Los Angeles has had its fair share of legendary clubs over the years, but perhaps no club over the past two decades looms as large as The Roxbury, which eventually was lampooned in a large studio movie starring Saturday Night Live's Will Ferrell ( see "A Night At The Roxbury").
Now, original owner Elie Samaha has brought back the club...sort of. Samaha has opened a new Roxbury, this time in the heart of Hollywood. And while the club has had a few nights over the past month, expect things to really kick into high gear beginning tonight, according to the nightclub owner.
"Tonight is going to be the real start," said Samaha today of the new bar behind Hemingway's by phone. "There is nothing like it in Hollywood. Back in the 1990s, all the action was in West Hollywood. But now Hollywood is the hub for all the clubs, so we just moved the name to Hollywood."
So what does the new Roxbury (at 1616 Ivar) look like?
"When you walk in, you're going to see thousands of plants and a huge patio. You'll see a boulder that was brought in from Arizona that took two months to get here. The bar is one big boulder and we have other incredible design features. It's a unique club. When I did Roxbury in the old days [on Sunset Blvd], I didn't have very much money to spend. This time, 20 years later, it's different."
Already, names such as Kobe Bryant have made the scene at the new Roxbury, and Samaha promises a big celebrity-filled night tonight and an even more star-studded Grammy weekend soon at the venue, which is only open Friday and Tuesday nights for now, with more nights planned for the months ahead.
And just like the old Roxbury, there will be a savage velvet rope. "Only 300 or so will make it in the door," says Samaha. "I don't care who you are, if you're a guy and you only have one girl with you, you're not getting in...if you have three or four with you, you're welcome."
When it comes to the Roxbury, some things never change.
