 27 locations from New York to LA, Chicago to Fort Lauderdale, and Madrid to Santiago (including many more), and host to some of the most high profile personalities, they are definitely doing everything right. They have certainly come a long way from their first location, The Whiskey, at the Paramount Hotel in New York City, some 20 years ago.
Enough about the Gerber’s and onto the Stone Rose Lounge, itself. The orange velvet couches and dark woods give off a cozy, yet classy feel that carry into the hotel hall. The music overhead perfectly complements the overall mood of the lounge. Just outdoors is an inviting seating area with comfortable couches that are perfect for a warm Los Angeles night.
While sitting in this posh lounge mingling with your friends, you will be impressed by the menu’s extensive specialty drink list. While reading the ingredients in each cocktail, you will want to try each and every one of them. From a variety of fresh fruits to high quality liquors, they have their bases covered. You can tell that the mixologists behind these drinks are pretty creative.
One of their many tasty drinks is ‘Love Potion #9.’ Maybe that’s why I fell in love with every drink I laid my eyes on! For those of you who don’t know, Love Potion #9 is a song by a 50’s group called the Clovers. The song describes a man who is told by a gypsy that he needs Love Potion #9, a concoction that will enable him to fall in love with everything he sees. I won’t tell you if this drink yielded the same results for me…you’ll have to find out for yourself! P.S. don’t go trying to find the gypsy on 34th and Vine..this intersection doesn’t exist…at least not in LA.
The potion is made with Stolichnaya Vanil Vodka, Watermelon Pucker, cranberry juice, pineapple juice, and champagne. With a sweet taste, I couldn’t help but feel like I was sipping on a liquid version of a watermelon jolly rancher.
Another one of their innovative specialty drinks is the ‘Bon Bon‘, meaning double goodness! Bon=Good. The term bon bon comes from the 17th century french royal court. But who thinks of that?…I know all I think of is Lucy Ricardo stuffing as many as she can into her mouth as she is working on the candy assembly line.
The Bon Bon is made with Chambord, Amaretto, Frangelico, chocolate syrup, cream, and fresh raspberries. It is most certainly dessert in a glass. You get just enough pieces of raspberries in every sip. I shouldn’t forget to mention that this is very very sweet.
After drinking the Love Potion #9 and the Bon Bon, and not wanting to get too tipsy, I decided to stop and give my palate a rest. When I go back next time to try the ‘Smores’, ‘Grapefruit Basil Martini’, and the ‘Black Raspberry Cosmo,’ my taste buds will be rested and ready!
Stone Rose Lounge, inside the Sofitel Hotel Los Angeles, 8555 Beverly Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90048
