Ushering in a new age in a timeless space

What was it about Musso and Frank Grill in Hollywood that inspired my daughter to celebrate her 21st birthday there?

For that matter, what was it about this historic restaurant on Hollywood Blvd. that drew Charlie Chaplin to race his horse down the street so he could occupy his favorite booth by the window, or Ernest Hemingway to find refuge at its bar?

Musso and Frank feels like home. Warm, calming and cozy, it’s the kind of place where you exhale as soon as you enter its beautiful dark green front door.

Just like with classic Hollywood movies, a timeless space like Musso’s transcends generations and invites us all to merge with the history that came before us.

Musso’s celebrated its 101st anniversary this year, and continues to thrive as the oldest restaurant in Hollywood. Outside its doors you’ll find a bustling Hollywood Blvd. that’s in many ways worse for ware, but inside Musso’s, time has stopped.

Despite its upscale glamour, Musso and Frank Grill isn’t pretentious. The long, dark-wood bar under wallpaper that’s a mural of a Tuscan hillside has a quiet dignity - people huddled in booths, the buzz of muted conversations.

Just opening that front door, you know you’re walking in the footsteps of history.

Marilyn Monroe sought out this elegant hospitality when she frequently relaxed in booth three. Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin had an affinity for booth one.

On any given night, in many different time periods, you might find Orson Welles, Humphrey Bogart, William Faulkner or F. Scott Fitzgerald enjoying a cocktail and their favorite dish. CineMontage

In the back is the oldest phone booth in Hollywood, where who knows how many Hollywood legends made frantic calls to their agents.

Like my newly 21-year-old daughter, the filmmakers of today can see their future in Hollywood as having deep roots in the creative artists of the past who made

movies using limited tools and archaic filmmaking technique, and who created something akin to magic. No digital effects. No $300 million budgets. There’s inspiration in these walls.

And you don’t have to look far to find Musso’s popping up on your TV or movie screen.  It’s been in everything from the Buster Keaton film Cops (1922) to Sex and the City (2000), La La Land (2016) and Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood (2019).

Walking into Musso’s, we let out a breath, settle in and are greeted by the long-established staff who have greeted some of the most important people in Hollywood, but treat every guest with kindness and professionalism.

What better way to kick off a new age than with the timeless elegance of Musso and Frank Grill? And with its amazing créme bruleé!